Leamington Raceway kicks off its 2021 meet this Sunday and announcer Nathan Bain is looking forward to the new season.
“I’m very excited. It’s nice to see everyone back and to be allowed more fans this year," said Bain. "It will be great to see the familiar, smiling faces along the fence.”
The current rules allow up to 1,200 fans at the track, but those in attendance will have to follow the current COVID-19 protocols put in place.
“This year fans don’t need to pre-register, so they can just show up to the track," explained Bain. "They just need to do a screening at the gate and maintain six feet of distance from other parties. Masks will need to be worn when not seated as well.”
The post time has changed this summer and has moved earlier to 1 p.m. Eastern. The change comes with the hope to help spread out the harness racing going on in Ontario on Sunday afternoons. Bain thinks the move will help Leamington Raceway capitalize on the opening.
“The problem was Clinton goes at 1:30 p.m. as well," he noted. "We are the only two Ontario tracks going Sunday afternoon, so it does not make sense to go at the exact same time. We’re also trying to get a Pick 5 added so we need the first race to start at a strong time.”
Leamington Raceway had made several renovations and improvements to the grounds this offseason.
“It was mostly in the backstretch," explained Bain. "We built a new paddock a few years ago and we ran out of money for the washrooms. [So we] added very expensive state-of-the-art washrooms. We added new concrete in front of the paddock along with a new office for the paddock judge. We also had to do some additions to our test barn. We added new paint all over and we had to add two new stalls because Sunday will be our first day we have the Lasix program.”
The thought behind providing Lasix at Leamington Raceway will hopefully gain the attention of horsepeople who compete at other tracks that already offer the program.
“A lot of horses in the area are bleeders and they would have to drive hours to race at a track that offers the program. Also, when Lasix horses come to Leamington, they [will be] able to race to their full potential so this will hopefully help the betting as well.”
Bain’s top betting choice of the day is Dragon Teen, who races in the first race. The three-year-old pacing colt has impressed the young announcer and he expects him to have a good race to kick off the season.
“He’s been really solid since joining Don Rankin’s barn," said Bain. "He won a Prospect Series race at Sarnia [in mid-July], and he faces an easier class in this one. He’s shown a lot of late speed and hasn’t missed the ticket at all lately.”
Dragon Teen has already won three times this year and the fastest mile was his 1:56.1 series win, which took place at Hiawatha Horse Park.
Leamington Raceway has 10 races slated for Opening Day, with full fields in every race. The track is scheduled to host live harness racing every Sunday afternoon until October 31. Leamington Raceway will host the Prospect Series on August 8, August 15, August 22, and September 12. Every card of racing will be available to wager on through HPIbet.com across Canada.
To view Sunday's harness racing entries, click on the following link: Sunday Entries - Leamington Raceway.
(A Trot Insider Exclusive by Trey Colbeck)