When legislators and Gov. Phil Murphy said ‘yes’ to a $20 million yearly appropriation to support horse racing in the State of New Jersey, Garden State horsepeople were predictably pleased that the purses they would go for would increase considerably.

But would the fans react in a way that would make one think harness racing’s lifeline would lengthen? Thus far, the answer is a resounding ‘Yes!’

The Meadowlands has been able to withstand the yearly opening of Pennsylvania’s harness venues unscathed; having been able to battle them on a level playing field for the precious horse population with purses that have experienced two significant increases in the last two months.

The proof? Last Saturday (April 20), ‘Big M’ players wagered $3,046,148 on the 13-race card, as betting exceeded the $3 million mark for the seventh time this year. In addition, over the course of the 32 race cards contested at the Meadowlands in 2019, twenty-nine have seen handle of at least $2.5 million.

Big fields and big competition in evenly-matched races are what the Big M faithful crave.

“Over the last four racing programs, only nine favourites have won from 52 races,” said track COO/GM Jason Settlemoir. “The current percentage of winning favourites at the Meadowlands is 38. Of harness tracks currently racing, the median percentage is 46. In fact, our 38 per cent compares right there with some of the top Thoroughbred tracks. Often, the knock on harness racing is how easily horses make the lead and win, but we’ve had great racing with non-stop action, which makes it possible for horses to win from anywhere.”

According to Brisnet, Santa Anita (36 per cent), Tampa Bay (36) and Gulfstream (37) are right there with the Big M when it comes to winning chalks.

Last Friday (April 19), despite bad weather that arrived early in the evening, the action was plentiful.

A new wagering high was established in the Can-Am Pick-4, which saw $65,333 in action. Those who went four-for-four cashed in for $87.17 for the bet with the 20-Cent base wager and low 15 per cent takeout.

One lucky patron wagering on the Meadowlands' signal into the Oregon hub went home with a huge smile on his or her face in the 13th race 20-Cent Jackpot Super High-Five. After 10-1 shot Knightofvictory held off 5-2 favourite Prince Of Minto after a stirring stretch duel, that player holding the only ticket with the winning combination of 6-8-1-10-3 cashed in for $68,059.

When live action resumes Friday at 7:15 p.m., racing fans will have a big carryover to shoot for, as the ‘other’ 20-Cent Jackpot Super High-Five will start out with $82,307 in the hat in race five.

For 20-Cent Can-Am Pick-4 and Meadowlands’ 50-Cent Pick-4 players, free program pages are available at playmeadowlands.com and ustrotting.com.

Saturday’s $3-million night was highlighted by the eighth race, when a total of $341,302 was pushed through the windows, with the always-prolific 50-Cent Pick-4 accounting for $116,859 of the pot. Only once in 2019 has the Pick-4 had a larger pool, when $134,614 was put in play on March 2.

(Meadowlands Racetrack)