The weather was cool but blue skies saw a very busy crowd witness the Kentucky Derby and stay for Hanover Raceway's Prime Rib buffet and first live harness racing card of the season on Saturday

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Trainer/driver Terry Fritz started his season with a win in Race 1 driving RM Rubicon to victory in 2:01.1 for owner Ron Parker of Teeswater, Ont.

Three of last year's award winners also won their races tonight including the 2008 Horse of the Year CWs Special (1:56.1) trained by Ken Fritsch for owners Pat and Carol Dwyer of Elmwood, Ont., Hangin By A Moment (2:00.1) conditioned by Brian Lawrence for Mike Foerster of Elmira, Ont., and Sauble Jackson (1:59.4) trained and owned by Larry Hall of Tara, Ont.

One of the most exciting finishes and one of the biggest payoffs on the card occurred in Race 2 when Pc Troubadour (2:04) circled the field to victory on the last lap and paid $11.80 to win.

Despite three refunds due to unfair starts, Hanover fans bet almost $18,000 dollars on the opening card, including over $1,500 dollars via the internet. General Manager Gord Dougan says he is very pleased with the results and looks forward to growing the business both live and on the internet in the future. Dougan says he was especially pleased considering the very cool temperatures, but was happy it didn’t rain.

Hanover Raceway’s next live harness card is Saturday May 9th, with a post time of 7:15 p.m. Ladies who attend will get a chance to enter draws for special prizes courtesy of the Dolce Vita spa, and from the Flower Shoppe and Greenhouse, both in Hanover.

To view Saturday's results, click here.

(With files from Hanover Raceway)