Officials with Kawartha Downs have discussed their frustration over the Ontario Racing Commission’s decision not to grant the Fraserville, Ont. track more race dates for the 2015 season of live horse racing.
In an article by the Peterborough Examiner, the track’s communications manager, Heather MacKay Roberts, has said that “it’s frustrating news” that the ORC is proposing the Peterborough-area raceway only play host to 18 dates of live racing this year, the same amount that Kawartha held during its successful 2014 season.
MacKay Roberts explained that Kawartha officials were hoping that the raceway would be granted more live race dates this season based on the fact that the track was successful in 2014 even after having faced well-reported uncertainty leading up to the campaign.
The report has quoted MacKay Roberts as saying that Kawartha’s “attendance and handle last year was second only to Woodbine” and that track officials “were led to believe we were going to be rewarded for that.”
MacKay Roberts went on to state that because behind-the-scenes developments happened so late in the spring and so quickly leading up to Kawartha’s 2014 season, track officials didn't have a formal structure that 25 dates of live racing were going to be the schedule for the track every year going forward. “We had 18 last year and were hoping to go to 26 this year,” she said.
MacKay Roberts also told the Peterborough Examiner that track officials are hoping that the ORC may grant Kawartha more live race dates around the end of the track’s schedule, which is currently October 3.
(With files from the Peterborough Examiner)
KD is needed for 2 reasons-
KD is needed for 2 reasons- not every horse can race on a half mile track and there is a large fan base in the area- most from the cottage crowd. That builds new betters who may show interest and become owners.
The staff at KD did a GREAT job last year.
We are a long way from being "OK" for Ontario racing and I don't see a strong enough effort being put forward at all tracks like the all out effort Kawartha did last year.
Give them the asked for May dates AND the October dates AND if economical 5 Thursdays in mid summer with simulcast out to see if the bet would come.
Lets keep working at it
Lets keep working at it folks! It is a fun place to race and the people in the grandstand really enjoy themselves!
I read KD gets 18 days again.
I read KD gets 18 days again. Then I see they wanted 26 days! Then I read they want to drop 3 days in Oct! So do they have 15 now? Holy moly who's driving this train! Did anyone expect the ORC to do anything for eastern ONT horsemen? Not! All that's important is western ONT & Woodbine!
Here you have a track that
Here you have a track that wants more dates and they say no. What about Georgian Downs? The ORC should demand that they have more race dates, but don't.
Last year the government
Last year the government threw us a bone, with a little bit of meat on it. Well at least we were racing. This year they threw us the same bone and theres no more meat left on it. We chewed it all off last year. Good news there's a five year deal for racing at Kawartha Downs, little did we as horsemen know it was going to be the same deal year after year for five years. Just shoot me now, with luck I won't feel it. It would be better then the anguish of wondering what I'm going to do for the next fours years living in central Ontario.