Dresden Raceway will launch its 2024 harness racing season this Sunday, May 26 with an eight-race card set for post time at 1 p.m.
Defending driving champion Garrett Rooney and top trainer Robert Doyle will both be back in action on Opening Day of the Dresden, Ont. track's 2024 racing season. The feature race on the program is a $4,600 conditioned pace, scheduled to close out the afternoon, with 23-time winner Takeyourbreathaway the morning line favourite of five for driver Scott Wray and trainer Darryl Laver. All the action can be viewed up close and on the raceway's new high-definition toteboard.
Doors open at 12 noon for Opening Day, which has been dubbed Ladies Day with the popular "Kentucky Derby-Style Hat Day" where patrons are asked to wear their fanciest hat to the track, with an opportunity to win gift baskets. In between races, draws will be held for gift cards from Home Depot, Rona, Walmart and Canadian Tire. Fans can enjoy a mint julep or a homemade Caesar cocktail and play cornhole between the races. Prizes will also be given away in between every race from local sponsors, including McKellar's Flowers, Subway, The Track Kitchen, Mario's Pizza, Dresden Foodland, Dominos, JMHI, Boston Pizza and more.
Dresden Raceway will host 11 race dates during its 2024 meet on Sundays running through July in addition to Canada Day on Monday, July 1 and the Civic Holiday on Monday, Aug. 5. Highlights of the meet will include the Mark Austin Memorial Pace finals on June 16, a leg of the Ontario Sires Stakes Grassroots Series on July 1, the Ken Houston Memorial Pace on July 7 and a day honouring horsemen Dean Stevens and James Snelgrove on June 23.
Effective June 2, 2024, horsepeople wishing to race horses currently on the Lasix program can stay on Lasix and enter those horses at Dresden.
To view Sunday's harness racing entries, click the following link: Sunday Entries - Dresden Raceway // Program Pages (courtesy TrackIT).
(Standardbred Canada)