General Manager Robert Locke spoke with Trot Insider about how Hiawatha Horse Park is trying to reach out to new fans by introducing a different type of horsepower to the Sarnia oval.
Earlier this month, Hiawatha hosted the 4th Annual Festival of Horsepower, which is run by Steve Beattie. The event featured Harley Davidson dirt track racing competing at speeds over 100 mph on the five-eighths mile racetrack.
On September 28, Hiawatha will host the second portion of the Festival presenting Supermoto and Mini Thunder racing in the facility's parking lot.
"At Hiawatha, we're always trying to do different events to promote horse racing," Locke told Trot Insider. "We're trying to get people out to the site all the time and also to promote the slots because obviously with more people playing the slots it enhances the purses, which means that there's definitely more money for the horsemen.
"We've always done everything we can to provide the best possible place and one of our main marketing themes is to get as many people out to the track as possible, and not necessarily always horse racing fans. The only way that we can convert people into horseracing fans is to get them out for other events so that they can see what a great property we have and get rid of some of the misconceptions of being old cement buildings that only men come to, basically. So we're trying to constantly break through that and expose as many people as possible to the track as we can."
Locke says the events generally draw in about 3,000 to 4,000 people in attendance.
"The big thing is the Harley Davidson flat track races. We had it clocked at 126mph around the racetrack."
Locke says that the motorcycle races do not cause any real damage to the racetrack. Following the events, proper maintenance is scheduled. The track is graded down and more stone is added to ensure that it is safe for the horsemen.
"[The racers] like our track because it's so wide. It's wider than normal racetracks and our curves are banked also. It's actually one of the best tracks for them to race on, but we just do it once a year."
Known for being one of the fastest five-eighths mile tracks in Canada, Hiawatha Horse Park witnessed a world record in 2007 as two-year-old filly pacer Voelz Hanover paced a mile in 1:51.3 in an Ontario Sires Stakes Gold Final.