Miami Valley Raceway is set to kick off its ninth season of live racing on Monday, Jan. 3, with a new weekly schedule and a new 4:05 p.m. (EST) matinee post time each day. Programs will be presented five consecutive days each week from Sunday through Thursday, with no racing on Fridays (other than qualifiers) or Saturdays. Only exceptions will be dark days on Super Bowl Sunday and Easter Sunday, as well as an earlier post time on closing day Saturday, May 7 (Kentucky Derby Day).
The Monday (Jan. 3) lidlifter features a $30,000 Open Trot in the 11th of 14 races. Purses for the day are $176,000, just a hair below the average daily purse disbursement target for the meet. Day two of the meet, on Tuesday (Jan. 4), will feature another 14-race card with total purses of $171,500.
The Open Trot includes three winners of over $130,000 in 2021, headed by the six-year-old trotting mare Refined (Mitch Cushing), who had $190,040 in seasonal earnings. The Virgil Morgan Jr.-trained daughter of Uncle Peter drew the nine hole in a 10-horse field. Stablemate Street Gossip (Brett Miller) banked $181,784 last year, while Pick Me Upper (Tony Hall) from the Walter Haynes Jr. barn earned $130,384 including back-to-back Open victories at the recently concluded Hollywood Dayton meet.
The co-feature on Monday will be a highly competitive group of high conditions pacing mares chasing a $17,500 purse. Camera Lady (Tyler Smith), Pace Baby Pace (Chris Page), Cult Icon (Trace Tetrick) and Princess Rougarou (Dan Noble) are expected to attract most of the public's attention according to morning-line oddsmaker Rick Gleason.
The $30,000 Mares Open Pace for Tuesday did not fill but is expected to next week. A full field of 10 mares, who fit the newly-created non-winners of $12,000 in last 4 starts or non-winners of 10 pari-mutuel races, will compete for the lion's share of a $20,000 purse. Marloe Hanover (Brett Miller), Racing Glory (Jeremy Smith) and Seventimesacharm (John DeLong) have been installed as morning line favorites.
A pair of $15,000 divisions of $20,000 claimers are included on the undercard.
All 10 of the top drivers on the southern Ohio harness racing circuit (Miami Valley, Scioto Downs & Dayton Raceway) have relocated their tack for the coming meet, in addition to four of nearby Hoosier Park's top reinsmen. The driving colony at Miami Valley is one of the strongest and most competitive in the country.
(Miami Valley Raceway)