Fair Grounds Open For 2007-08 Thoroughbred Race Meet

Posted on Thursday, November 22nd, 2007

Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans once again opened on Thanksgiving Day for the 136th running of its 81-day Thoroughbred race meeting. Horse racing fans will encounter a number of improvements to the nation’s third-oldest track which includes 245 slot machines.

Since closing its doors last spring, every digit of the infield tote board has been replaced with easy-to-read LED displays. An entirely new sharply defined video tote board has been installed in the paddock, and 14,000 square feet of rubberized pavers made from shredded tires have been added at ground level to make up a new, improved paddock surface. Also, new seats have been installed in all 72 clubhouse boxes.

The changes fans may notice the most, however, are the ones still ongoing. A permanent slot-machine gaming facility, which will house up to 700 machines, will be located adjacent to the east end of the grandstand with a targeting opening of November 2008. As a result, two of the three main public entrances to the facility and the normal valet parking area will not be in use this season.

The temporary slots facility, which opened in September and houses 245 of the most popular reel and video products on the slot-machine market, is located on the first floor of the building adjacent to the grandstand that was previously used for year-round simulcasting.

For the first time on the wagering menu at Fair Grounds for the 2007-2008 meeting, minimum bets of less than $1 will be offered on two wagers â€“ a 10-cent minimum superfecta and a 50-cent Pick 4.

During winter, the Fair Grounds has two prime competitors for top barns: Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Florida., and Oaklawn Park at Hot Springs, Arkansas. Both had a head start in using gambling machine proceeds to boost purses.

Video poker and video blackjack have been running for about a year at Oaklawn Park, which estimated $1.5 million will be added from the machines to purses at its next meet. Gulfstream Park, which also got slots about a year ago, hasn’t decided how large a boost its purses will get, spokesman Mike Mullaney said.

"If you look at the state of Louisiana, the other three tracks have had slots for several years,” Fair Grounds President Randy Soth said. “It’s a matter of not only being competitive in your in-state market, but competing for horsemen during the winter racing season.”

In the racing world, tracks with the fattest purses stand the best chance of getting barns with the superior horses — along with the largest betting handles. The Fair Grounds meet, which runs through March 23, starts with an average of $350,000 a day in purses.

The Fair Grounds plans 64 stakes races, including 10 graded races that will be mostly concentrated on two programs. The races carry a combined $7.3 million in purses.

The big day will be March 8, when the track will stage the $600,000 Louisiana Derby, its Kentucky Derby prep at 1 1/16 miles, and the Fair Grounds Oaks, a prep for the Kentucky Oaks at 1 1/16 miles. Other graded stakes on that program include the $500,000 Mervin H. Muniz Memorial Handicap for older horses at 1 1/8 miles on the turf and the $500,000 New Orleans Handicap for older horses at 1 1/8 miles.

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"Fair Grounds Open For 2007-08 Thoroughbred Race Meet" was posted on Thursday, November 22nd, 2007 at 9:47 am and is filed under Fair Grounds, Horse Racing Industry, Race Tracks News, USA Horse Racing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.