Hi Blog! Just around the corner from our campground here in Campbellville, Ontario, is the Mohawk Race Track. The track is so close we can walk over via a service road. Last week, we took our morning coffee and wandered over to see the facilities. The complex is divided into two parts - a horse racing track and casino.
The morning we arrived there were no races scheduled, so the track was closed, but the casino never closes. We avoided temptation and kept to our fact finding mission. We did learn a few things about the track. It was originally built by the Ontario Jockey Club back in 1881 to improve the quality of horse racing near Toronto. It also hosts the country's biggest harness racing event, the North America Cup. As it turns out, the North America Cup would be held on Saturday, June 14, 2014. This is a big deal and we'll be in town and able to see it. This one mile pace event for three year olds pays $1,000,000, plus bragging rights and a trophy. Here is a photo of Kathy admiring the cup (center trophy with blue and white enamel).
There was also on display a number of historic photos and a traditional sulky. Kathy tried to pick up a few tips from the model horse, but his lips were sealed. Neither of us had ever been to a harness racing event before and thought it would make for a great adventure and, of course, a great thing to blog about. Let the adventure begin.
Saturday, June 14th brought us blue skies and puffy white clouds. We spent the morning looking at the on-line race schedule and reading up on all the different ways you can lose money on a horse race. We were going to walk over, but Kathy found out she had a stress fracture in her right foot and ended up in an air cast. So, we jumped on our bikes to minimize the commute.
One tip we did pick up from the track security officer was to come early. The fun starts at 5:00, but he told us to get there around 4:30 since the track was running a promotion. If you signed up for an electronic money card, you got a free ball cap and $2.00 already loaded on your card. That's the kind of deal an RVer just can't pass up. Just show us where to line up. We used the time standing in line to study the program and asked lots of questions of the folks around us. Did you know that there are two types of gaits used by horses in harness racing - trot and pace. Any given race requires that all the horses entered in the race use the same gait.
We came up with a strategy. There were 14 races, with number 10 being the North America Cup. We didn't see a need to bet on all 14, so we would just bet on the first 10. We decided on $5.00 a race. We would each take turns picking a favorite in each race. We wouldn't pick the same horse, and we would bet them to show. Now some of you might disagree with this strategy, but we were not out to make a killing, we just wanted a little friendly competition to see who could pick the most winners, and who would come home with the most money. Here we are sporting our new caps.
The seating options were numerous. We could stay inside and watch the races from big screen TVs in comfortable lounge chairs. Another option was to sit in front of a desk so you could spread out your racing forms. There were grandstand seats and track side benches. There was an indoor bar/restaurant and outdoor deck. There was even a music stage set up with a beer garden in front of it. Now, Kathy's initial reaction was to head straight for the beer garden, but we soon learned that the event was sponsored by Budweiser and only Bud and Bud Light were being served in the beer garden. We opted instead for reserved seating on the outside deck. At least Dave could get a red wine and Kathy could get a Corona. The deck was also running a deal that night. Buy a reserved seat for $30.00 and get a $20.00 food and drink card. We'd probably end up spending more than that, so we took them up on the offer However, the hostess had to replace our cards twice because of technical problems with their cash registers. By the time were were done swapping out cards, we ended up with over $60.00 worth of food and drink. The only downside was having to wear badges all night.
The deck afforded us a great view of the track. Since a number of the horses came from the States, the first anthem played was the Star Spangled Banner, followed by the Canadian anthem. It just made me feel all warm and fuzzy.
Our deck also had its own computer betting terminal. Just swipe your card, put in your pin and feed it money. You can then pick your race, your bet amount, type of bet and horse. Here is Kathy hoping she picked a winner.
Before each race, two flag bearers lead a parade of horses so you can get an up close look at each horse. Here is the Canadian rider.
The horses trot off to the far side of the track and line up. A pace car - in this case a white pickup truck - begins to lead the horses around to the start, picking up speed as it goes. And they're off.....
After the race, the drivers bring their horses around in front of the grandstands one last time to thank the audience. We have no idea what happened to this horse's front leg. We can only assume it was a camera miscue because he ran the race just fine.
It took us a few minutes to figure out how to cash out of the computer and get a voucher to take over to the teller window. However, we quickly learned that we cashed out too soon and had to go back and do it all over again to get the winnings from the last race. Apparently, computers are slower than tellers. Now, I suppose you want to know how we did. We had a total of 11 bets each - 10 for $5.00 and one for $2.00. Well, except for Dave who ended up sneaking in an extra $5.00 bet just after Kathy whispered in his's ear that Sylvain Filion [no relation to Nathan Fillion] was driving another one of the favorites in Race 5. We are not counting that bet since it was made under coercion.
Castle would have done better but then he's Castle! HAHA
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