Turfway releases numbers for holiday meet
Turfway Park ended its 2010 holiday meet with gains in
average daily on-track wagering, but declines in all-sources and total on-track
wagering. The meet began December 2 and ended Friday.
With live racing offered 17 days in the 2010 meet
compared to 21 days in 2009, average daily wagering on Turfway races by patrons
at the track rose 10.5 percent to $116,371. Average daily wagering on Turfway
races from all sources fell 15.1 percent to $2,372,697.
Comparing the two meets in toto, on-track wagering
fell 10.6 percent to $1,978,311 and all-sources wagering fell 31.3 percent to
$40,335,854. Turfway cut its live racing schedule to four days a week for the
2010 holiday meet, compared to five days in the same meet in 2009.
Field size improved slightly to 10.2 starters per race
compared to 10.1 in 2009.
Purses paid across the meet dropped 24.6 percent to
$1,767,775. Average purses paid per day dropped 6.8 percent to $103,987.
In the just-completed meet, Turfway canceled one full
card due to a winter storm and one partial card due to a power outage.
In addition to its popular Dollar Friday parties,
Turfway this year inaugurated a New Year’s Eve tradition, shifting post time to
accommodate the first annual Track Bash. Reserved seating sold out for the
event.
Seventeen-year-old apprentice jockey Marcelino Pedroza
Jr. earned his first career riding title with 21 wins from 108 mounts, holding
off veteran Rodney Prescott in second with 19 wins from 117 mounts. Ben Creed
and Jozbin Santana tied for third with 14 wins each, Creed from 116 mounts and
Santana from just 63 mounts.
Mike Maker won his sixth Turfway training title,
saddling 11 winners from 37 starters. Tom Drury Jr. was second with six winners
from 25 starters, and Brian Waltz was third with five winners from just 14
starters to earn his first appearance on the leading trainers list.
Ken and Sarah Ramsey and Patton’s Creek Farm (Michael
Snyder) tied for leading owner honors with three winners each, the Ramseys from
11 starters and Patton’s Creek Farm from just four starters. The win was the
first Turfway title for Patton’s Creek Farm and the eighth for the Ramseys.
Fifteen owners tied for third with two winners each.
Racing at Turfway continues without interruption with
the 2011 winter/spring meet, which began on New Year’s Day and ends April 3.