Thursday, May 01, 2008

Handle Up as Spring Meet Concludes

Fueled by improved fields and a strong presence in the Out of State markets, the spring Hawthorne meet concluded with solid showings in handle for the recently concluded spring meet.

Despite some unseasonably cooler conditions, the racing season was only interrupted once, (March 21 cancelled after four races) and field sizes throughout the course of the meet maintained rather well, and contributed to the solid gains.

Field size and a slight shift in racing dates led to positive handle figures for the meet. In 2008, average starters per race was 7.71, compared to 7.38 in 2007. Total handle on the live meet was up 6.2% from 2007 as $2,291,470 was wagered in total on Hawthorne’s live races, compared to $2,156,045 in 2007. While on-site handle was down 13%, In-state handle rose 2% while out of state numbers were up 11.3%.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Ryan’s For Real from start to finish In Bill Hartack Memorial Handicap

Stickney, IL---Exiting the seven furlong, Grade 1 Carter Handicap at Aqueduct, you might have expected Ryan’s For Real to flash some speed stretching out to one-mile and one-eighth, but it was an even bigger stretch to think he would hold off the likes of graded winner Fairbanks at the prolonged distance. However, that was exactly the case, as Ryan’s for Real led them start to finish in the $200,000, Grade 2 Bill Hartack Memorial Handicap on Saturday at Hawthorne Race Course.

Breaking from post five in the five-horse field, Ryan’s For Real outsprinted both Fairbanks and Mister Triester into the first turn to seize command into a 23.61 opening quarter-mile. From there jockey Erick Rodriguez and Ryan’s For Real reached the half mile in 47.55. Always on his flank was favored Fairbanks ridden by Hall of Famer Mike Smith. Around the turn Fairbanks headed Ryan’s for Real, but the son of Sword Dance re-broke at the top of the stretch and was well clear at the wire, a 3 ½ length winner.

Saturday, April 19, 2008

The Bill Hartack Memorial Handicap

Stickney, IL---When legendary Hall of Fame jockey Bill Hartack passed away last November, he was most certainly remembered for his five Kentucky Derby winners, or perhaps for being the first jockey to win $2 million in purses for a single season (1956). His main association with Hawthorne Race Course was as a chief state steward from 1987-1992, but Hartack clearly touched the life of Hawthorne’s Racing Secretary Gary Duch, who renamed the National Jockey Club Handicap in honor of his friend and associate.

“It was a no-brainer to rename this race after Bill,” Duch explained. “The National Jockey Club no longer existed and since this race was still in our spring stakes schedule we needed a name for the race. With Bill’s passing last fall the idea just automatically popped in my head. Here is one of the greatest jockeys of all time and I didn’t know any other tracks who were stepping up to the plate to honor him, so since he was a very close friend of mine, not only working with him on the track, but personally. I felt this would be a great way to honor his memory.”