The rumors have been swirling in horse racing circles that Thistledown will soon be moving to the Akron-Canton area. Hold your horses, says an official.
The rumors have been swirling in horse racing circles that Thistledown will soon be moving to the Akron-Canton area. The reported move is being made so video lottery terminals (VLTs) at the thoroughbred track won't compete with slot machines at the new Horseshoe Casino Cleveland when it opens next year.
Hold your horses, said Jennifer Kulczycki, communications director for Rock Gaming LLC, which owns the casino and has an option to buy Thistledown.
"We like the current location of Thistledown," wrote Kulczycki in an email this week. "We think it could be very complimentary to Horseshoe Cleveland . . . and are prepared to invest in the facility if we are granted a VLT license."
That doesn't mean relocation is off the table.
Signed by Gov. John Kasich in July, HB 227 allows a horse racing track eligible for VLTs to also apply to the Ohio State Racing Commission to move the track to another location. Until they have a better understanding of the new track landscape, wrote Kulczycki, all options must be explored. The owners of Ohio's seven horse racing tracks will have to wait for HB 227 rules to be finalized in the middle of October before making travel plans.
Northfield Park officials aren't talking about relocation. Penn National Gaming Inc., though, has proposed moving its Columbus thoroughbred racing at Beulah Park to a former auto parts plant on the north side of Dayton, and its Toledo harness racing at Raceway Park to Austintown, near Youngstown.
Noble still rolling: Phenomenal young driver Dan Noble, 28, of Wilmington, Ohio is still the leading reinsman in North America after another week of wins during Grand Circuit Week at the Delaware County Fairgrounds, as well as at Northfield Park and Lebanon Raceway. Noble now has 598 victories in 2,078 starts this year to lead veteran driving stars George Brennan (568) and Tim Tetrick (563). Other Northfield drivers on the list include Aaron Merriman (320), Ryan Stahl (248) and Dan Charlino (219).
Best of Ohio preview: The nominations are due Wednesday for the Best of Ohio series at Thistledown on Oct. 15, and thoroughbred fans got a preview of the freshmen action on Monday. In a mile allowance test for two-year-olds on a sloppy track, Not an Altar Boy and favored License to Bling battled back and forth in a seven-horse field that was challenged to try two turns for the first time.
Not an Altar Boy, ridden by Sergio Figueroa for owner Treva Vasquez and trainer Ivan Vasquez, was a length in front at the wire in 1:45. The two youngsters were dominant, with Doctor Diego and first-time starter Brass Buckle finishing 14 lengths back in a dead heat for third. It was the second win in four starts for Not an Altar Boy, a bay gelding nominated for the $75,000 Juvenile Stakes on the Best of Ohio card. Completing the Best of Ohio stakes are the $75,000 Best of Ohio Distaff, $75,000 Best of Ohio Endurance, $50,000 Best of Ohio Sprint and $75,000 John W. Galbreath.
Thistledown has a special Best of Ohio Day buffet from 11:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., and is taking reservations (216-662-8600).
Irvine scores big: Northfield Park sends out races for the fillies and mares on Friday, and last Friday Wyatt Irvine was the driver to beat all night long.
Irvine, 32, of Broadview Heights was in the sulky in all 13 races, winning seven and adding a pair of seconds and four thirds to finish on the board in every race. Irvine filled in for Dan Noble, Northfield's leading driver and the winningest reinsman in the country, behind pacer Zim and Torre. Irvine responded by guiding the 15-1 shot to victory.
Irvine is the son and nephew of veteran drivers Bill and Don Irvine, both members of Northfield's Wall of Fame. He began driving in 2007, and won the 1,000th race of his career last winter.
Perfect in 2011: Rapid Redux, a five-year-old chestnut gelding by Pleasantly Perfect, has been invincible, winning all 15 of his starts this year and 17 victories in a row. That includes a victory at Thistledown on Aug. 22. Owned by Robert Cole Jr. of Highland, Md., and trained by David Wells, Rapid Redux is back in action on Friday (Sept. 30) at Mountaineer Race Track in Chester, W. Va.
Rapid Redux has won 23 of 37 career starts and $306,144.
Hypnotic Blue Chip retires: A track record holder at Northfield Park, 5-year-old Hypnotic Blue Chip is headed into retirement, reported owner Francis Azur of Coraopolis, Pa. and trainer Kevin McDermott. The big stallion won 24 of 88 starts and $1.5 million, including the $100,000 Battle of Lake Erie in 2010. He covered the mile in 1:49.4, matching the fastest mile ever paced at Northfield Park. The record was first set in 2007 by Maltese Artist.
In this year's "Battle" on a rain-soaked track, Hypnotic Blue Chip finished third to Foiled Again and Giddy Up Lucky. Azur has not decided if he will breed the son of Art Major or sell him, but did tell U.S. Trotting Association officials that with his speed and gait, he looked forward to breeding their good mares to him.
Sunday pickers: The Belmont Park Handicapping Contest returns to Northfield Park on Sunday with $900 up for grabs. Players Club members can sign up from 11:30 a.m.-12:50 p.m. to compete, with club membership available on site. Northfield is also spotlighting its Free Money Fridays through October, giving away envelopes that contain $1 to $100. Players Club members can check in at the registration table outside of the track between 6-8 p.m.
Backstretch news: Thistledown employees and their families raised $1,379 for Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital of Cleveland and $600 for the Don MacBeth Memorial Jockey Fund at their annual golf outing at Raccoon Hill Golf Club in Kent . . . Foiled Again, winner of the $100,000 Battle of Lake Erie on July 23 at Northfield Park, captured the recent $335,000 Bobby Quillen Memorial to become the first 7-year-old North American standardbred to win $1 million in a single year while pushing his career total over $3 million . . . The winner of the first Battle of Lake Erie here in 1986, Falcon Seelster died at the age of 30 on Sept. 17 after a successful breeding career . . . Owner Dean Davis and trainer-driver Kurt Sugg retired the world champion trotter, Dunkster, who set a half-mile trotting record here with a 1:54.2 mile in 2004 and holds the Lebanon Raceway track mark with a 1:57 mile in 2003.