Vernon, NY --- Vernon Downs is set
to begin its 65th year of racing on Friday (April 20) with a new post time
of 6:10 p.m.
Opening
night will feature a t-shirt and schedule magnet giveaway, plus the
popular “That’s My Driver” promotion. Five entries will be randomly selected
following race two. All will have a chance to win up to $140. At the conclusion
of the evening’s racing will be a large fireworks display.
Highlights
for the season include “Derby Day” featuring the live showing of the Kentucky
Derby on Saturday (May 5) with a special post time of 4:30 p.m. Memorial Day
(May 28) features the Empire Classic finals for both 3-year-old filly trotters
and 3-year-old trotting colts. Each final is racing for a purse of $250,000
(est.) with a post time of 1:05 p.m. The Zweig Memorial races will take place
on Friday (Aug. 17) featuring the 3-year-old colt trot ($370,000 est.) and
3-year-old filly trot ($150,000 est.).
The
Million Dollar Ball Drop will take place on Saturday (Aug. 18). The Horseplay
Car Giveaway featuring a 2017 Ford Fiesta will be on Saturday (Sept. 1).
John
MacDonald will attempt to defend the driving and training titles he won in
2017. MacDonald was top driver in 2017 with 185 wins on the season and top
trainer with 57 wins on the year. He was also the owner and trainer of Oh My
Joepa, who won Horse of the Year honors with nine wins.
The
11-race card for Friday will feature leg one of the Robert E. Keller Trotting
Series. A live bugler will be on hand for the festivities as well.
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