Delaware cancels Thursday, Friday cards due to extreme heat
Delaware Park announced that it will cancel its Thursday and Friday cards this week due to extreme heat. The area around the track is expected to experience triple-digit heat indexes on both days, which officials deemed potentially hazardous to horses and riders.
In addition to cancellations on Thursday and Friday, the track also will alter cards on Wednesday and Saturday to account for the conditions. Post times for the nine-race Wednesday card have now been adjusted to begin at 11 a.m. and run on the half-hour until 3 p.m.
The Fourth of July card on Saturday will be reduced to six races and run from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. That day also will feature three exhibition races featuring exotic animals, which are scheduled to run at noon, 1 p.m., and 2 p.m.
On Monday, the National Weather Service issued an extreme heat watch for northern Delaware, central and southern New Jersey, and southeast Pennsylvania, from Wednesday afternoon through Saturday evening. The forecast calls for heat indexes up to 110 degrees. Delaware has a policy to cancel racing when the heat index exceeds 105.
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