Ellis Park to run opening-day card without fans

Ellis Park in Henderson, Ky., will run its July 4 card without any on-track patrons due to a water issue that arose overnight due to storm damage in the area, officials for the track’s parent company, Churchill Downs Inc., said on Thursday morning.

The damage created doubt as to whether enough water would be available for a sizeable holiday crowd, according to Kevin Kerstein, a spokesman for Churchill, leading to a decision to close the doors to patrons while allowing the race card to go on as planned. The July 4 card is the track’s opening day for a meet running through Aug. 26.

“We have enough water on the backside, we have enough water for the paddock, all those things we need to run the races,” Kerstein said. “We just don’t know if it’s enough for frontside operations.”

Thunderstorms hit the area last night, and more rain is expected late morning, according to national weather sources.

Ellis Park has a nine-race card scheduled for Thursday, including the $125,000 Dade Park Dash. First post is scheduled for 12:50 p.m. Eastern.

Kerstein said that it is currently unclear if Ellis will be open to patrons for the Friday card. Ellis has live racing planned throughout the four-day weekend.

“It’s too soon to tell,” Kerstein said. “We wanted everyone to know about today, and we’ll update once we have more information.”

:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.