Fort Erie begins 125th season; Prince of Wales to be held Sept. 13

Fort Erie Racetrack begins its 125th season on Tuesday, a 40-day meet that’s scheduled to conclude on Oct. 18.

Racing will be conducted primarily on Mondays and Tuesdays, with some special event Sundays, including Father’s Day on June 19, the popular wiener dog races on July 17, and basset hound races on Aug. 14.

The centerpiece of the meet is the middle leg of the Canadian Triple Crown, the 87th running of the $400,000 Prince of Wales Stakes, which goes on Tuesday, Sept. 13. It follows the Aug. 21 Queen’s Plate and precedes the Oct. 2 Breeders’ Stakes, both at Woodbine.

Post time is 1:05 p.m. Eastern except on Tuesdays from May 31 to Aug. 31, when post time is 4:05 p.m.

“We’re really looking forward to getting this season underway, and welcoming back fans to help us celebrate our milestone 125th anniversary year,” said Drew Cady, general manager of the Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium. “We have a great season planned and are happy to once again be hosting our loyal fans for live racing and our special events.”

Opening-day racing highlights include the Summer Solstice Cup and the Sprint Into Summer Cup, as well as a mandatory payout of $21,789.48 in the Jackpot Hi 5 pool, which wasn’t paid out last year due to a closing-day cancellation. The first 2,000 fans will receive a free 125th anniversary T-shirt with program purchase. After the races, Jonesy will put on a free concert at the trackside Tiki Bar. The 10-race card attracted 88 entries.

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Fort Erie’s new track announcer is 26-year-old Doug McPherson, who replaces the retired Frank Salive. McPherson has been practicing at Woodbine in preparation for his first full-time stint as a racecaller.

“I think it’s going to be a fun new challenge, something different,” said McPherson. “I’ve been going to a spot on the fifth floor at Woodbine, calling into a phone. It’s not a great angle, but better than calling off the TV. I’ve watched the races at Fort Erie regularly and I know the owners’ silks well.”

Christopher Husbands was the runaway leading rider at Fort Erie in 2021 by a 52-34 margin over Juan Crawford, who led the standings in 2020. Julie Mathes led the training standings for the second year in a row in 2021, with 23 victories. Bruno Schickedanz was leading owner with 16 wins last year. They are all expected to be major players at this meet.

Fort Erie’s field size figure to be impacted by a Woodbine house rule whereby horses lose their stall at Woodbine if they ship to Fort Erie to compete, except for stakes. Such horses can return to Woodbine after the completion of the Fort Erie meet. Fort Erie’s average field size was 6.33 horses per race last year, down slightly from 6.44 horses in 2020.