Horses from across the country ship in for opening card
?q=100)
Horses from seven different states have descended on Shakopee, Minn., for Saturday’s opening-night card at Canterbury Park.
The seven-race program drew runners who last started in Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Nebraska, and Oklahoma. In the first race alone, four of the five runners entered last ran at Tampa Bay Downs.
“I think the meet fits a lot of schedules,” said Jeff Maday, spokesperson for Canterbury. “We’ve kind of tailored ours to fit with others. We start after Turf Paradise ends. We start after Oaklawn ends. And, we have a lot of loyal owners and trainers that like to come back here.”
Canterbury will race 51 dates through Sept. 19. First post on Thursdays and Saturdays will be 5 p.m. Central, while racing on Sundays and holidays starts at 1 p.m. There is a special Monday card this weekend for Memorial Day. The lone Friday card is July 3, while there are Wednesday cards on July 22 and Sept. 16.
Maday said Canterbury will have a mid-season break from July 13-21. During that period, a three-day rodeo will be held ontrack. The break also serves as a freshening for the horse population of about 800 runners.
“The field size for us, in the last few years that we’ve done this, has grown,” said Maday.
Maday said Canterbury plans to average seven Thoroughbred races a card. Purses for the meet are projected to average $170,000 a program. The track will begin running races for Quarter Horses in June.
The major stakes cards are the Northern Stars Turf Festival on June 27; the Minnesota Derby and Oaks card Aug. 15; and the Minnesota Festival of Champions on Sept. 5. Canterbury has returned three races to stakes status this meet after they were run as allowances, with each worth $50,000: the Curtis Sampson Oaks, the Victor S. Myers, and the Frances Genter.
Tena Birdwell is among the new faces in a stable area led by Mac Robertson, the all-time leading trainer at Canterbury. Jockey Luis Fuentes, who won the local title in 2024, is returning to the local scene and will be part of a diverse riding colony.
“Manuel Americano, who was the leading rider [at Turf Paradise], is riding all 21 races this weekend,” Maday said. “He’s the only one riding all 21 races. He’s ridden a lot for Jose Silva Jr., who won the training title at Turf Paradise. And Jose won our training title here last year.”
The area surrounding Canterbury has welcomed new restaurants in recent years, and in June, a 19,000-seat amphitheater is scheduled to make its debut.
“They just make this more of an entertainment destination, and I think this is going to benefit racing,” said Maday.
On the wagering front, Canterbury will again offer a low takeout rate of 10 percent on its 50-cent pick five that runs on the last five Thoroughbred races.
George Moncrief is the new track superintendent and Jesse Sherwood is the new head starter.
Maday said patrons returning to Canterbury will find some new and upgraded “food experiences.”
:: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.