Meadowlands: Handle was marvelous in May

One year ago, with the COVID-19 pandemic continuing its grip on not only harness racing, but all aspects of life as we once knew it, it was scary to think what might happen to the game.

Remarkably, the sport has seen a resurgence as coronavirus restrictions have slowly eased. In fact, last weekend (May 28-29) was the first since March 7 of last year to see The Meadowlands at full capacity.

"One year ago, there was no racing due to the pandemic," said track Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. "Perhaps we will look back years from now and might say May of 2021 was the comeback from the pandemic. And a month for the record books."

The increases seen during the nine May programs over the comparable race cards from 2019 are startling.

The month started strong as Sat., May 1 saw the second-highest total handle of 2021 as $4,451,363 was pushed through the windows, an incredible $1.8 million more than was bet on the corresponding 2019 program. (Saturday's average per race of $342,412 was a yearly high.)

All nine race cards during May saw wagering of over $3 million and an increase of at least $500,000 over the corresponding programs from two years ago. Five programs saw the increase exceed $1 million.

"What can you say?" said Settlemoir. "Saturday handle in May averaged almost $4 million a night ($3.993 million). The 50-cent Pick-4 and 20-cent Pick-5 were over $100,000. The 20-cent Pick-6 handled over $31,000 on Saturday (May 29) without a carryover. The GSY Amateur Series races handled over $293,000 on race one and $286,000 on race five, respectively, on Friday (May 28). Our racing has been spectacular and everything we do right now is getting an enormous response from the horseplayers around the world."

Total handle during May was $32.9 million, good for an average per card of $3,664,022. The average per race was $274,801. When compared to the same month in 2019, total wagering was up $9.7 million, average handle increased $1 million and the average per race was $74,875 higher.

"Standardbred racing is rolling right now," said Settlemoir. "Handle at The Meadowlands is blowing up and Woodbine Mohawk Park is getting ready to resume and everyone is excited about that. On Sunday (May 30) night, Hawthorne, Northfield and Philadelphia all saw wagering of over $1 million. It's an exciting time for the sport as we roll into the stakes season."

-release (Meadowlands)