You knew it was coming, folks. Well, guess what? It's come. The backstretch at the Aqueduct Racetrack is closed. I know - considering the season, it's kind of anti-climactic. Aqueduct Racetrack is closed for training and will not reopen until April 14, 2011. All things considered, it's good news for the New York Horse Racing Association. The closing is to allow for more construction on a new casino (Genting's Resorts) that will certainly help to subsidize the New York horse racing industry at large.
The 350+ horse stables being affected by the closing have been moved to NYRA's Belmont Park, and will return when construction is finished. The move will allow uninhibited construction of the casino to take place, which means the sooner New York residents will have slot machines and casino table games to supplement their horse racing wagers. At least that's the theory. Despite the closing, Aqueduct remains an active place with live simulcasting taking place round the clock.
The NYRA is also staying active during this harsh winter season, and has begun hosting a new "dark day" television show called "The NYRA Network Presents Raceday". Airing strictly on dark days on Channel 71 of the NYRA television network (generally Monday's and Tuesday's), the new show will cover the latest happenings in the horse racing industry (What else, right?). Hosts include NYRA TV Director and race caller, John Imbriale, along with various NRYRA TV analysts.
Helping to fill the void left by the NYCOTB Racing Network (NYCOTB was shut down late last year), the NYRA Network Channel 71 airs racing content for 12 hours straight: 11 am to 11 pm. When NYRA's live races are wrapped up, the channel airs highlights from the most popular simulcast signals around the country. Check it out!
