Thoroughbreds will be taking to the track at Northlands to kick off the final season of racing before moving to the new facility next year.
Saturday’s card will feature 10 races, with the first set to take off at 1:00 PM.
On Saturday, track announcer for Northlands Park Matt Jukich told the Alberta Morning News that opening day is bittersweet, with this being the final season at the track.
“A lot of excitement here with the new facility going up down there by the airport,” he said. “They’re coming along great there, probably a few weeks ahead of where they need to be. A lot of the field has been put in, the elevator shaft, so there’s a…sadness in one regard closing this chapter, but on to the next chapter, which should be a very exciting one with the mile track opening up by the airport.”
LISTEN BELOW: Track announcer Matt Jukich talks with Peter Watts about the opening day of the 2018 horse racing season at Northlands
Despite the less-than-ideal conditions leading up to Saturday, there’s a lot of horses set to race.
“We didn’t have a lot of trainers go out of town this year,” Jukich said. “Our track crew did a phenomenal job with what they were dealt.”
The Century Mile Racetrack was set to open in August 2018 but was pushed back to spring of 2019.
The final season at Northlands will feature 43 days of racing and end with the Canadian Derby on August 25.
– With files from Emily Mertz