Hoss Talk

   The groundbreaking deal allows the Cloverdale track to get off to  the earliest start in its history. The agreement allows Fraser Downs to race at 7 p.m. Fridays, beginning Sept. 7 and extends to May 31.
   
   The agreement should prevent conflicting race dates with Hastings Park from occurring too often.

   ``When we have tried overlaps, the reason they haven't worked is because we haven't had days or time slots that have worked well or have generated much interest,'' said Fraser Downs general manager Chuck Keeling.
   
   At Fraser Downs, free admission and parking, along with cheap food and beer, have made Friday evenings work well for the east Surrey venue.
   
   ``Now we have the opportunity to race Friday nights, and we really believe we should be taking advantage of this opportunity,'' said Keeling.
   
   The deal, which has now been agreed upon by both Hastings Park and Fraser Downs, also needed approval from both the province's horsemen's groups: the B.C. Standardbred Association, and the  Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association which represents the thoroughbred side of things.
   
   As for giving up Friday nights during this season at Hastings Park, Mel Snow, president of the HBPA, said: ``If we had raced on Fridays, we believe that we would not have been making the very best use of our horses that are presently stabled at the Vancouver track.
   
   ``Going to Wednesday, we were able to get better use out of the horses that we do have available.'' Among the tradeoffs is the fact that Fraser Downs gave up two weekends of afternoon racing the last   week in October and first week in November.
   
   That allows this year's Breeders Cup to be run in conjunction with live racing at Hastings Park, and avoiding the conflicting date overlap between horse racing in Vancouver and harness racing in Surrey.
   
   ``This was a good deal for both tracks,'' said Snow.
 
   Before the agreement can go into effect, it has to be approved by the B.C. Racing Commission.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Source: Vancouver Province
E-mail Tommy Wolski at twolski@home.com