NYRA unveils details of 2008 Saratoga meet

By Paul Post - Thoroughbred Times.com

The New York Racing Association on Thursday announced highlights of the upcoming 2008 Saratoga Race Course meeting, including an opening weekend featuring festivals and a Breeders’ Cup Challenge day with more than $2-million in purses.

The historic track’s 140th season opens on July 23 with the Schuylerville Stakes (G3) for two-year-old fillies, the first in a series of graded stakes for juveniles at the Saratoga Springs track. The meet concludes on Labor Day, September 1.

Prior to the meeting, NYRA will host a free Saratoga open house on July 20 with family activities, equine demonstrations, non-wagering races, handicapping seminars, and backstretch tours.
 
“The New York Racing Association is working diligently to make this a summer to remember for our loyal and dedicated fans at Saratoga Race Course,” NYRA President Charles Hayward said. “Saratoga promises to feature the sport’s most exciting racing in every single divisional category for juveniles, three-year-olds, older horses, sprinters, and turf horses, as well as the most fan-friendly and welcoming events and activities.”

Top three-year-olds such as Pyro, War Pass, Big Brown, Visionaire, Indian Blessing, and Proud Spell all are gearing up for this spring’s Triple Crown races and some could be candidates for the $1-million Travers Stakes (G1), the highlight of Saratoga’s meeting.
 
Travers Week festivities in Saratoga are planned for August 16-24, including activities ranging from chili cook-offs to ice cream eating contests to benefit charitable organizations.

The Travers Presented by Shadwell Farm on August 23 will be televised nationally on ESPN.

The July 25-27 opening weekend features a Hats Off to Saratoga Festival, highlighted by a traditional hat contest at the track on Sunday. A downtown music festival on Broadway in Saratoga Springs is slated for Friday and Saturday.

The Breeders’ Cup Challenge races on Saturday include the Whitney Handicap (G1), the Diana Stakes (G1), Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap (G1), and the Go for Wand Handicap (G1), which serve as automatic qualifying races for the corresponding Breeders’ Cup divisional championship races to be run at Santa Anita Park in October.

For more information, go to www.nyra.com or call (516) 488-6000.

Paul Post is a New York-based Thoroughbred Times correspondent