SARATOGA SPRINGS – The 2003 meet at the Old Spa set several records for attendance and handle, but overall betting was down for the 36-day stand.
Paid attendance of 1,049,309 was the highest ever, as was the daily average of 29,147, up from 27,761 last summer, although each year the figures are inflated by popular giveaways (T-shirts, ball caps, etc.) which produce thousands of “spinners” (fans who pay to enter more than once).
The true single-day attendance mark was set Travers Day, Aug. 23, when there was no promotion and 66,122 fans jammed the historic course, betting an on-track record of nearly $9.4 million. The total commingled handle (including simulcasting and OTB) on Travers Day also set a record of $39.5 million.
On-track handle reached a record $117 million for the entire meet, but total commingled handle dropped to $544 million from last year’s record $562 million. New York Racing Association officials attributed the decline to a fall-off in intrastate wagering on Saratoga races because of unlimited simulcasting available to the state’s OTB customers for the first time.
Things looked bleak for the first three weeks here, when rain forced races off the turf and caused many scratches. Noting that attendance and handle rebounded strongly over the last half of the meet, NYRA president Terry Meyocks said, “When the weather improved, our business took off.” Overall, 343 races were run with the average field size a healthy 8.5.
Meyocks had no update on the situation at Aqueduct, where construction of a slots casino was put on hold because of NYRA’s legal and political difficulties stemming from an on-going investigation of corrupt mutuel clerks. At present, the Big A grandstand is unusable because the escalators were ripped out, so only the clubhouse might be available when racing shifts to Ozone Park later this fall.
Trainer Todd Pletcher and his go-to rider, John Velazquez, both set records for most victories at a meet, 35 and 61, respectively. Pletcher was followed across the line by Bill Mott (17 winners) and Phil Serpe and Nick Zito (10 each). Jerry Bailey (47 winners), Edgar Prado (39), Pat Day (22) and Cornelio Velasquez (21) were next in the jockeys’ race.
There is no racing today through Thursday. The Fall Championship meet opens Friday at Belmont Park, where Saturday’s card features three Grade 1 stakes: the Woodward, Man o’War and Gazelle.