Record Breaking Opening Night on New 5/8th Track
ELORA, ON (June 5th, 2024) – On Wednesday, June 5, Grand River Raceway (GRR) kicked off its most exciting season of harness racing yet! The inaugural trip around the new 5/8th of a mile oval was won by Forbidden Treasure, with a winning time 2:00.4. Driven by Bob McClure trained by Katie Graham and owned by in Steve Mihalic
“It was good,” said Bob McClure “the start was a little funny, but everyone is going to adjust to it. The turns are really nice, they get into them really good. I might be bias because I was on the front, but the stretch isn’t too long.”
Race 1, Forbidden Treasure, with a winning time 2:00.4. Driven by Bob McClure trained by Katie Graham and owned by in Steve Mihalic- photo Tiffany Chantel Photography
Rainstorms rolled into the new Elora circle just before the fifth race, however the new track held up well. “I was very impressed,” said driver Anthony Haughn. “We had a pretty good rainstorm before I drove late, it held up very well, the surface was good. It seems the turns held up pretty good and you could make up some ground up from the back.”
Grand River boasted a record breaking, opening day handle, with $404, 071.39 wagered on the night.
Grand River Raceway will host 48 standardbred race nights this season, including 18 OSS (Ontario Sire Stakes) events, from June through September. Racing takes place every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday night with a post time of 6:30 p.m. See the full schedule here. The track addition is the first new track construction since GRR built the ½-mile track back in 2004.
On Wednesday, June 12, GRR will be hosting a formal ribbon cutting with dignitaries and specialists who were integral to getting the 5/8-mile track built. It’ll be a celebration of how far GRR has come.
Specialty race nights scheduled at GRR this summer:
June 12 – Ribbon Cutting
July 12 – Wiener Dog Races
August 5 – Industry Day, featuring the Battle of Waterloo presented by Winbak Farms, 12:30 pm post time
August 30 – Harness the Hope Night – Giant Pink Patio Party on The GrandWay patio (dress in pink!).
September 6 – National Caretaker Appreciation Day at GRR, OSS 50th Celebration.
Get tickets and details about these great events here: https://grandriverraceway.com/events
Follow GRR on social (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) or subscribe to their mailing list on their website grandriverraceway.com to get updates and news.
FREE Family Fun!
Every race night (Mon/Wed/Fri) is free entry for all. Need something for the kids to do? Our ambassador Tom, along with a variety of mutuel tellers, will be handing out Neighbourhood bags full of fun activities for kids every race night.
GrandWay Patio Parties
Get a group of 12 or more together and enjoy a VIP experience right next to the track! Groups get an intimate horse racing experience in a reserved seating area on The GrandWay Patio. Limited dates available, excludes GRR specialty race night dates. Contact bookings@thegrandway.com for details.
Looking for more entertainment this summer?
Check out The GrandWay Events Centre (next door to GRR) for Yuk Yuk’s Comedy Nights, Murder Mystery Dinner Theatres, and more throughout the summer and into fall/winter. Go to: https://thegrandway.com/grand-events/
Please be reminded that GRR and The GrandWay Events Centre are designated as smoke-free. Smoking is not permitted in any and on all exterior public racetrack facing areas including the grandstand, tarmac, and patio.
The Captain’s Quarters is open for first-come first-serve spectator seating only (with the exception of specialty race night events). There will not be an all-you-can-eat buffet in the tiered dining room this year, however, feel free to bring food from The GrandWay Lounge or the tarmac BBQ to enjoy.
GRR is ready to giddy-up and get the race season started! Follow along and keep up with all the fun at grandriverraceway.com. At GRR, you can always come and expect an experience!
