Harness Racing Continues in Woodstock Through Nov. 6

Harness Racing Continues in Woodstock Through Nov. 6

Shenandoah Downs opened its seventh season of pari-mutuel harness racing in mid-September at the Shenandoah County Fairgrounds in Woodstock, Virginia and its eight-week “Harness The Mountain Magic” campaign --- its longest ever --- will run through Nov. 6.

The first five weeks feature race programs every Friday at 3 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m. During the final three weeks -- beginning Oct. 22 --- the schedule will shift to a Saturday and Sunday format with cards starting at 1 p.m.

The meet highlight is the 25th running of the $640,000 Virginia Breeder’s Championships which will close out the season on Sunday, Nov. 6. Two and three-year-old pacers and trotters of both sexes will compete in eight divisional championships, each worth a minimum $80,000 purse. The “Day of Champions” event has been conducted at Colonial Downs from 1998-2014, at Oak Ridge Race Course in 2015 and at Shenandoah Downs since.

Friday “Happy Hour” cards will feature $2 draft beers and $1 hot dogs. Saturday programs will commence at 1 p.m. and feature a different promotion each week.

The Virginia Harness Horse Association (VHHA) will sponsor the popular “Own a Horse for a Day” promotion on four separate occasions this fall. A total of 32 fans --- eight each time the promotion is conducted --- will receive the unique chance to “own” a horse in a $5,250 race. Winners will visit their respective horse and connections in the paddock and collect the amount of purse money their horse earns in the race. One lucky “owner” --- during each of the four promotions --- will walk away with $2,625, which is 50 percent of the purse.

Parking and admission are free and the races are family friendly. Wagering is available on every race.

On the track, horsemen will enjoy purse and bonus enhancements courtesy of the state’s Historical Horse Racing (HHR) robust revenue stream. Average daily purse distribution for overnight races will be $75,000 per day. Horses that finish sixth through eighth will receive a $100 stipend. Purses for Breeder’s Fund races, including eliminations and finals over the last three weekends, will total $824,000.

In addition, horses that are 100 percent owned by a Virginia resident will get a 50 percent bonus on overnight races, and drivers/trainers that are Virginia residents will get a 50 percent bonus on overnights. In 2021, a total of $56,000 in bonus money was doled out along with $16,000 in stipends.