BY JANE MEGGITT
Staff Writer
UPPER FREEHOLD — Monmouth Park opened its 60th season of racing on May 14, and officials promised fans it will be one of the best.
At a luncheon on May 10, Dennis Dowd, vice president of racing for the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA), which operates the Oceanport track, said the organization’s burden is to ensure that the great tradition of racing at Monmouth Park carries on.
“Our job at the Sports Authority is to map a strategy that will help us get there,” Dowd said. “With the help of the [New Jersey Racing] Commission and horsemen, I think we’ve mapped that.”
The awarding of the prestigious Breeders’ Cup to Monmouth Park in 2007, according to Dowd, “helped us focus.” Millions of dollars will be spent in preparation for the Breeders’ Cup, he said, including a general upgrading of the facility and a new turf course and restaurant.
Dowd said racing provides half the net profit for the NJSEA, yet the organization is treated as “the stepchild” of the New York Giants and the New York Jets, who both play at the Meadowlands in East Rutherford.
“[But] that will change,” he said.
Phone wagering is up and running, with 3,500 accounts already opened, he said. Participants can also bet and watch live racing on the Internet.
“It’s been very well-received and will continue to grow,” Dowd said, adding that the NJSEA is examining off-track betting sites, doing demographics studies and hiring architects.
A new purse structure, which will be in place until at least 2007, makes Monmouth Park second only in East Coast purses to Saratoga Racetrack, Saratoga Springs, N.Y., with a daily distribution of $325,000.
The park will offer 90 days of thoroughbred racing from May 14 to September 25. Operations will include 14 graded events, including the $1 million Haskell Invitational on Aug. 7 and the $750,000 United Nations Stakes on July 2.
Joe Bravo, who just finished his first Kentucky Derby, rode the “rabbit,” or the pacesetter, Spanish Chestnut, who led the field for a good part of the race. Bravo, winner of last year’s Haskell with Lion Heart, has held the leading rider title at Monmouth Park 10 times.
At the luncheon, Bravo said the derby “was just such an experience — 150,000 people rooting for the 20 horses in the field.” He added that his goal in that race is to ride the giant — the favorite — rather than the rabbit.
Bravo said there is a great jockey colony this year at Monmouth. Among them are Stewart Elliott, who rode Smarty Jones to last year’s victories in the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, and Eibar Coa, leading rider in both 2001 and 2002.
The enhanced purse structure has enticed top trainers to the meet, Bravo said, including D. Wayne Lukas, who has not had a stable at the track since 2000. Last year’s leading trainer, Tim Hills, will also return, as will Monmouth regulars such as John Forbes and J. Willard Thompson.
The track will feature 60 events and promotions during the meet, including Family Fun Day every Sunday. Call (732) 222-5100 or visit www.monmouthpark.com.