Fonner Park to Continue Racing Through May
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Photo: Brad Mellema
Horses race past empty stands at Fonner Park
The Nebraska State Racing Commission has approved an additional 12 days of racing in May at Fonner Park, the track and the Hall County Livestock Improvement Association announced April 22.
The second season of racing at the Grand Isle oval is scheduled to begin Monday, May 4, and will extend until May 31. The request includes permission to continue racing Monday through Wednesday on a spectatorless basis.
On March 23, after a recommendation to cease racing and a decision to conduct no-spectator racing, Fonner Park shifted from weekend racing to a Monday through Wednesday format to create separation from the more popular racetracks.
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"While no-spectator racing continues to be conducted at Fonner Park under COVID-19 precaution and prevention guidelines, the continuation of racing is still very much a day-to-day prospect," Fonner Park CEO Chris Kotulak said. "The ability to continue racing with minimal national and global wagering opportunities has cast a brilliant light on Fonner Park. There has been a chunk of mutuel handle on the Fonner Park races, but money bet out of state only represents a chink of revenue compared to money bet on-track."
Since March 23, the all-sources mutuel handle on Fonner Park has risen to a daily average of $2,836,904, excluding the $7.2 million day April 7 when there was a $4.1 million final pool on a mandatory payout day of the popular Dinsdale Late Pick 5 Jackpot wager. A second mandatory payout occurred April 21, resulting in a total pool of $2,354,674 and a daily all-sources handle of $6,505,470.
A third mandatory payout has been scheduled for April 29, the day of the $50,000 Bosselman/Gus Fonner Stakes, the highlight of the Fonner Park Thoroughbred meet.
"Fonner Park operates on a wickedly narrow profit margin," Kotulak said. "What might seem like a successful spell of handle one week might only equate to survival or even a deficit another week. We cannot be swooned by sexy handles this year when we have to consider purse money for 2021 and the hundreds of thousands of dollars of expenses and repairs we face annually. Another important financial factor is that once other tracks return with their racing, the mutuel handle on Fonner Park will drop. My goal is not to simply make hay this year. I have a responsibility to Fonner Park, the horsemen, and the city of Grand Island, Neb., to remain viable for many years to come."