Penn National to Race June 19; Parx Could Open June 22

Three months after racing was halted in Pennsylvania due to COVID-19, racing there is nearing a return. According to horsemen's representatives, racing has been approved at Penn National Race Course beginning June 19, and Parx Racing has been given the green light to resume from the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

Todd Mostoller, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, said Penn National will race Wednesdays and Fridays for a three-week period before moving to three nights a week. Racing will take place under the same daily purse structure as before operations were suspended in mid-March.

"We have had horses that during the pandemic have left the backside," Mostoller said. "So our thought process is we race for two days a week until, one, there is some confidence that we will continue, and two, horses will have returned to the backside before we get to three days a week. We're excited to get back to business. We're cautiously optimistic this thing is behind us."

A planned reopening date for Parx, which last conducted racing March 10, is June 22, according to the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association. 

"That’s the date we’ve agreed with frontside management. That’s assuming all the protocols can be implemented in time for that. That’s the target date," PTHA president Sal DeBunda said. "Everyone thinks we can make those protocols. I’ve spoken to the racing commission. I’ve spoken to track management. They’ve requested that date from the racing commission. They expect to hear back soon. We think it's all a go for the 22nd. We’ll be taking entries next Wednesday, the 17th, for the 22nd."

Spectatorless racing will take place at Parx three days a week, Monday through Wednesday, with a diminished daily purse distribution of $180,000 per day, down from its usual $250,000, and owners would not initially be allowed to attend, DeBunda said. Parx supplements purses with revenue from its casino, which has been closed during the pandemic.

"There will be no claiming (races), initially, because they don't want people huddled around the paddock looking at horses," he said of required health protocols.

The track's annual break of racing for a portion of August will not take place. Parx largely runs year-round.

The Parx stakes schedule has not been finalized, DeBunda said. The Pennsylvania Derby (G1) and Cotillion Stakes (G1) are its major races and were run Sept. 21 last year. Their customary placement on the calendar this year might be jeopardized by a postponed Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), now set for Sept. 5, and the Preakness Stakes (G1), slated for Oct. 3. 

Racing at Presque Isle Downs, another track in the state, is further on the horizon. The track never opened its backside this spring as a result of the pandemic, and horses still need to ship into the facility before racing can resume. Erie County, where the track is located, still remains in the "yellow" phase under Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf's reopening plans. Counties in the "green" phase do not operate under as many health restrictions.

Mostoller, disappointed to not yet see Erie in the green phase, said he reached out to Presque Isle management to open its backside in early July because many Presque Isle horsemen typically come to the track from Tampa Bay Downs. The Tampa meet ends July 1, and horses must vacate the Tampa backstretch by July 6, a message on the Tampa Bay Downs overnight indicates.

"We don't want a situation where (horsemen) have to ship to somewhere else because our backside isn't open," Mostoller said.