Midwestern Tracks Cancel Racing Due to Poor Air Quality
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Photo: Skip Dickstein
This week Midwest tracks are seeing haze similar to what Belmont Park saw earlier this month when Canadian wildfire smoke enveloped the Northeastern United States
As smoke from Canadian wildfires drifts southward toward the Midwestern United States June 28, poor air quality has forced the cancellation of racing at Hawthorne Race Course, Horseshoe Indianapolis, Belterra Park Gaming & Entertainment Center, Presque Isle Downs, Thistledown, and Mountaineer Casino Racetrack & Resort.
According to Airnow.gov, which is run by the Environmental Protection Agency, an unhealthy air quality index (AQI) is anywhere from 151-200 while the very unhealthy range is 201-300, and the hazardous area is 301 and higher. The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority relies on these guidelines to determine whether racing activity should be cancelled.
An AQI of 150-174 may limit training to jogging or galloping. When the index is at 175 or higher, racing activity, including works, and galloping, could be canceled.
"HISA does not have a specific rule regarding air quality but HISA's Racetrack Safety rules require racetracks to develop, implement, and annually review hazardous weather protocols. HISA supports the use of the Air Quality Index as published at airnow.gov to guide decisions about training and racing. Air quality can vary significantly between tracks, and the authority to alter training and racing schedules ultimately lies with the individual jurisdiction and racetrack," said the organization in a statement released earlier this month when smoke enveloped the Northeastern U.S. during Belmont Stakes week, forcing one day of racing to be called off.
As of 11 a.m. ET Wednesday, in Stickney, Ill., where Hawthorne is located, the AQI was at 209. Horseshoe Indy's Shelbyville, Ind., location was recording an AQI of 199, while Belterra in Cincinnati was at 198, and Presque Isle's Erie, Pa., location came in at 186.
At 2 p.m. ET, racing had also been canceled at both Mountaineer and Thistledown with the former's AQI sitting at 47 in New Cumberland, W.Va. (smoke is currently moving towards the area). Thistledown, which is located in Cleveland, is up to 244—the highest for any of the tracks that called off racing Wednesday.
On a normal day you can see the tree-lined property of ours @HSIndyRacing Not today. A thick smokey haze. No racing today but we’re going to work with our horsemen @IndianaHBPA to bring these races back as best that we can @RacingRachelM @JohnGDooley @MrBAnalyst @HSIndyTammy pic.twitter.com/vXba7MPnOL
— Eric Halstrom (@ericahalstrom) June 28, 2023
Director of racing at Presque Isle, Matt Ennis, says he made the call early Wednesday morning to cancel morning training after the smoke began drifting in late Tuesday night. The Wednesday card was canceled when air quality did not improve.
"I was trying to hang on and see if the air quality index would improve, but we're seeing it hanging around 200 and our directive is 175 or above puts the horses and humans at risk, so I did just cancel our card for today," Ennis said.
"It started getting very hazy last night and I looked at my phone and sure enough, the air quality was decreasing, I put everyone on alert about training which I canceled at 5 a.m. because we were at an index of over 200. It doesn't look like it will improve in Erie here until after midnight tonight, is what they're telling me. We hope to train again tomorrow morning and get back to racing next Monday."