Portland to Race on Tuesdays, Drop Wednesdays
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Portland Meadows will begin hosting live racing on Tuesdays for the remainder of the 2014-15 meeting, the track reported Nov. 9, and will abandon previously scheduled Wednesday programs.
The change takes effect Nov. 18, the Oregon track said in a release. Portland Meadows will continue to race on Sundays as well, and first post will be noon PST for all cards.
"We weren't helping ourselves, our horsemen, or any of our customers by racing on Wednesdays," said Portland Meadows general manager Will Alempijevic. "There are a lot of tracks running that day and we had a difficult time finding our place in the schedule. As a result, our export sales were significantly lower than what they have been in the past.
"We expect to handle significantly more by racing on Tuesdays and we will work with the few tracks that are running on Tuesdays to stagger our posts and complement them."
Alempijevic added, "We really appreciate the support of the Oregon HBPA and the Oregon Racing Commission in working with us in a timely manner to make this important change."
Tuesday cards will feature all Thoroughbred races while Sundays feature a mix of Quarter Horse races and Thoroughbred races. Portland Meadows will still offer Wednesday racing Nov. 12. The new closing day for the meet is Feb. 10.