Harness racing to resume in Southwestern Ontario this weekend in Phase One of reopening
Scott Wray is tired of only training his horses at his Dorchester, Ont. stable, he wants to compete.
"We're pretty excited, Our first night back is Saturday night that's Hiawatha Horse Park in Sarnia," says Wray, a harness driver and horse owner.
Phase One of the province's roadmap to reopening includes outdoor horse racing and motor speedways. That means as of this weekend, harness racing will resume at small town tracks across Ontario.
"There's been a lot of uncertainty and no one really knew when it was going to continue, or at what capacity," says Wray.
"It's going to be interesting to see how this weekend goes and how many horses are ready to race."
Scott Wray drives his horse in Dorchester, Ont. on June 8, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)
Scott Wray drives his horse in Dorchester, Ont. on June 8, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)
Condition sheets have been posted for the majority of Ontario's racetracks that plan to conduct live harness racing this weekend. Southwestern Ontario tracks in Sarnia, Dresden, Hanover and Clinton will open this weekend.
Clinton Raceway, which would normally open May 24 weekend, will host its first card of the season Sunday. They'll race right through until Labour Day.
"It's an exciting time for us that things are starting to open up," says Ian Fleming, general manager of Clinton Raceway.
The industry, which employs tens of thousands of people has taken a hit.
"It's been a trying time for everybody but the government was in a no win situation they want to keep everybody healthy and man everybody to get out and do things so it's hard to match those things up," says Fleming.
Jack Wray feeds his horse carrots in Dorchester, Ont. on June, 8, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)
Jack Wray feeds his horse carrots in Dorchester, Ont. on June, 8, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)
Racing season resumes, but not before major tracks which operate through the winter months missed out on another season.
"We're a London based stable and that's our major source income was at London Raceway," says Jack Wray, who co-owns horses at Wray Stable.
"We've lost two winters now, and it's been tough. On the agriculture side of the business you have the grain, the feed, the blacksmiths, the trucks , the trailers, the blankets and the equipment. It goes on and on and on. It's an endless stream and this industry generates a lot of money."
Now, with the resumption of racing, the hope is the bounce back can begin.
"These little summer tracks, it's really good for their local economy as it brings a lot of visitors within the city," says Scott Wray.
"So COVID has been tough but hopefully now that the racing starts back that the economy of the racing will come back."
There will be no fans in the stands when racing resumes this weekend, however racing will still be available online.
"We've got a good following that watch on the computer and we've got a pretty good signal there," says Fleming.
"We're hopeful we get a lot of people. We had a good year last year so we're hoping under the circumstances and do the same thing this year."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.
Auston Matthews skates ahead of Game 7, status unclear with season on the line
Auston Matthews was back on the ice with his teammates Saturday.
Russia puts Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on its wanted list
Russia has put Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on its wanted list, Russian state media reported Saturday, citing the interior ministry’s database.
Snakes almost on a plane: U.S. TSA discovers a bag with small snakes in passenger's pants
According to an X post by the Transportation Security Administration, officers at the Miami International Airport found the small bag of snakes hidden in a passenger's trousers on April 26 at a checkpoint.