By Dave Little, Meadowlands
Media Relations
EAST
RUTHERFORD, N.J. – A pair of harness racing giants – the Meadowlands and
Woodbine Entertainment – are joining forces to create a wager certain to
titillate the palate of any punter when the “Can-Am Pick-4” makes its debut on
Friday, March 22.
As the name
suggests, the wager requires players to select the winners of four races from
Canada and America. Two of those races will take place at the mile oval in East
Rutherford, NJ, with the other pair to be contested at Woodbine Mohawk Park,
the seven-eighths track in Milton, ON, Canada.
“We are
extremely pleased to be working with everybody at Woodbine Entertainment,” said
Big M Chief Operating Officer and General Manager Jason Settlemoir. “They have
a great racing product and so do we, and to combine those products to make one
wager that’s sure to create increased interest for both tracks is great for
business as well as the sport. We are optimistic that followers of both the
Meadowlands and Woodbine Mohawk Park will jump headlong into the challenge the
Can-Am Pick-4 presents.”
The CAP4 will
have a 20-cent minimum bet and a low 15 percent takeout. That’s good for the
bettor. But the management teams at the industry’s top two tracks also want to
tackle a source of frustration for racing fans: the drag.
Both tracks will
work together beginning on Friday nights (effective March 22) to lessen the
drags. The plan calls for, at three minutes past zero to post, the countdown
clock would start; at four past zero, horses called; and at five past, the race
goes off.
“We will
both be doing this as the leaders of this industry,” said Settlemoir. “We want
to move the needle back on these outlandish drags but it will take an
industry-wide initiative to make it happen. We will be taking the first step in
doing so and are hoping that our fans will continue to wager the same or more.”
The Can-Am
Pick-4 will be made up of the next-to-last race at Woodbine Mohawk Park, with
the tracks then alternating until the bet concludes at the Big M. The pools
will be separate but both tracks will share equally in revenues. If the bet is
a success, it could also be seen on Saturday nights down the road. Both tracks
will continue to conduct their usual Pick-4 wagers.
“The
biggest thing I’m happy about is that we have seen a proliferation of Pick-4
wagers utilizing multiple tracks on the thoroughbred side," said Klaus
Ebner, Senior Manager of Simulcast Services for Woodbine. "Both teams have
worked hard to make this happen and it will be great to see the harness side
get some exposure on bets like this.
“Our main
goal is we don’t want our customers having to choose between wagering on
Woodbine Mohawk Park and the Meadowlands. The coordination of post times will
allow them access to the best two harness racing products in the world. We have
worked together to stay off one another (not race at the same time) to the best
of our abilities and, for the most part, the staffs at both tracks do a great
job of doing that.”
