Playfair Remains On Course State Racing Panel Accepts Portion Of Financing Package

Management at Playfair Race course cleared another hurdle on the way to the Sept. 16 opening of the first horse racing season in Spokane since 1997.

The Washington Horse Racing Commission Wednesday accepted the track’s clarification of the securities portion of its financing package.

“Everything went well,” Playfair general manager Ross Yearout said after the commission’s meeting in the Sea-Tac Marriott.

Playfair’s opening night was moved from Monday, Sept. 18, to Saturday, Sept. 16, with the cancellation of a six-day fall meet at Sun Downs in Kennewick.

Notes

Frank Dodd of Deer Park is the Washington Thoroughbred Breeders Association’s breeder of the month for March. His family’s 80-acre facility, Twin Willows, is reportedly up for sale… . The Spokane Derby (Nov. 5) and Playfair Mile (Dec. 3) will be revived this season, each with a $10,000 purse… . The Spokane Derby will be run at a mile and one-sixteenth… . The richest of Playfair’s 14 scheduled stakes races is the $25,000 Oct. 1 Northwest Series Futurity… . Playfair will throw an outdoor barbecue for $5 a head as part of Saturday’s Belmont Stakes day… . Local horsemen are eager to compete for purses boosted by simulcast wagering. The hefty minimum purse at the 43-day Playfair meeting will be $2,500… . Playfair added more than $11,000 last week to the horsemen’s purse fund from its 5 percent slice of simulcast wagering, according to director of racing Ted Martin… . The Spokane track is handling about $47,000 a day on races from eight to 12 tracks nationwide… . Another sign of life at the historic Spokane track: the Backstretch Cafe is open from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m… . The racing commission at its March meeting OK’d the use of equine nasal strips…. Judi Rowland, horse owner, former state legislator and Auburn city councilwoman, is the newest member of the racing commission. She replaced Delores Sibonga…. Playfair is accepting reservations for Turf Club table seating. Turf Club tables are $250, with a limited number of two-seat tables for $125 for the season… . Box seats are also $250… . Contact Tom Blaine at the track (534-0505) for reservations…. A newsletter from the horsemen’s organization, OPHRN, lists the Labor & Industries insurance premium at a stiff $1,340 per year per trainer at Emerald Downs and Playfair - a 25 percent increase over last year… . Of concern statewide is a falloff at Emerald Downs. Wagering is down about 15 percent from a year ago at the Auburn track… . Former Greyhound Park general manager Don Gross is no longer associated with the Post Falls simulcast wagering facility, which has added a motocross course in what was the greyhound track’s infield.