R.I.P. Fort Erie

[andtheyreoff]

http://www.drf.com/news/fort-erie-close-permanently-end-year

Excerpt:
Following its annual board meeting on Tuesday, the Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium said that Fort Erie Race Track would close permanently on Dec. 31.

The Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium board includes representation from Ontario’s Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, Fort Erie Race Track management, unions involved with racetrack operations, the town of Fort Erie; and the Fort Erie Economic Development and Tourist Corporation.

"We have the responsibility to determine whether future operations at this track can continue," said Jim Thibert, chief executive officer of the racetrack and secretary/treasurer of the Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium. "In the final analysis, without the needed funding of close to $6 million, the board resolved that the Fort Erie Race Track would formally close as of Dec. 31, 2012."

[thespaah]

http://www.drf.com/news/fort-erie-close-permanently-end-year

Excerpt:
Following its annual board meeting on Tuesday, the Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium said that Fort Erie Race Track would close permanently on Dec. 31.

The Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium board includes representation from Ontario’s Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, Fort Erie Race Track management, unions involved with racetrack operations, the town of Fort Erie; and the Fort Erie Economic Development and Tourist Corporation.

"We have the responsibility to determine whether future operations at this track can continue," said Jim Thibert, chief executive officer of the racetrack and secretary/treasurer of the Fort Erie Live Racing Consortium. "In the final analysis, without the needed funding of close to $6 million, the board resolved that the Fort Erie Race Track would formally close as of Dec. 31, 2012."
This is just the beginning of the contraction in the horse racing business. An event I have been predicting for some time.
More tracks WILL close.
There are just too many tracks running simultaneously in close geographic proximity and competing for the same racing stock.
As the saying goes..."something's gotta give".

[cnollfan]

Beautiful track as I recall from my one visit in 1985.

[lamboguy]

Beautiful track as I recall from my one visit in 1985.great track, and unbelievable town!

[Tom]

One of my favorite tracks of all time.
Loved my trips there over the years.

It was a much nicer place without the simulcasting.

RIP.

[MickJ26]

Sad that a track with a lot of history will be shutting its doors, not to mention all the people that'll be losing their jobs.

[The Hawk]

It was a much nicer place without the simulcasting.



Weren't they all?

[usedtolovetvg]

The great Northern Dancer broke his maiden there. The summer meet, in its day, rivaled that of any track in North America. Like any dear friend, while I mourn its passing, I celebrate its life. In its 115 year history, this track had a spectacular existence and provided me with memories that will stay with me for the rest of my life. Many thanks to The Fort, its people and its horses. You will never be forgotten.

[garyscpa]

This is just the beginning of the contraction in the horse racing business. An event I have been predicting for some time.
More tracks WILL close.
There are just too many tracks running simultaneously in close geographic proximity and competing for the same racing stock.
As the saying goes..."something's gotta give".

I don't think it's the beginning.

[sovereign]

I've only seen Fort Erie on the screen and it seems like such a waste to close such a beautifully laid out track. Why don't they just close Hollywood instead?

[therussmeister]

Closing Hollywood would not address any issues plaguing Fort Erie. :rolleyes:

[CryingForTheHorses]

This really saddens me.I grewup living on the bachside of Ft Erie and also won my first and many races there.I feel for my fellow horseman and many friends that I have there.I havent been back to the fort since they got the slots.Beautiful track,Beautiful town with so so many memiores.I do hope they get their heads out of their ass's and save this beloved track.

[lamboguy]

This really saddens me.I grewup living on the bachside of Ft Erie and also won my first and many races there.I feel for my fellow horseman and many friends that I have there.I havent been back to the fort since they got the slots.Beautiful track,Beautiful town with so so many memiores.I do hope they get their heads out of their ass's and save this beloved track.
you are right, some of the nicest people that i have ever met.

my feeling is that when horse racing comes back, Ft. Erie will too along with other tracks that have closed.

face it Mcshell, horse racing has scared away its customers. there is no in between with this game, either you do it right and the game flourishes or you let it go like what's happening now and it will die a slow death.

[MNslappy]

http://www.paceadvantage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=53295&highlight=Fort+Erie

My guess is, just like last time, and the time before that, they'll save it somehow. We've seen this movie before. A couple of times.

[castaway01]

Closing Hollywood would not address any issues plaguing Fort Erie. :rolleyes:

It's sort of like saying "Wow, it's a shame this Burger King is closing down....McDonald's should just volunteer to shut down their restaurant instead."

I have never bet Fort Erie, but it looks like a nice place. It's a shame for the people who work there---hopefully they'll be able to find jobs elsewhere.

[northerndancer]

This really saddens me.I grewup living on the bachside of Ft Erie and also won my first and many races there.I feel for my fellow horseman and many friends that I have there.I havent been back to the fort since they got the slots.Beautiful track,Beautiful town with so so many memiores.I do hope they get their heads out of their ass's and save this beloved track.

I got my start in the Thoroughbred game at Fort Erie. I also had my first winner as an owner at the Fort. It is where I fell in love with the thoroughbred as a youngster and vowed to eventually own a horse. I still live right across the border from this historic oval.

If you have never had the opportunity to watch the live race from this venue you need to consider making the trek this season. The infield and grounds are kept so nice with actual trees, flowers and ponds compared to the barren waste lands that fill so many other tracks.

The mornings are so amazing at Fort Erie. I would almost compare the mornings to that off Saratoga as it is so peaceful.

The Border Oval will be missed.

[usedtolovetvg]

Often called 'The Saratoga of the North'.

[appistappis]

the first of many that will close in the next few years.....where the hell will I go every mon and tues now?????

[RXB]

Often called 'The Saratoga of the North'.

Fort Erie compared to Saratoga. The handicapper in me can't help but grin.

BTW, Fort Erie is actually just a tad south of Saratoga Springs.

[TJC]

Yeah, and about 300 miles west.

It was compared to Saratoga because it is one of the most beautiful tracks in North America. However, the summer meet also had the best Canadian racing, when Woodbine took its break, for many years until about the mid 90's.

I lived in Buffalo, and western NY, from 1946 to 1995, until I moved to Las Vegas, and spent every weekend at THE FORT from 1965 until 1986. When I think of the most picturesque tracks that I have been to, I would put it 3rd behind Hialeah and Saratoga. I loved the grandstand and the outdoor betting windows (separate American and Canadian) next to the walking ring.

It was racing as it was meant to be. McSchell and others, I grieve with you.

[usedtolovetvg]

Fort Erie compared to Saratoga. The handicapper in me can't help but grin.

BTW, Fort Erie is actually just a tad south of Saratoga Springs.

I was going back even further than TJC. The best that Canaadian racing had to offer. E.P. Taylor had just created the Ontario Jockey Club. He eliminated a lot of tracks and created the OJC Circuit, Old Woodbine (Greenwood), New Woodbine and Fort Erie. There were none of the 2000 claimers running there then. The New Woodbine meet would break for the summer and all the top Canadian horses, jockeys and trainers would spend the summer at the Fort, just like Del Mar & Saratoga. It was one big party. The feature race each year was the Prince of Wales Stakes, second jewel of the Canadian Triple Crown. Thanks to Northern Dancer, Canadian horses and breeding in the 60s dominated the sport. The fields were full and the racing competitive. Doubles and win, place, show betting only. It was another place and time. I would put it second behind Hialeah. Saratoga was always too crowded for me.

[BlueShoe]

Besides Fort Erie, how many other tracks are closing or on the the ropes? This also appears to be the last year for Hastings, and Yavapai is unlikely to ever race again. Could a mid or high level track be next? On a positive note, Les Bois Park in Boise, Id. has come back from the dead after being closed in 2009 and 2010, with an abbreviated meeting last year and a full meet this year.

[offtrack]

I also enjoyed Fort Erie as my first track. Summers when the horses came down from Woodbine were awesome.
Hawley, Fell, La Prevoyante, the zoo, Don Valliere, the beer hall, the cafeteria.

RIP

[RXB]

It was compared to Saratoga because it is one of the most beautiful tracks in North America. However, the summer meet also had the best Canadian racing, when Woodbine took its break, for many years until about the mid 90's.


I've never been to Fort Erie but you and many others have commented on its charms so I'm sure it was a nice place to be back when they ran the short meet with good horses.

Woodbine stopped taking those summer breaks well before the mid 90's. More like mid 80's, I think, and Fort Erie has been running cheapies ever since.

[usedtolovetvg]

I've never been to Fort Erie but you and many others have commented on its charms so I'm sure it was a nice place to be back when they ran the short meet with good horses.

Woodbine stopped taking those summer breaks well before the mid 90's. More like mid 80's, I think, and Fort Erie has been running cheapies ever since.

The technological age took away much of racing's charm, simulcasting, OTB's, then the internet. Nobody has the the time or inclination to sit back and smell the roses.

[Thomas Roulston]

Fort Erie was one of the few North American racetracks whose run from the finish line to the clubhouse turn was less than 1/16 of a mile (260 feet).

Of course you wouldn't know this unless you have held onto a pre-1982 copy of the American Racing Manual all these years.

[Hoofless_Wonder]

Is this the first time a track with slots has closed? (well, annoucing they're going to close)

Glad this got posted. I'm heading up to the SPA this summer for only the second time in my life, and maybe I'll try to swing by and see this track. Their Sunday, Monday, Tuesday live race days will make scheduling a little tougher....

[northerndancer]

Is this the first time a track with slots has closed? (well, annoucing they're going to close)

Glad this got posted. I'm heading up to the SPA this summer for only the second time in my life, and maybe I'll try to swing by and see this track. Their Sunday, Monday, Tuesday live race days will make scheduling a little tougher....

Make the trek to see this track.... you will not be disappointed.... the racing is subpar but the track and the history is worth it.

[cj]

When a Pick 3 pays 2 of 3 and the longest shot in the sequence was 8 to 1, it is probably time to turn out the lights.

[Horseplayersbet.com]

When a Pick 3 pays 2 of 3 and the longest shot in the sequence was 8 to 1, it is probably time to turn out the lights.
Only $1000 in that pool. First leg had an odds on shot go down which usually knocks out more that its share of tickets. The parlay would have paid 513-1 so two winners were expected, but this two out of three isn't out of the norm when you have three horses, none of which were picked on the program top three, with such a low pool.....except for the fact that someone could have squeaked in a 20 cent pick 3 as that is the minimum amount on that wager there.

[cj]

Only $1000 in that pool. First leg had an odds on shot go down which usually knocks out more that its share of tickets. The parlay would have paid 513-1 so two winners were expected, but this two out of three isn't out of the norm when you have three horses, none of which were picked on the program top three, with such a low pool.....except for the fact that someone could have squeaked in a 20 cent pick 3 as that is the minimum amount on that wager there.

I thought the ridiculously small pool was the point of my post.

[thespaah]

Is this the first time a track with slots has closed? (well, annoucing they're going to close)

Glad this got posted. I'm heading up to the SPA this summer for only the second time in my life, and maybe I'll try to swing by and see this track. Their Sunday, Monday, Tuesday live race days will make scheduling a little tougher....
You do realize it is about a 5 hour drive from the Saratoga Springs area to Fort Erie?

[Hoofless_Wonder]

You do realize it is about a 5 hour drive from the Saratoga Springs area to Fort Erie?
Yes, I know they're close. Assuming that you, like myself, consider a 5 hour drive "close". Since I'll be driving up from Central Illinois, I may try to stop by Thistledown, Presque Isle, Finger Lakes and Woodbine too, since those are some other tracks I haven't been to yet.

Ft. Erie was near the top of the list of tracks to visit, since I'd heard for years it was so nice. I wonder if it'll be as nice as Keeneland, Saratoga, or Hialeah?

[thespaah]

Yes, I know they're close. Assuming that you, like myself, consider a 5 hour drive "close". Since I'll be driving up from Central Illinois, I may try to stop by Thistledown, Presque Isle, Finger Lakes and Woodbine too, since those are some other tracks I haven't been to yet.

Ft. Erie was near the top of the list of tracks to visit, since I'd heard for years it was so nice. I wonder if it'll be as nice as Keeneland, Saratoga, or Hialeah?
Well ya got me there. Each year I make my trek from the Charlotte, NC area to Upstate NY for the Spa meet.
It's 400 miles to Keeneland from here. 325 to Colonial. 6-7 hours to the Baltimore area. 8 hours to Churchill.....So I get it.
My Mom is 80 and from Buffalo. Her mother used to take her over to Fort Erie as a teen and she used to go over as a young adult as well with her friends as well

[jefftune]

Fort Erie really is a beautiful track. I used to go up every year for the Prince Of Wales Stakes. Haven't been there in nearly 20 years however.

[offtrack]

You will need a passport/birth cert./enhanced driver license to return to US easily. Which is part of the problem the Fort has in drawing US customers.