Amira Chichakly photo
By Paul Post
Buoyed by momentum from the first-ever Belmont Stakes at Saratoga, the regular summer racing meet began July 11, ushering in what could be the best season in the historic track’s long, colorful history.
Highlighted by the 155th renewal of the Grade 1, $1.25 million Travers on August 24 and the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney on August 3, the 40-day meet features 19 Grade 1 races as part of 71 stakes worth $20.75 million in total purses.
The four-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival (June 6-9) had an estimated $50 million economic impact on the surrounding area, and a recent study prepared for Saratoga Economic Development Corporation says the summer meet’s impact has increased 57 percent to $371 million since 2014. Saratoga Race Course alone is directly responsible for generating almost 3,000 jobs, not counting the thousands of other hospitality industry positions it supports throughout the Capital Region.
“The area hosted lots of first-time visitors during the four-day Belmont Stakes Festival and we encouraged them to check out our local restaurants, retail shops, entertainment venues and cultural destinations,” said Todd Shimkus, Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce president. “The feedback from those visitors was overwhelmingly positive, so we are hopeful they will return this July and August to be part of the full 40-day summer meet, with more time to enjoy the many other attractions that Saratoga County has to offer.”
Racing is held five days per week, Wednesdays through Sundays, apart from closing week when the meet concludes on Labor Day (Monday, September 2). First post is 1:10 p.m. daily except Saturdays, when it’s 12:35 p.m.
Admission gates open at 11 a.m. for all but Travers Day when gates will open at 9 a.m. Travers Day will feature a special first post of 11:40 a.m.
Numerous activities and festive events are planned both on and off the track throughout the meet’s entirety.
For track-goers, some of the most anticipated dates are give-away days when everyone entering the grounds gets a special free gift. This year’s lineup is a white, 40-ounce Saratoga drink tumbler on Friday, July 19; a Saratoga baseball jersey, white with red piping and a red Saratoga logo emblazoned across the front, on Friday, August 2; a trucker cap (white Saratoga logo embroidered on a red patch above a red brim, with a white mesh wrap around the back) on Friday, August 16; and a black windbreaker with an embroidered white Saratoga logo on Sunday, September 1.
One of the track’s most popular features is Breakfast at Saratoga from at 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., excluding Travers Day and Labor Day. Fans may enjoy a buffet breakfast against the backdrop of horses galloping by during morning training sessions.
Two years ago, a new program was introduced giving fans a chance to tour a local thoroughbred breeding farm after breakfast. The program will be offered Wednesday through Saturday (excluding Aug. 24), plus select Sundays through Saturday, August 31. This year will feature newcomer Sugar Plum Farm to supplement incumbents Song Hill Thoroughbreds and Old Tavern Farm. Fans are taken to farms on a CDTA trolley and return in time for the afternoon’s races.
Tickets must be reserved in advance at NYRA.com. Each tour accommodates up to 52 guests. Admission to Saratoga Race Course is included in the package.
The highly anticipated Travers Stakes might feature a showdown between the respective winners of this year’s Kentucky Derby (Mystik Dan), Preakness (Seize the Grey) and Belmont Stakes (Dornoch). The Belmont drew a capacity crowd and is scheduled for Saratoga next year as well, as construction continues on renovations to Belmont Park in Queens.
Saratoga County’s economy was already trending upward prior to the Belmont Festival, and is expected to grow even stronger during the racing season when tens of thousands of visitors descend on the Spa City and surrounding towns.
Sales tax collections increased to $66.41 million from January to May, up 2.5 percent from the previous year. Similarly, the City of Saratoga Springs collected $6.6 million in sales taxes from January through May, up 11 percent versus the $5.95 million collected in the same time frame in 2023.
Countywide lodging numbers also improved with revenue per available room up 11.3 percent compared to last year, driven by increased occupancy and rates. For the first five months of 2024, occupancy is up 5.4 percent, the average daily rate is up 5.6 percent; demand is up 4.5 percent; and overall revenue is up 10.3 percent.
Meanwhile, the real estate market saw a 9 percent rise in median home prices, reaching $419,944, with a slight increase in new listings. Of special note, the number of new listings in the first five months of 2024 was 1,235, up very slightly from the 1,180 new listings placed on the market during this same time frame in 2023.
The number of closed sales through the first five months of 2024 was 819 versus 817 last year.
Saratoga Springs Downtown Business Association helped kick off the racing season with an Opening Day Celebrate Saratoga event on Broadway, featuring live music by the band Soul Session. An array of musical talent is scheduled for the Summer Concert Series, held each Tuesday in July and Sunday in August, beginning at 7 p.m. at the War Memorial in Congress Park.
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, directly across from the track, has many special activities on tap including a new exhibit celebrating the legacies of Hall of Fame members Paul Mellon and Ruffian. Hall of Fame inductions, free and open to the public, are scheduled for Friday, Aug. 2 at the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion.
“The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival was a spectacular success,” said Brien Bouyea, the museum’s director of communications. “We had great attendance throughout the four days and played host to several special events and programs. We were thrilled to have Gov. Hochul visit the museum on Belmont Stakes day and all of our community partners benefited from all of the activity the festival generated.”