from Rosecroft Raceway

Fort Washington, MD — The 27-night Summer-Fall racing season at Rosecroft Raceway kicks off Saturday (Sept. 19). Racing applications are now available at www.rosecroft.com under the “Horsemen” section and must be submitted for consideration by Aug. 31.

“The racing program continues to gain momentum at Rosecroft and we anticipate a purse increase going into this Summer–Fall meet,” said Peter Hanley, Rosecroft Racing Secretary.

Since reopening in the fall of 2011 after a 15-month bankruptcy period, Rosecroft Raceway has shown continued improvement in its live racing program. Average daily purses, which were $20,000 in 2011, are now near $70,000 for each live card, not including bonus programs linked to Maryland owner and breeding preferences.

“Our focus continues on trying to make racing more sustainable for the Maryland horsemen,” said Christopher McErlean, Vice President of Racing for Penn National Gaming, Inc., parent company of Rosecroft. “In working with Cloverleaf Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association and the Maryland Standardbred Breeders Association we continue to look for ways to improve our racing product both for the racing customer, and for horsemen, owners and breeders who are making large investments in the state. There are still many concerns we have about outside factors affecting the long term stability of this business but we will continue to move forward as best we can.”

Qualifying races are scheduled for Saturday (Sept. 12) in conjunction with the Maryland State Fair which is making its first appearance at Rosecroft. The fair runs Sept. 10-13 on the grounds of the racetrack. In order to qualify, racing applications must be submitted and approved in advance.

The Summer-Fall meet will run through Saturday (Dec. 19) with racing every Tuesday and Saturday evening at 6:40 p.m.