Anderson, IN — Just seven nights into the 2021 live harness racing season, Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing & Casino recorded the largest Thursday night handle ever in the 27-year history of the track on April 8. Bolstered by full fields and competitive racing, the evening’s 13-race card produced a total of $1,151,829 wagered.

“We’d like to send a very big thank you to everyone who watched and wagered on tonight’s card at Harrah’s Hoosier Park,” Vice President and General Manager of Racing, Rick Moore, noted. “We are firm believers in momentum, and this is a great way to start the season. We’d also like to thank the horsemen for putting on an outstanding show each and every night.”

Harrah’s Hoosier Park kicked off the 2021 live racing season on March 26 and did it with a bang as the bettors came out in full force. Handle increases were felt both on track and through export wagering to produce $703,202 in all sources handle for the evening. All sources handle was up an impressive 7.5 percent over opening night in 2019 with the same number of races carded.

Along with a few new additions to the wagering menu for the 2021 live racing season, Harrah’s Hoosier Park has and will continue to offer a free live racing program available for download on the Harrah’s Hoosier Park website every live racing night. Expert selections and handicapping tools are also available for free on Harrah’s Hoosier Park’s website.

Live racing will return to Harrah’s Hoosier Park on Friday (April 9) with an action packed 13-race card. Friday’s card will feature a $20,000 Open Pace and four divisions of the Jerry Landess Memorial Pacing Series. Friday’s card will also feature a $10,000 guaranteed Hoosier High-5 pool in the last race of the program.

With a daily post time of 6:30 p.m., Harrah’s Hoosier Park’s 2021 season will feature 160 live racing days. Racing will be held on a Wednesday through Saturday schedule through mid-May before adding Sunday evenings. The full schedule continues through September before dropping back down to a Wednesday through Saturday schedule through Dec. 4. For the first time ever, Harrah’s Hoosier Park will also offer live racing on both the night before Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving night. For more information on the upcoming live racing schedule, please visit www.harrahshoosierpark.com.