by Darin Gagne, for Running Aces

Columbus, MN — Running Aces Casino & Racetrack completed its ninth season of harness racing on Saturday night (Sept. 3) after a 53-night stand that began on May 17. Figures are up in every conceivable category to cap off the most successful meet in the track’s history.

On-track handle saw double digit increases while export handle was up over 22 percent above last year. Also, total purses saw an overall increase of over 30 percent, in addition to the highest total number of live races in the history of the track.

Huge crowds continued to be the theme throughout the season, especially on Tuesdays and Saturday nights. We also gained more overall exposure for our product through a stronger social media presence. There was also more comprehensive coverage of our racing through online and radio media and the introduction of our product to TVG and TVG2 network audiences.

On the racetrack, our equine and human star athletes shone brightly with more quality racing than ever before. For instance, there were blanket finishes and multi-horse photo finishes in nearly every race.

Four track records were re-written this summer, with LinkJack Hanover lowering the 4-year-old stallion pacing mark to 1:54.0 with Rick Magee in the bike on June 19. Banker Volo trotted to an older stallion track mark of 1:55.2 with Nick Roland at the reins and Majestic Lady Jo (Steve Wiseman) trotted to a new 1:56.0 mark for older mares. Both records were established on July 9. My Little Susie (Steve Wiseman) trotted in 1:56.4 as the fastest 3-year-old filly ever at the Columbus facility.

Banker Volo also won the most races of the 2016 season, by capturing eight wins in his 11 starts at Running Aces, while Bombshell Betty, The Winnin Dollar and WhatitdoBabyBoo all had seven wins at the meet.

The top driving award of 2016 went to Nick Roland, who dominated the colony this season with 98 wins, 65 seconds and 66 thirds in his 442 races. He possessed a .353 UDR rating, while winning 22.2 percent of his races. This was the fourth leading driver title for Roland in the past five years, and he is the all-time leading driver and trainer in the history of the track.

The top trainer of 2016 went to Steve Wiseman, who picked up his first Aces title this season with a very strong and talented stable. Wiseman had 51 of his trainees visit the winner’s circle this summer, with 49 seconds and 41 thirds to post a fantastic .400 UTRS average. He won at a 22 percent clip.

Running Aces congratulates all of our horsemen and employees on a fantastic 2016 season, and thanks all of our outstanding racing fans both locally and via our export signal, for helping to make this the best season ever in 2016.

Keep up to date with all of the happenings here at Running Aces during the off season by checking our website and follow us on Facebook at Running Aces Casino & Racetrack.

We hope to see you all back at the track for more great harness racing next year.