SANDY DOWNS LIVE RACING RETURNS
THE MAYOR’S CUP
BITTERROOT FUTURITY & DERBY FINALS
Veteran Flag Ceremony & Live Bugle Call
$150,000 Estimated Purse Money
June 24th First Post of 5:00pm MT
Sandy Downs, the home track of IdaRacing continues the racing season on June 24th with a City of Idaho Falls Appreciation Day. Highlights of the day will be The Mayor’s Cup; and the prestigious Bitterroot Futurity, Derby & Juvenile Finals.
Always a special treat is the running of The Mayor’s Cup with special guest Idaho Falls Mayor Casper and city of Idaho Falls officials & staff on hand to meet and greet horsemen and racing enthusiasts. Fans will also be thrilled to watch the excitement of the finals for the Bitterroot Futurity, Derby & Juvenile sprints running for an estimated purse of $130,000. Total purses for horsemen on this day of live racing at Sandy Downs will be an estimated $150,000. Fans will be able to watch and wager on live racing at the track or from home at IdaBet.com. Saturday, June 24th Gates open at 4pm with first post time for live racing beginning at 5 PM Sharp!
8 High Stakes Races are scheduled with the Idaho Quarter Horse Racing Association’s Premiere Bitterroot Futurity & Derby Finals with 20 of the fastest – 2 & 3yr old Quarter Horses hauling in from all across the Intermountain West to Idaho Falls for a chance to be one of the coveted top place finishers for an estimated $130,000 in Purse money on June 24th at Sandy Downs. These races at Sandy Downs will draw crowds from near and far and will be a great boost for the local economy. Sandy Downs is excited that Mayor Casper and the City of Idaho Falls staff will be on hand to greet horsemen and racing fans from across Idaho and surrounding states. Local County Commissioners as well as Idaho’s Legislature have been invited to attend this event. The magnitude of Saturday’s racing will be highlighted with National news coverage by SPEEDHORSE Magazine, Stallionesearch.com and local area news stations.
The quality of the breeding programs of Idaho horsemen in particular, as well as those across the Intermountain West really shows. Horses bred in Idaho continue to compete at the highest levels in racing and are taking home the winnings. These dedicated individuals at the grassroots level greatly deserve a pat on the back!
The Bitterroot Futurity has the #7 CM BOOM SHAKALAKA who was the fastest qualifier and also undefeated, looks to keep his winning streak alive for Owner/Breeder Randy Dickerson and trained by Garth Blatner of Idaho. The #5 horse WAGONFULLOFDIVIDENDS who has been undefeated in his young career and looks for his 4th victory for Idaho owners RTM Stables and Shauna Dunn; trained by Mark Hanson also from Idaho. The #1 horse FANTASTIC MINION was the 5th fastest qualifier for Idaho Breeders/Owners Kirk Woolf & Ralph Hartline and looks to improve his finish in this final. The #4 horse JUSTHADTOBE bred by longstanding Idaho horsemen Dan & Connie Moon and owned by Tyler Gibbs and Alan Ostdahl was the 4th fastest qualifier. The entire field of ten horses looks great and with this being a 350 yard sprint with 2 year olds, the top finishers are up for grabs!
The Bitterroot Derby has the.#10 DUCK DASH N GO who was the fastest qualifier and has shown impressive speed out of the gate for owner Vicente Treyes and is trained by the extremely talented Monty Arossa The#9 horse A CARTEL HUSTLE who ran a very rapid 110 Speed Index 2 starts back for owners Larry Chapple, Dick Wasia & RTM Stables and breeder Larry Chapple all of Idaho. The #8 MOVIN THE DOE qualified second for Idaho Owner/Trainer Luis Gonzales and showed great heart and dueled at the wire to beat A CARTEL HUSTLE in the trials. The quality of all ten 3 year olds in the Derby is outstanding and the final order of finish is anyone’s guess!
The Mayor’s Cup special feature race is the Bitterroot Juvenile. The #3 ROYALLITTLEWAGON is looking for her 2nd career victory on Saturday for Breeder/Owner Enrique Rojo and trained by Skyler Greene all of Idaho . The #8 JR CMCLUTCHEN ran 2nd to the fastest qualifier for Owner/Breeder JR Stables in Utah and is expected to improve with Jose Figueroa in the irons for trainer Riley Moosman.
Excellent weather is forecast and large crowds are expected with such high stakes races at Sandy Downs and combined with The Mayor’s Cup Mile and family-friendly entertainment, it should be a great day! Saturday’s event will feature live horse racing, the American Legion Post 56 Flag ceremony & local veteran bugle first call, area Rodeo Queens on horseback, live music, an old-time photo booth, and gifts and prizes with fun for the whole family hosted by the Colt Whitmore Show in between races. There are fun bounces and water works for the kids, many giveaways, free betting vouchers & free kids dogs while supplies last as well as good eats and ice cold beverages all evening long with this non-stop trackside party.
Fans are reminded to come early to be able to enjoy the pre-racing flag show and events and BET early to avoid being shut out at the windows. Post times listed are when the horses actually leave the starting gate beginning with the first race. Don’t be late or you’ll miss it!
Due to the number of horses hauling in, horsemen are encouraged to book rooms early due to availability of other events happening in Idaho Falls. The LaQuinta Inns & Suites is a proud sponsor of IdaRacing and are offering discounted rooms subject to availability with promo code IDARS1.
The remaining 2017 live racing schedule at Sandy Downs will be as follows:
Post time on June 24th 5pm MT
Post time on July 4th 1pm MT & July 22nd 5pm
Post time on Sept 16th & Sept 30th is 4pm MT
IdaRacing would like to thank all of their sponsors who make racing possible in the community. Special mention needs to go to Mayor Casper and Parks & Recreation Director Greg Weitzel and their entire City of Idaho Falls team who do an incredible job at the Sandy Downs events center to support IdaRacing’s horse racing venue and continue enhancements and upgrades to the event center. IdaRacing also thanks their Corporate sponsors who really make a difference by supporting racing; a rural and long-standing family tradition and livelihood for many. A big thank you and shout out to SandHill Media, Hawthorne Animal Hospital, TEC Distributing & Coors Light & Sam Adams, The Dakri Bernard Realty Group, LaQunita Inns & Suites, the Post Register and IdaBet.com! You can find a complete listing of all sponsors at IdaRacing.com – remember to support these great businesses.
Sandy Downs is located on East 65th Street in Idaho Falls. For further information visit IdaRacing.com or call 208-745-8433. If you can’t make it to the track, watch the races from the comfort of your own home and wager online with Idabet.com or by phone toll-free at 877-782-9994. Fans can open an account by logging onto Idabet.com or calling the Phone bet number. The service is available in all states where online betting is permitted. Players earn IdaRewards – a daily cash back program for most bets, premium monthly rewards, easy access to extensive information to handicap the races and exceptional personalized service.
Idabet.com is licensed in Idaho, regulated by the Idaho State Racing Commission and the Oregon Racing Commission and is a service of eBet Technologies and owned by Idaho-based Intermountain Racing & Entertainment, LLC.
