Tuesday, December 01, 2009

This Day in Racing History – 100 Years Ago

 

They’re off at Juarez - opening day of racing at inaugural meeting of the Juarez Jockey Club at Terrazas Park. Pinkola wins the Chihuahua handicap in front of a crowd of 6,000. 7-1 Enfield takes the first race. Chicago Tribune reports that 30 poolrooms or bucketshops are taking the race reports and this earns the track 3k a day (this would continue to be the major revenue source for the track while it raced 8 winters during 7 of which Mexico was undergoing civil wars). Racing would be conducted on Sunday during the meeting. 

From the New York Sun – February,1914

"There is one permanent institution in Mexico, the Juarez race track. No matter whether the Federals or the Constitutionalists are in possession of the town the 'ponies' gallop around the circular track for purses, and the bookmakers give odds to gringoes and greasers alike."

Damon Runyon met his 2nd wife at the track.  The US army fought one of its final cavalry fights around the racetrack in 1919. 

Dog racing took over the facility but you can still  see the outlines of the track on Google maps.

http://wikimapia.org/1793183/Juarez-Racetrack-Driving-Range