Downs sticking with what works

They’re at the post! They’re off!

Assiniboia Downs is set to kick off its 69th season of live racing on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., following a record-setting season last year. The horsemen are champing at the bit to send their charges out of the gate carrying your $2 punt all the way to the winner’s circle.

The race meet runs from May 12 through Oct. 7, with racing on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and select Mondays through the summer and into September. Post time is 7:30 p.m. The pinnacle of the live meeting, the $125,000 Manitoba Derby, takes place on Aug. 3.

Over 500 horses are on the grounds, more than usual to start the season. Five-time leading trainer Jerry Gourneau heads a strong contingent of large stables ready to make it all happen. Gourneau has over 40 horses and more on the way for his major owner, former champion race car driver Henry S. Witt, Jr., of Texas. Last year’s leading trainer, Steve Keplin, Jr., is also back, and he’ll have about a dozen horses to start the 2026 meeting.

Both Gourneau and Keplin are from the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Reserve in Belcourt, N.D., and have helped to establish an amazing record of 11 consecutive leading trainer titles won by Indigenous trainers, and 13 of the past 17.

Reigning leading rider Damario Bynoe is back to defend his title along with most of the top 10 jockeys from last year including three-time champion Antonio Whitehall and leading apprentice Ciera Pruitt.

The Downs annual presser took place on Thursday. Logan Oxenham, MLA for Kirkfield Park, was in attendance, as was Mayor Scott Gillingham, along with representatives from Travel Manitoba; the CTHS; the Manitoba HBPA; the Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority of Manitoba; the leading season sponsor, Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries; and Final Furlong, which helps find homes and new careers for retired thoroughbred racehorses.

Assiniboia Downs was nominated in the Large Business of the Year category at the recent Manitoba Tourism Awards, and their numbers continue to be staggering. Horse racing has been contributing to the provincial coffers for over 100 years, and the Downs has been that economic horse since 1958.

A recent report provided to the government indicates that the Downs provides about 1,200 to 1,500 direct and indirect full-time jobs across Manitoba and generates over $150 million in annual economic activity, which triggers a conservative estimate of $31-42 million in direct and indirect revenues for the province. For every dollar in partnership support from the government there is a return of $14.40 in provincial economic output.

Those numbers don’t come easily. Downs CEO Darren Dunn and Sharon Gulyas, VP of finance and gaming, and their management team have done an exceptional job in a very competitive gaming industry, to the point where people from around the world now bet millions of dollars on our small local track every race night. So how do you build on a record-breaking season?

“You don’t reinvent the wheel when you find something that works,” said Assiniboia Downs CEO Darren Dunn. “We just don’t rest on our laurels, and have added a number of exciting new promotions. But the core structure that we’ve been building on for the past six years since COVID continues to find a strong path forward as we elevate the profile of Manitoba to the world.”

Those promotions include Western Wednesdays, which will take place in June in conjunction with Molson Coors and include line dancing, a mechanical bull (harder than it looks!) and a chance to win a Molson Coors BBQ; super cool drone shows that you have to see to believe courtesy of AURA Drones; a Canada Day fireworks display on July 1,and a night you definitely don’t want to miss on July 13, which will feature wiener dog races. There’s also Monday dollar nights in July and August that will offer $2 hotdogs, pop, popcorn and ice cream.

The most exciting new promotion of the meeting will be the Lucky Longshot contest, which fans can enter free each night. If your name is drawn and the longest shot on the board wins the final race of the evening, you get to spin a prize wheel that includes a $10,000 payout.

Every Tuesday in July and August will feature Family Fun Nights that include bouncy castles, face painting, balloon twisters, glitter tattoos and live children’s entertainment. The popular Girls’ Night Out will be back on Wednesday evenings in July and August, featuring prize draws, contests and displays. There will also be three Manitoba Night Markets with over 100 local Manitoba companies, live music and over 20 food trucks, along with Food Truck Battles on May 23-24.

Oh, and opening night next Tuesday is also a Family Fun Night, so if you want to get your face painted …

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