Today a single meeting is held annually at Aqueduct; it typically begins on the last Wednesday in October and runs all the way through the first Sunday in May. Races are run on the Inner Dirt Track between the Wednesday after Thanksgiving and right before the Wood Memorial in recent years.
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In the days of seasonal racing, Aqueduct typically opened the season in mid-March and closed it in early or mid-December. Brief meetings in July and September were also common. By the mid-1970s racing in New York became a year-round affair, and Aqueduct became the home of wintertime racing.
Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse-racing facility and racino in the South Ozone Park and Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City.
Aqueduct closed in 1956, reopening September 14, 1959, after $33 million of renovations designed by noted racetrack architect Arthur Froehlich of the firm Arthur Froehlich and Associates of Beverly Hills, California. The Equestris Restaurant in the clubhouse opened in 1981 and was the largest restaurant in New York City at the time.
Sportscaster Tom Durkin was the chief track announcer at Aqueduct and the other NYRA tracks until his retirement on August 31, 2014. Races are now called by John Imbriale during most of the meet, with Larry Collmus returning for races in the spring.
The track itself has three courses. The main track (dirt) has a circumference of 11⁄8 miles (1.8 km). Inside of the main track are two courses: the 1 mile (1.6 km) Main Turf Course, and the Inner Turf Course measuring 7.065 furlongs (1.421 km). The track has seating capacity of 17,000 and total capacity of 40,000.
South Ozone ParkAqueduct Racetrack, also known as The Big A, is the only racetrack in New York City, occupying 210 acres in South Ozone Park in the borough of Queens.
(NYRA) today announced that Aqueduct Racetrack will re-open to the public on Thursday, Nov. 11, Opening Day of the 2021 fall meet. Originally closed to fans during the height of the COVID-19 emergency in March of 2020, Aqueduct then became the site of a New York State mass vaccination center in January 2021.
The New York Racing Association says it isn't planning on closing Aqueduct Race Track despite a report in the Aug. 29 Albany Times-Union that said the horse-racing organization's financial oversight board suggested shuttering the track to save money and the fact that area officials aren't exactly opposed to the idea.
6:22pmSaturday, May 21Official Start Time6:22pmTrackTurf, YieldingDistance1 1/16 Miles
Racing at Aqueduct Canceled Sunday.
As previously announced, and in accordance with New York City requirements, fans seeking to enter Aqueduct must demonstrate proof of COVID-19 vaccination. Aqueduct will re-open to the public Thursday, Nov. 11, Opening Day of the 18-day 2021 Aqueduct fall meet, which runs through Sunday, Dec. 5.
freeAdmission to Aqueduct Racetrack is free! A section of the first floor will be closed due to ongoing vaccinations. Fans are encouraged to sign up for a NYRA Bets account to watch and wager from anywhere!
Aqueduct To Be Open For Simulcasting Wednesday Through Sunday In 2020. The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) today announced, as of January 1, Aqueduct Racetrack will be open to the public Wednesday through Sunday.
Unlike most race tracks in North America, which typically feature one dirt course and one turf course, Aqueduct Race Track actually has three courses - a Main Dirt course (of 1 1/8 miles), an Inner Dirt course (1 mile) used for winter racing, and an inner Turf course (7 furlongs).
Located in Queen's, New York, Aqueduct Race Track is so named due to its proximity with what was once the Brooklyn Waterworks pipeline, which brought water from eastern Long Island to a nearby resevoir. One of two tracks in the New York City area, Aqueduct is the home of winter racing in the state, with a schedule that typically runs from late October through to April. Aqueduct hosts a number of graded-stakes races through its meet, most notably the (G1) $1 million Wood Memorial Stakes one month prior to the Kentucky Derby.
Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park and Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack located within New York City limits.
In 1955, the Greater New York Association took over Aqueduct along with Belmont Park, Saratoga Race Course, and Jamaica Race Course, deciding to make major upgrades to Aqueduct, after which Jamaica Race Course would be sold for redevelopment as a housing project.
In May 2007, reports indicated that then-New York Governor Eliot Spitzer was considering closing Aqueduct and selling the 192-acre (0.78 km 2) track and its stables, which currently house 400 horses, to developers when the New York Racing Association lease expired at the end of 2007.
On May 31, 1965, 73,375 spectators were on hand at Aqueduct and watched Gun Bow win the Metropolitan Mile. At the time, it was the largest crowd to ever attend a thoroughbred horse racing event in New York. Champion racehorse Secretariat was retired at Aqueduct before the public on November 6, 1973.
The Aqueduct Flea Market closed in 2011. In May 2017, NYRA announced that they would resurface the 1⅛-mile main track with a limestone base, and convert the inner dirt track back into a turf course. The changes were completed in time for the start of the 2017 fall meet on November 3.
In The Odd Couple episode "Felix the Horse Player", Felix and Oscar go to Aqueduct. The Sopranos episode " Pie-O-My " features a number of scenes at the racetrack.
Any closure at Aqueduct, which is equipped for the cold winter months, would have required millions of dollars in renovations at Belmont, a summer-only track. Belmont is also hampered by its north-oriented grandstand, which would cause shadows in the winter months.
Racing is now held at the track in January, February, March, April, November, and December.
Aqueduct, colloquially known as “The Big A,” has been a name associated with Thoroughbred racing in New York since the late 19 th century. The original track by that name opened in 1894 and operated until 1955, when it was dismantled and rebuilt in close proximity to the old facility.
Turf: 7/8 mile 43 feet, oval. Stables: 547 stalls, 14 barns (2 receiving, 1 pony) One of America’s oldest horse racing venues, Aqueduct Racetrack opened in 1894. The property at the time belonged to the Brooklyn Water Works, on a parcel also containing an aqueduct bringing water to New York City from the Hempstead Plain.
The current Aqueduct, located near John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, opened to great fanfare in the fall of 1959 and immediately became the most attended of the three New York Racing Association tracks.
During this time all of the races associated with Belmont, including the Belmont Stakes, were contested at Aqueduct. Two Triple Crown attempts – Northern Dancer’s in 1964 and Kauai King’s in 1966 – were actually foiled at Aqueduct. Since its reopening Aqueduct has both opened and closed the New York racing season.
Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park and Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack located within New York City limits. Its racing meets are usually from late October/early November through April. The racetrack is located adjacent to a casino called Resorts World New York City.
Operating near the site of a former conduit of the Brooklyn Waterworks that brought water from eastern Long Island to the Ridgewood Reservoir, Aqueduct Racetrack opened on September 27, 1894, by the Queens County Jockey Club. The track was named "Aqueduct" after the former Ridgewood Aqueduct. The facility was expanded and a new clubhouse was constructed before the 1941 …
Sportscaster Tom Durkin was the chief track announcer at Aqueduct and the other NYRA tracks until his retirement on August 31, 2014. Races are now called by NYRA track announcer John Imbriale. TV personalities have included:
• Harvey Pack (1995–1999)
• Paul Corman (1995–1999)
The following graded stakes were run at Aqueduct in 2019:
Grade I:
• Carter Handicap
• Cigar Mile Handicap
Grade II:
The track has its own New York City Subway station, Aqueduct Racetrack, served by the IND Rockaway Line (A train). It has only one platform on the Brooklyn-bound side, requiring southbound travelers to transfer to a northbound train at Aqueduct–North Conduit Avenue station, which is located a few blocks to the south. NYRA also operates a free shuttle bus between the North Conduit Aven…
• The film Lucky Number Slevin features scenes at "Aqueduct Racetrack", which were filmed at a track in Canada.
• There is a scene with Aqueduct Racetrack in the movie A Bronx Tale.
• In The Odd Couple episode "Felix the Horse Player", Felix and Oscar go to Aqueduct.
• New York Racing Association
• Belmont Park
• Saratoga Race Course
• Aqueduct Racetrack official site
• Vendors at Aqueduct Flea Market Seek New Home as Closing Nears
• A Flea Market Considers Its Fate in a Casino World