Is harness racing thriving?

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Washington, PA — Despite cooler winter weather, the betting windows at Hollywood Casino at The Meadows have been heating up, with pari-mutuel handle topping $3 million in a three-card span.

Saturday’s (Jan. 24) card saw more than $950,000 wagered on 13 races, while Wednesday’s (Jan. 28) 13-race card totaled $1,098,011 in handle, one of the highest non-stakes cards in track history. Thursday’s (Jan. 29) 12 races ended with over $987,000 in the pools.

“I can’t thank our bettors enough,” said Michael Carter, director of racing. “They have really been supportive of our races so far in 2026. It’s been a total team effort, and none of it could be done without the support of our horse owners, trainers and drivers. Winter weather has been a little rough this year, but they’ve been filling the entry box and helping us to offer some quality races for the bettors.”

[Ignorance Is Bliss]

Yep, thriving.

[Harness racer]

Could be in part to many other options cancelled for weather.  Their betting product isn’t great.  And no, all signs point to harness racing to be trending down.  You can’t ignore the economic indicators posted on USTA’s own site.

[Ignorance Is Bliss]

Could be in part to many other options cancelled for weather.  Their betting product isn’t great.  And no, all signs point to harness racing to be trending down.  You can’t ignore the economic indicators posted on USTA’s own site.

As you mention, the answer is in the current numbers. Handle per race up, total handle down and race days down compared to last year. They're picking up everyone else's crumbs until the weather losses are past. Some people are too ignorant to understand. It's like the store that gets no business until their competition gets hit by a tornado.

[NOTHING BUT TRUTHS]

not sure what Northfield does now but back in the day if they didn't do a million a night that was a bad night. 5 days a week. I bet it's still a million a night.