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Handle Exceeds $488,000, Great Falls Could Add Days in 2016
Sara and Matt Stevenson cheer during last stretch during the State Fair Race Meet at Montana ExpoPark.

© Great Falls Tribune / Annisa Keith
Handle Exceeds $488,000, Great Falls Could Add Days in 2016

ELECTRIC CITY, MT—AUGUST 1, 2015—Montana ExpoPark's just concluded four-day race meet enjoyed a total handle of just under $500,000. Two days in a row the meeting around 4,000 fans filled the grandstand to wager in excess of $130,000.

That’s the most wagering since the Great Falls Turf Club resurrected live horse racing in the Electric City two years ago.

“Another great weekend,” said Sparky Kottke, president of the Turf Club, which brokered a deal with Cascade County commissioners to return horse racing to the city in 2013 following an absence of several years.

The overwhelming success of the race meet might mean additional days of horse racing next year and beyond.

“That’s something we’ve really got to consider,” Kottke said. “I know fans want it and the horsemen would like to do it. Our only contention is that we’ve been so successful with four dates that it’s hard to make the decision to move to five or six.”

Kottke said he believes the race meet proved to be a winning proposition for everyone.

“I think Cascade County should be happy,” he said. “I’m sure the gate attendance was up the first two days of the fair because of the racing, and I know last weekend their numbers were up on concessions. It sure seemed like a lot of people were out in the vendor area today buying stuff and coming in and out. I think it was very successful.”

The total handle for the meet, approaching a half million bucks, is the best since the Turf Club’s involvement with the sport. “Nothing to complain about,” Kottke said.

The total handle for the four-day meet was $488,396, while the Racing Office estimated the total attendance at about 12,000. The closing day handle was over $143,000.