Remembering the Meadowlands Racetrack

In my life as a horse racing fan, the Meadowlands was a special place. For years a very good racing buddy and I went to the races at the Meadowlands every Thursday night. It meant late nights and long drives along the New Jersey Turnpike, but the racing was good and by today’s standards the crowds were large. The Meadowlands attracted people from Northern Jersey and more of a New York crowd, which was very different from the family beach scene at Monmouth Park in the summers.

 

The Meadowlands Sports Complex grew out of the wetlands of Northern New Jersey along the western branch of the Turnpike.  The idea began as a way to get an NFL team into New Jersey and then became reality when Governor William Cahill signed the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority Law in 1971.

 

David A. “Sonny” Werblin, former president of the NY Jets, became chairman of the NJSEA. With the Jets he was responsible for the signing of Joe Namath and is credited with building the Meadowlands racetrack and the Stadium, which would become the home of the NY Giants.  Later in his career Werblin would become the Chairman of Madison Square Garden. He was involved with racing as the owner of Elberon Farm, which campaigned two champions Process Shot and Silent Screen.

 

Thoroughbred racing began on September 6, 1977, with a 100 night thoroughbred meeting. Dave Johnson, famous for his calls of the Triple Crown races and his trademark, “…and down the stretch they come”, was the original track announcer.

 

The track was nicknamed The Big M to seemingly attract the New York crowd with the play on the nickname of Aqueduct racetrack, the Big A. Major stakes race were run on Thursday nights to avoid competing with the weekend stakes at the New York tracks. Night racing was a big success.  In the first two years average daily attendance was over 17,000.

 

The Meadowlands Cup, the signature stake, began as a 10 furlong race on the dirt track and was run on Thursday night. In the early years of the meeting, the Cup was won by Dr. Patches 1978, Spectacular Bid 1979, Wild Again 1984, Broad Brush 1986, Crème Fraiche 1987, and Alysheba 1988.  Angel Cordero, Jr. won the race four times in the 1970’s and 1980’s, while John Velazquez won it four times in the later years. Ron McAnally and Bobby Frankel each won the Cup twice.

 

The seven-time Eclipse Award winning Hall of Fame horse John Henry made his last start at the Meadowlands.  He won the grade one Ballantine Handicap going a mile and three eighths on the turf.

 

 

Over the years attendance declined, and by the time the last full thoroughbred meet was run in 2008, there were only 40 racing days with an average of 3,556 people.

 

Regardless, the thoroughbreds are back at the Meadowlands in 2012, for racing on the turf course only. Converting the main harness surface to use by thoroughbreds involved adding 11,000 tons of clay, sand, and soil to the track. Each Friday and Saturday from October 12 until November 3, an eight day Monmouth Park at the Meadowlands fall meeting will bring the Sport of Kings back to East Rutherford with first post at 2:15 pm.