Canterbury Park's spring-summer meet begins next Saturday
Canterbury Park begins its 31st season of live Thoroughbred and quarter-horse racing next Saturday with a 6 p.m. EDT first post.
Opening weekend racing includes Sunday and Memorial Day Monday programs at 2 p.m. EDT. The 2025 meet will feature racing primarily on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 6 p.m. and Sundays at 1 p.m. Six Thursday programs will be offered later in the 51-day season along with a Friday, July 4, card. The meet concludes Sept. 20.
“Live racing at Canterbury Park is back for another season and promises to offer fun at every turn,” general manager John Groen said. “I am confident our racing will be exciting and our promotional calendar will draw crowds of long-time fans as well as first-time guests. We’re focused on providing an amazing guest experience that can’t be replicated in the Twin Cities.”
In 2024, daily attendance averaged 4,802 with several race days attracting 12,000 and the July 3 races followed by fireworks drawing more than 15,000 guests.
“Our long-term commitment to the Minnesota horse racing industry is evident in the infrastructure investments we’ve made over the past few years,” Groen said. “Our goal is to position Canterbury Park to be the top summer racetrack in the Midwest in the coming years.”
Finishing touches to a $15 million investment in racing infrastructure that began two years ago have been completed and include an RV park and recreational area as well as new roads and landscaping in the stable area. Prior improvements saw the construction of dormitories and horse barns, the installation of a new LED track lighting system and an enhanced safety rail. The backstretch, where more than 500 employees work and live, is home to 1,100 horses each summer.
The wagering menu will again include a 50-cent Pick 5 with a 10% takeout beginning in the second race each day. The 10% takeout rate is the lowest in North American racing. Last season’s highest paying Pick 5 was $35,735.40 on a 50-cent wager.
Canterbury’s premiere races will again be clustered on four Saturdays, beginning with the Northern Stars Turf Festival on June 21, Hall of Fame Night on July 12, Made in Minnesota Night featuring the Minnesota Derby and Minnesota Oaks on Aug. 9, and the 32nd rendition of the Minnesota Festival of Champions on Sept. 6.
“We expect to have nearly all of the 1,100 stalls filled with racehorses ready to run,” senior manager of racing operations Amber Carlisle said. “Horses have been arriving from all over the country so I anticipate competitive races that will attract large wagering pools.”
Canterbury draws horses and trainers who have wintered in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Illinois, Nebraska and Florida.
“We plan to use our turf course extensively again this meet,” Carlisle said. “Turf racing is popular with trainers and those betting on the races and is a huge asset for Canterbury. Our turf crew does a great job maintaining the course allowing us to offer racing at all class levels and several distances.”
Last season Canterbury ran an average of three turf races on a typical program.
Originally named Canterbury Downs, the suburban-Minneapolis racetrack opened in 1985 and closed after the 1992 season. Current CEO Randy Sampson along with his father Curtis Sampson and Dale Schenian purchased the facility in 1994 and returned live racing to the state in 1995.