TurfPublicists: SIMULCAST WAGERING ON PREAKNESS, BLACK-EYED SUSAN AVAILABLE AT BELMONT PARK

Monday, May 10, 2010

Contact: Jon Forbes

SIMULCAST WAGERING ON PREAKNESS, BLACK-EYED SUSAN AVAILABLE AT BELMONT PARK

ELMONT, N.Y. – In addition to all of the great racing here in New York, patrons at Belmont Park will be able to watch and wager on the 135^th running of the Grade 1 Preakness Stakes at Pimlico on Saturday, May 15.

Belmont will offer wagering on the full Preakness card, which is scheduled to get underway at 10:45 a.m. and will feature the second leg of the Triple Crown and six other stakes races.

To accommodate horseplayers who wish to partake in the early action at “Old Hilltop,” Belmont Park will open at 10:15 a.m. on Preakness Day. Live racing at Belmont will commence at 1 p.m., highlighted by the Grade 2 Shuvee for fillies and mares, and the regular $300,000 Guaranteed Late Pick 4.

On Friday, May 14, Belmont will accept wagers on the all the action from Pimlico, including the Black-Eyed Susan for 3-year-old fillies, and advance bets on the Preakness. The Black-Eyed Susan/Preakness Double, a $2 minimum wager which requires bettors to select the winner of both races, will also be available at Belmont Park. The Black-Eyed Susan undercard will include six other stakes races and the Legends Race for retired female riders.

Fans who want to earn rebates on their wagers can sign up for NYRA Rewards, the wagering program that offers cash back just for wagering on the races, whether it’s on NYRA races or simulcast events like the Preakness! Members can earn points through on-track self-service wagering terminals, phone wagering with Telebet, with NYRA Rewards Internet Wagering and on mobile devices such as Blackberrys or iPhones. Enrollment is free and available only to customers 18 years and older. To sign up or for more information, visit nyra.com, call 1-800-THE-NYRA, or stop by a customer service booth on-track.

NYRA is providing free shuttle bus service between Belmont Park and the Queens Village station of the Long Island Rail Road on live racing days, with the exception of Friday, June 4 and Belmont Stakes Day, Saturday, June 5, when passengers can board the Long Island Rail Road’s “Belmont Special” train at Penn Station, Woodside and Jamaica, arriving directly at Belmont Park.

The NYRA shuttles will depart the corner of Jamaica Avenue and Springfield Blvd. at 12:30 p.m., with an additional departure at 1:30 p.m. on Preakness Day, Saturday, May 15. Return service to Queens Village will depart Belmont Park’s Grandstand Center Gate at 4:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on weekdays and 4:15 p.m., 5:15 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. on weekends and holidays. On Preakness Day, return service will be provided at 5:15 p.m., 6:15 p.m. and 7:15 p.m.

The 59-day Belmont Park Spring/Summer Meet runs April 30 through July 18, with live racing Wednesday through Sunday. On most days, gates open at 11 a.m. and first post is at 1 p.m. General parking is free, except on Belmont Stakes Day, Saturday, June 5. There is no live racing on Mondays or Tuesdays, with the exception of Memorial Day, Monday, May 31 and Monday, July 5. Belmont Park will be dark on Sunday, June 6. Visit www.NYRA.com for more information.

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