This Friday, the Grand River Raceway will saddle up for its 20th season of standardbred harness racing.
From June 2 to Sept. 27, the track in Elora, Ontario, will stage 48 race nights — including 18 Ontario Sire Stake (OSS) events. The OSS events will feature only Standardbred horses that are Ontario born and reared.
The track has pari-mutuel wagering, of course, as part of a gaming scene that includes online casino Ontario options as well as sports betting.
Grand River Raceway Schedule
Race nights begin at 6:30 p.m. and run each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Race cards will include between 10 and 12 races.
Located about an hour and a half outside of Toronto (about 115 km to the west), Grand River Raceway has been putting on harness races since 2004. Now in its 20th year, the track is offering more wagering options than ever before.
In addition to the standard bets — win (betting a horse to finish first), place (a bet to finish first or second), and show (first, second or third) — Grand River Raceway offers many exotic wagers to keep the crowd engaged throughout the evening. Prop bets on various sporting events are a popular feature of Ontario sports betting as well.
The daily double requires bettors to correctly pick the winner of two consecutive races. Likewise, a Pick 3 wager is a single parlay bet on the winner of the first three races. In fact, Grand River Raceway allows you to tempt lady luck by betting all the way up to a Pick 6 — successfully selecting the winner of six consecutive races.
New Wagering Options At Track
There’s a new option this year, as Grand River Raceway also offers a second Pick 5 that begins at Race 6, and an additional Pick 3 that tracks the card’s final three races.
If you are just learning the ropes of horse racing, or just don’t want to wager real money, you can also participate in one of the free online contests the track offers. Go to the Grand River Raceway website for details.
The Grand Betting Contest runs each Monday and Friday. To play, you select a horse competing in races 2-7 and receive points based on your selections finishing position. The Survivor Wednesday contest is a challenge to see who can pick the most consecutive winners on Wednesday race night.
Contest winners are gifted bet credits on the HPIbet app — a horse racing specialty site amid the many Ontario sportsbook apps available.
Speaking of the HPIbet app, anyone unable to attend Grand River Raceway in person can watch on their mobile device or desktop computer using the app, and place wagers at the same time. You can also stream live races on Grand River Raceway’s website.
It’s off to the races for another highly anticipated season of harness racing at Grand River Raceway.
