Prairie Meadows is a pureblood racetrack situated in Altoona, Iowa. It is around 5 miles from Des Moines and likewise hosts regular quarter-horse meetings throughout the year.

Meetings are held throughout the summertime, with action normally taking location between May and October. Racing is held Thursday to Sunday (inclusive), although special race-days are occasionally held previously in the week.

As well as regular race-days, the track also hosts shows on a semi-regular basis and is home to 1,900 fruit machine, which can be discovered in the on-site casino. A hotel has actually likewise been constructed on the complex. Simulcast betting is also now available at the track.

The most noteworthy races at the track are theGrade II Cornhusker Handicap, the Grade III Iowa Oaks, and the Iowa Derby. It likewise hosts the Bank of America Challenge Championships each year.

The track is owned and run by Polk County and is run by a not-for-profit board of 13 members, and this has actually stayed in location because it opened in 1989. Revenues from the track are often dispersed to numerous charitable causes and organizations located nearby.

Prairie Meadows Racetrack History

Prairie Meadows has a fairly brief history, having only been established in 1989. It first received its license five years previously, which had actually been given by the Iowa Racing and GamingCommission. This came shortly after Parimutuel wagering had been legalized in the state simply 12 months earlier.

They recognized a 240-acre site for construction to start, and $40 million was spent on guaranteeing the track was ended up to a high standard.

The inaugural race-day was hung on March 1,1989, and although attendance stayed steady over the next couple of years, the track submitted for insolvency in 1991.

Racing was momentarily suspended as an outcome, and no live race meets occurred in 1992. However, earnings from off-track betting started to gradually filter through, and racing was able to continue in the summer of 1993.

Slots were installed in 1994, which assisted the track raise extra profits. This enabled the track to pay off some exceptional financial obligations and bonds which had actually been released by the Polk County Board of Supervisors. Casino games were soon included to the facility in December, following approval from the state. These stayed in location up until more expansion 11 years later.

A restaurant and performance hall quickly followed, with the location broadening beyond the traditional racetrack.

In 2004, Roses in May set a race record in theCornhusker Handicap with 1:46.63 over a distance of 1 1/8 miles.

Fort Larned was the winner of the 2012 Cornhusker Handicap for trainer Ian Wilkes before going on to win at the Classic later that year. The race was held at Santa Anita.

The legalization of sports betting in Iowa was formally approved in 2019, with the costs being signed at the beginning of May.This ought to assist increase income at the track, with William Hill recently revealed as the official betting partner of the place. The track reported that $8.5 million of sports wagers were put at the track and casino in 2018.

Prairie Meadows Track Configuration and Bias

The place operates simply a single track, which is a one-mile oval on the dirt surface area. There is also a chute, which is utilized in quarter-horse meets. The range from the last turn to the finish line is 1,033 feet.

There is no noticeable and stable track bias at Prairie Meadows. Every design of racing has a reasonable shot on this track.

Winning Post Position

There was a relatively even spread of winners at Prairie Meadows in both sprints and distance contests. Over the much shorter trip,15.6 percent of horses who were drawn on the within went into the winner's enclosure. The within draw showed fairly productive compared to stalls two and 3, which have actually yielded just 12 and 14.2 percent of winners, respectively, in 2019.

Stall four was the very best position to be drawn, with 18.2 percent of winners originating from this particular starting position.Although less runners were attracted stall 10, it produced 10.6 percent of winners in sprint races.

Only 34 runners were drawn in stall 9, with just 2 winners produced up until now. This equates to a 5.9 percent strike rate.

Over the longer journey, stall 7 showed especially rewarding, with 4 of the 10 runners drawn in this position finishing in front. This was an eye-catching 40 percent strike rate.

Stalls one and five were likewise relatively beneficial, with 21 percent of winners being attracted each of these positions. Stalls three and 4 produced reasonably strong outcomes (10.5 percent), while just one horse drawn in stall two has actually gotten in the winner's enclosure up until now.

None of the seven runners that have been attracted stalls 9 and 10 have actually handled to get a triumph in 2019. The path races have tended to draw in smaller fields at Prairie Meadows.

Prairie Meadows Racing Season

Racing has generally occurred atPrairie Meadows throughout the summertime months. Currently, racing starts in April and concludes in late October. Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing are both held at the track and are occasionally staged on the same card.

Live race-days typically happen onThursday through Sunday and are held in the afternoon.

There are a variety of key races happening at the track, with the Grade II Cornhusker Handicap the standout race. This has actually seen a variety of horses race at the Breeders' Cup later on in the year. It is open to 3-year-olds and is held over 1 1/8 miles. It was initially staged at Ak-Sar-Ben Racetrack, which was located in Nebraska.