The start of the summer harness racing season in eastern Maine kicks off at Bangor Raceway on Saturday, May 31. For 27 days, Bangor’s live extended meet racing will showcase some of the best Maine and Canadian horses competiting for more than $500,000 in purse money on Bangor’s historic Bass Park oval.

This year, Bangor Historic Track, lessees of Bangor Raceway, enters its fourth year of a five-year lease agreement with the city. Fred Nichols, general manager of the Bangor racing operation, says the new, privatized racing venture in Bangor “turned the corner” and made a modest profit last year.

It is the first time that the racetrack has made money for the past several years.

“I wouldn’t call it a profit. Rather, we stemmed the losses,” Nichols said, adding that any profit from last season was re-invested back into the facility as part of an ongoing facilities improvement program with the city.

In 1996, according to Nichols, the track’s per dash average rose to a healthy $1,795. Some dashes went for much more than the average and some went for less than the average, but the $1,795 was the average for each of the 287 dashes raced. It was one of the best per-dash averages in the state. Nichols said that USTA figures list Bangor’s total purse distribution for last season’s 26-day meet at $515,022.

As a start-up or prep meet, Bangor Raceway has traditionally struggled with the problem of attracting an early supply of horses for racing. Many of Maine’s smaller stables, the backbone of Maine racing, wait for the warmer weather to start conditioning and qualifying their horses.

Nichols said like every year, he is hoping for a adequate supply of horses for Bangor’s extended race meet.

“If every stable who has committed to Bangor shows up, we should be all right – tight – but all right,” he said explaining that he expects a large contingent of Canadian and Maritime horses to return to Bangor Raceway.

Two Canadian tracks have closed. Truro Raceway in Nova Scotia, closed March 23, sending many Canadian drivers and owners to Charlottetown Park on Prince Edward Island which opens in May. The Fredericton, New Brunswick, racetrack applied for only one race day this season (Canadian Day, July 1) and their regular week of fair exhibition racing in September.

Although the province’s racing situation could change, the sharp curtailment that now exists in Canadian racing should send some stables scrambling into Maine seeking racing opportunities.

Additionally, Nichols said, Foxboro Park in Massachusetts is embroiled in litigation between the current tenants – who have the racing license – and the track owners – who want the tenants out because of non-payment of rent. A judge’s decision could force a temporary or permanent shutdown of the Massachusetts racing plant. Three or four Foxboro stables have made inquiries about moving to Bangor to race.

This year, the Bangor racing office will open by May 10, with working hours from 9 a.m. to noon or 1 p.m. every day except Friday. The meet ends on Sunday, July 20.

The format calls for racing on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday with post time at 7:10 p.m. each day and Sunday at 1:30 p.m. A special 6 p.m. post time will be observed on Fourth of July only. Tuesday’s racing program will feature 10 dashes while weekend racing cards will attempt to field 12 to 14 dashes, depending on the horse supply.

Pre-meet qualifiers will head to post at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 24 and 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 27. During the race meet, qualifiers will be held on Saturdays and Tuesdays at the same times.

Nichols said Bangor will simulcast its races across the state this year and he believes Bangor’s shift in racing – from Wednesday to Tuesday – will allow his track to simulcast races unopposed by any other Maine racetrack.

Officials holding down key positions at Bangor this year are: Nichols, race secretary; Joyce Hodsdon, assistant race secretary; Walter McIntire, presiding judge; Dana Delisle and Frank Hall Jr., associate judges; Erland Danforth, track man and Warren Strout, grounds superintendent.

The racing area is receiving a partial facelift. The city and Bangor Historic Park have entered into an agreement to replace the outside fence in the first and second turns with a new, white, two-rail fence, the same as the fence that was installed in the third and fourth turns last year.