Horse racing in the United States

The American Stud Book was started in 1868, prompting the beginning of organized horse racing in the United States.

Horse racing, especially thoroughbred racing, was a sport enjoyed by all during the progressive era. According to Steven A. Reiss "[2] Thoroughbred racing was the rare sport that was trending with both social and economic elites and the lower classes". Horse racing was an enamored sport that was popular for its time in all regions of the United States and took a downturn for a while as the economy, gambling reformers and some interest faded. Reiss states that post-Civil War America was the rebirth of the horse racing sport and it relied on the status of men who bred and raced horses and operated jockey clubs and racetracks.[2] "The powerful alliance between urban machine politicians and racetrack owners enabled thoroughbred racing in New York to flourish for about for forty-five years without interruption".[2] Horse racing endured several ups and downs throughout the era to include socioeconomic status, political gain, morality imposition or just a mere stronghold for the pleasure of the sport.

Contemporary organized Endurance racing began in California around 1955, and the first race marked the beginning of the Tevis Cup[5] This race was a one-hundred-mile, one-day-long ride starting in Squaw Valley, Placer County, and ending in Auburn. Founded in 1972, the American Endurance Ride Conference was the United States' first national endurance riding association.[6]

Horse racing at Jacksonville, Alabama, 1841

The first record of quarter mile length races dated back to 1674 in Henrico County, Virginia. Each race consisted of only two horses and they raced down the village streets and lanes. The Quarter Horse received its name due to the length of the race. The races were indeed "a quarter" of a mile, or 400 meters. The breed of horse was developed so they could get off to a quick start, and win the race.

• Freehold Raceway in Freehold, New Jersey (1830s)
• Fair Grounds in New Orleans, Louisiana (1838)
• Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York (1863)
• Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland (1870)
• Monmouth Park Racetrack in Oceanport, New Jersey (1870)
• Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky (1875)
• Aqueduct Racetrack in the Queens, New York neighborhood of Ozone Park (1894)
• Yonkers Raceway in the New York City suburb of Yonkers, New York (1899)
• Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Arkansas (1904)
• Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, just outside New York City on Long Island (1905)
• Fairmount Park Racetrack in the St. Louis suburb of Collinsville, Illinois (1925)
• Hialeah Park Race Track in Hialeah, Florida, near Miami (1925)
• Arlington Park in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois (1927)
• Santa Anita Park in the San Gabriel Valley community of Arcadia, California, near Los Angeles (1934)
• Suffolk Downs Race Track in the Boston, Massachusetts neighborhood of East Boston (1935)
• Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky (1936)
• Del Mar Racetrack in the San Diego suburb of Del Mar, California (1937)
• Delaware Park in Wilmington, Delaware (1937)
• Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Florida (1939/1944)

Belmont Park is part of the western edge of the Hempstead Plains. Its mile-and-a-half main track is the largest dirt Thoroughbred race course in the world, and it has the sport's largest grandstand.

One of the latest major horse track opened in the United States was the Meadowlands Racetrack opened in 1977 for Thoroughbred racing. It is the home of the Meadowlands Cup. Other more recently opened tracks include Remington Park, Oklahoma City, opened in 1988, and Lone Star Park in the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex, opened in 1997; the latter track hosted the prestigious Breeders' Cup series of races in 2004.

The Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States Hall of Fame is in Saratoga Springs, New York. The Hall of Fame honors remarkable horses, jockeys, owners, and trainers.

In North America, most racehorses are stabled in the backstretch of the racetrack at which their trainers are based. The backstretch has extensive facilities to house the horses and workers.[7]

A horse race at Del Mar

In the United States, Thoroughbred flat races are run on either dirt, synthetic or turf surfaces. Other tracks offer Quarter Horse racing and Standardbred horse racing, or combinations of these three types of racing surfaces. Racing with other breeds, such as Arabian horse racing, is found on a limited basis. American Thoroughbred races are run at a wide variety of distances, most commonly from 5 to 12 furlongs (0.63 to 1.50 mi; 1.0 to 2.4 km). The shorter distances are more common but the mid-to-long distance races tend to be higher in prestige. With this in mind, breeders of Thoroughbred race horses attempt to breed horses that excel at a particular distance (see Dosage Index).

The Pleasanton Fairgrounds Racetrack at the Alameda County Fairgrounds is the oldest horse racing track in America, dating back to 1858, when it was founded by the sons of the Spaniard Don Agustin Bernal.

Flat racing

In 1665, the first racetrack was constructed on Long Island. It is the oldest Thoroughbred race in North America. The American Stud Book was started in 1868, prompting the beginning of organized horse racing in the United States. There were 314 tracks operating in the United States by 1890; and in 1894, the American Jockey Club was formed.[3]

Horse racing at Jacksonville, Alabama, 1841

The first record of quarter mile length races dated back to 1674 in Henrico County, Virginia. Each race consisted of only two horses and they raced down the village streets and lanes. The Quarter Horse received its name due to the length of the race. The races were indeed "a quarter" of a mile, or 400 meters. The breed of horse was developed so they could get off to a quick start, and win the race.

Belmont Park is part of the western edge of the Hempstead Plains. Its mile-and-a-half main track is the largest dirt Thoroughbred race course in the world, and it has the sport's largest grandstand.

One of the latest major horse track opened in the United States was the Meadowlands Racetrack opened in 1977 for Thoroughbred racing. It is the home of the Meadowlands Cup. Other more recently opened tracks include Remington Park, Oklahoma City, opened in 1988, and Lone Star Park in the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex, opened in 1997; the latter track hosted the prestigious Breeders' Cup series of races in 2004.

Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States has its own Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, New York. The Hall of Fame honors remarkable horses, jockeys, owners, and trainers.

The traditional high point of US horse racing is the Kentucky Derby, held on the first Saturday of May at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Together, the Derby; the Preakness Stakes, held two weeks later at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland; and the Belmont Stakes, held three weeks after the Preakness at Belmont Park on Long Island, form the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing for three-year-olds. They are all held early in the year, throughout May and the beginning of June.

The Breeders' Cup event is held in late October or early November at different race tracks every year. It receives less attention than the Triple Crown series from the general public but is of great importance in determining the American Horse of the Year and annual Eclipse Award divisional winners. It is normally held at a different track every year, though some racetracks have held back-to-back renewals. It currently consists of thirteen races held over two days with total prize-money of $28 million, with the Breeders' Cup Classic being the most prestigious.[15][16]

The richest horse race in the United States is the Pegasus World Cup, held in late January at Gulfstream Park in Florida since 2017.

There are also a Triple Crown of Harness Racing for Pacers and a Triple Crown of Harness Racing for Trotters, as well as an Arabian Triple Crown consisting of Drinkers of the Wind Derby in California, the Texas Six Shooter Stakes, the Bob Magness Derby in Delaware. Also, the main Standardbred event is the Breeders Crown.

Thoroughbred and Arabian fillies have their own "Triple" series, commonly referred to as The Triple Tiara. While there is some disagreement over which three races make up the Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing, the Arabian list is more formal and consists of Daughters of the Desert Oaks in California, the Texas Yellow Rose Stakes, and the Cre Run Oaks in Delaware.[17]

American betting on horse racing is sanctioned and regulated by the state the racetrack is located in. Simulcast betting almost always exist across state lines with no oversight except the companies involved through legalized parimutuel gambling. A takeout, or "take", is removed from each betting pool and distributed according to state law, among the state, race track and horsemen. On average, 17 percent is withheld from win, place and show pools, with 83 percent being returned to the winning players. A variety of factors affect takeout, namely location and the type of wager that is placed. For example, one regional track circuit in the United States has four different takeout rates for different types of bets with a total blended rate that exceeds 20 percent.[18]

Advanced deposit wagering is a form of gambling on the outcome of horse races in which the bettor must fund his or her account before being allowed to place bets. ADW is often conducted online or by phone. In contrast to ADW, credit shops allow wagers without advance funding; accounts are settled at month-end. Racetrack owners, horse trainers and state governments sometimes receive a cut of ADW revenues.

It typically involves betting on horse or greyhound racing. Wagering may take place through parimutuel pools.

• Barrel racing
• Keyhole race
• Pole bending