Harness Racing Season Kicks Off at Century Downs

0:00Trainers and their horses are ramping up for the 2026 standard bread harness racing season at Century Downs racetrack, just north of Calgary. The action starts April 4th and runs through the last week and in August, mostly on Friday nights in Saturday afternoons. Earlier this week, folks like 4th generation racer James Junquist explained how they use heavier sokeys with special tires during morning jogs to build endurance. Come Race Day, they switch to lightweight carbon fiber bikes designed purely for speed, some costing around $7,600. The track draws families with special events like Canada Day fireworks on June 30th and races on Fathers Day. While harness racing thrives in southern Alberta, it's even bigger in places like Ontario, New York and Pennsylvania and popular across Europe and Australia too. 71 year old owner Rod Hennessy, who got into the sport at age 13, now stable 16 horses there.

1:00He struck gold with shark week, a 7 year old he bought for $6,000. The horse has earned over $535,000 lifetime. Watching these speedy trotters battle in tight packs creates pure excitement with drivers making split second moves that keep fans coming back season. After season, that's the story for today. Vancouver news today, driven by AI.