Five-year high in handle recorded during Belmont's fall meet

Five-year high in handle

recorded during Belmont's fall meet

Five-year highs in both all-sources and on-track handle

were among the highlights of handle and attendance figures released Saturday by

the New York Racing Association (NYRA) for the recently concluded Belmont Park

fall meeting.

All-sources handle, which includes wagers on Belmont Park

races both on-track and from simulcast outlets nationwide, was $326,878,686 --

the highest of the past five years. The figure represents an increase of 9.8

percent from $297,670,005 last year and a jump of 24.3 percent from $263,037,788

in 2011.

On-track handle on Belmont fall meeting races was

$47,238,016 -- also the highest of the past five years. The total was up 11.1

percent from $42,499,742 last year and 13.4 percent over the $41,656,097 wagered

on-track in 2011.

The 2013 Belmont Park fall meeting was comprised of 37 race

days, one more than in 2012 and 2011 when inclement weather forced the

cancellation of one race day each year.

Attendance for the meet was 126,469, a 10.7 percent

increase from 114,294 in 2012.

"Anchored by Super Saturday and Empire Showcase Day, the

Belmont fall meet was a solid success," said Chris Kay, CEO and president of

NYRA. "By continuing to focus on enhancing the

experience of guests -- both on and off track -- and improving the quality of

racing, we will give our fans every reason to play our races more frequently,

come out to the track more often, and enjoy themselves even more when they do

come out.

"We also wish to thank the New York State Gaming Commission for

allowing us to introduce at the Belmont fall meet the reduced-takeout Pick 5

wager, which is very popular with our players."

The meet's handle results were achieved despite

average betting interests per race dipping slightly to 8.4 (3,016 total over 361

races) compared to 8.5 (2,917 total over 344 races) in 2012. There were 191 turf

races with seven races taken off the turf and moved to the main track in 2013,

compared to 140 on and 40 off in 2012.

Belmont Fall meet handle 2009-2013