Assiniboia Downs Honours Local Horse Racing History

By Track Historian Bob Gates

When you walk through the main entrance at the Downs and make your way to the Guest Services area, don’t be surprised if you start to feel a tad nostalgic. Cue Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone music—for you have just entered the “history zone.” The zone, or as some like to call it, the Racing Through Time area, may have you thinking of days gone by.

On your immediate right (the east wall) is a mural displaying more than 100 years of horse racing in Winnipeg. The main features of the wall are the stories of three racetracks that preceded the June 10, 1958 opening of Assiniboia Downs. The three tracks in question are River Park, Whittier Park, and Polo Park. Local racing as we know it today began in 1922 and ran until 1956, thanks to the tireless efforts of racing icon Robert James Speers.

River Park raced alone in 1922 and 1923. It was joined by the “new” Whittier Park, which opened in 1924, and these two were joined by the “new” Polo Park, which held its first day of racing in 1925. That year, the three tracks combined for 42 days of racing. Regular racing at River Park was not held after the 1925 season, with Whittier and Polo offering a total of 28 racing days per year from 1926 to 1942.

However, Speers—always the visionary—saw an opportunity in 1934 to squeeze in one last seven-day meet at River Park. The occasion was Winnipeg’s celebration of its Diamond Jubilee, which gave race fans a full 35 days of racing in 1934.

The following year, racing returned to the tandem of Whittier and Polo Parks until 1942, when wartime rationing led to the closure of Whittier Park. From 1943, all racing took place at Polo Park until its closure in 1956. Polo’s demise was a direct result of skyrocketing land values to the point where summertime horse racing could no longer be justified.

Over the span of 34 years (1922 to 1956), River Park, Whittier Park, and Polo Park racetracks planted the historic seeds for Jack Hardy’s Assiniboia Downs. These ancestors operated for a combined total of 53 years of thoroughbred horse racing—River Park for four years, Whittier Park for 18 years, and Polo Park for 31 years.

The final section of the mural is, of course, dedicated to our own Assiniboia Downs. The wall is jam-packed with photos and stories that will keep you occupied for as long as you like.

On the south wall (the same one where you entered the lobby area) is a digital image board that features all the Downs’ leading jockeys and trainers since 1958.

On the jockey side of the ledger, you’ll see that Bobby Stewart won six seasonal titles, while Dick Armstrong, Irwin Driedger, Tim Gardiner, and Rohan Singh each had four. Brian Bochinski, Alan Cuthbertson, Todd Kabel, Tommy Stadnyk, and Antonio Whitehall each had three. Ken Hendricks is the Downs’ all-time leading jockey with 1,685 wins. The rider with the most wins in a single season is Irwin Driedger, who visited the Downs winner’s circle 214 times in 1981.

Among trainers, Ardell Sayler claimed twelve Downs training titles, Clayton Gray won seven, Tom Gardipy, Jr. earned six, while Tom Dodds and Jerry Gourneau each won five. Gary Danelson is the Downs’ all-time leading trainer with 1,255 wins, and Tom Dodds holds the record for most wins in a single season with 78 victories in 1990.

As you can see, we’ve been blessed with some truly gifted riders and conditioners of thoroughbreds!

Our tour of the area concludes with three history cases, each dedicated to one of the former local racetracks.

The Whittier Park case is highlighted by a starter’s bell once used at the St. Boniface track and an official program from the final day of racing at Whittier on September 14, 1935. Behind the bell and program is a saddle and skull cap from the early 1940s that belonged to jockey Ray Stewart, who raced locally in the 1940s and ’50s.

The Polo Park case features the Canadian Derby blanket won by Scotty Kennedy’s Victory Gift in 1948. Also displayed is the Speers Trophy, won by Coiner in 1941.

Who knew? Coiner was a son of Triple Crown champion Whirlaway.

While the picture doesn’t do it justice, the framed text on the left is a copy of the speech given by R. J. Speers’ daughter, Anna Speers, on July 4, 1956—the day Polo Park went dark forever.

Lastly, we have the case which pays tribute to Assiniboia Downs. This one was tough to put together—simply put, the case wasn’t nearly large enough. What’s your favourite? The Queen from her 1970 visit? Downs patriarch A. E. “Bert” Blake? Gary Danelson’s first win in 1959? Or is it the shoes of Gold Ern, who won the first race on opening day, June 10, 1958?

By the way, the cost of the Racing Through Time tour is exactly the same as your parking and general admission—FREE. You can’t beat the price!

“You can’t really know where you are going until you know where you’ve been.”

– Maya Angelou

Assiniboia Downs Chief Executive Officer Darren Dunn has been the driving force since he took office in 2010 to ensure that the history of horse racing remains an important part of the fabric that is…

Our Assiniboia Downs.