By Nicole Kobie
Doing horsey-stuff in Calgary doesn’t necessarily mean heading to the city limits, stepping in poop and getting all smelly. It can also mean good clean fun like drinking cheap beer, gambling in two dollar increments and screaming at little people in silks.
One of the more under-attended and under-appreciated facilities in Calgary is Stampede Park’s racetrack. Considering admission is free and beer is two bucks on Friday nights, it’s hard to understand why only old people and gambling addicts make the trip.
Poor advertising aside, Stampede Park is a cheap–and potentially profitable–way to kill an afternoon. Picture this: sitting in the stands, sipping your beer, listening to the thundering of hooves, screaming like a madman at your horse for slipping behind, cheering like a lunatic when it pulls ahead, then heading over to the betting counter to cash in. Okay, you won’t win all the time–but if you do, we seriously need to talk. Even if you don’t make a fortune, you’ll have a good time. Beer and gambling aside, there’s nothing quite like standing trackside, and watching (and hearing and feeling) the horses thunder past. It’s an amazing rush.
If watching the local horses tear up the dirt isn’t compelling enough, Stampede Park offers simulcast betting as well. This means you can watch and bet on races from tracks around the world, including Churchill Downs on Kentucky Derby Day. For that race, held on the first Saturday in May, expect better turnout, and lots of little old ladies in funky hats.
From April to June, Stampede Park offers live thoroughbred racing; from July to September, it’s the wild world of standardbred–the version where the horses pull carts around. Post-time is 6 p.m. during the week, and 1 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Admission is free, but you may want to splurge and buy the two dollar program, so you know what’s going on.