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Regina Exhibition Ends Live Racing

"That occurred, on Feb. 26 when Regina Exhibition Association Ltd. (REAL) announced it was transferring its live and simulcasts racing programs to Saskatoon's Prairieland Park.

"The two-page fax brought an end to live racing at the exhibition grounds, which had served as the site for racing since 1895. The announcement sparked heated reactions from members of the Saskatchewan Standardbred Horsemen's Association (SSHA) and tepid ones from the public. It's unlikely harness racing will be staged again at Queensbury Downs.

"`I can't see how it would be revived unless there was some major change,'' says Del Robertson, president of REAL's board of directors.

"…`Racing has the smallest economic impact and it was costing us the most money,' Robertson says. We're trying to be all things to all people. It's not just the race track. It's everything that goes along with it. They care deeply about what they do, but there aren't big enough purses to keep it going.'

"The members of the SSHA don't feel that way. They feel the industry is viable. It just needs help.

"`You have to make the climate right to improve and your heart has to be in it,'' says Alvey Halbgewachs, president of the SSHA…"

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