ASD Hours

• Open daily from 10 a.m. to 1 a.m.
• VLT machines are sanitized between use

2024 Live Race Dates

• Monday, May 20 to Tuesday, September 17 - click here for schedule

In this edition . . .

• What's happening at the Downs?
• There's always a Deal at ASD!
• ASD Racing Similar to New Zealand
• 2024 Condition Book #1
• 2024 Shipping Incentive Program
• No Intention of Changing by Tim Cox
• Road to Kentucky Derby 150
• Looking For a Special Photo?
• Carryover Watch
• Off-Track Betting Locations
• "I Won Bigg" Wagering Group
• A Snapshot In Time: Cameo Queen
• Dark Horse Bets Download
• ASD Photographer Nominated for Sovereign Award
• Santa Anita Handicap Cheat Sheet
• Dornoch Returns in Fountain of Youth
• Steve Haskin's Derby Rankings Week 6
• The Best of Bob - Lumberjack Ron
• Upcoming Events

Upcoming Handicapping Tournaments

Player's Choice Tournaments:

• Saturday, March 16
• Saturday, April 13
• Saturday, May 11

Tournament Winners:

• Player's Choice - Saturday, January 20 - Winner: Ron Phelps
• Player's Choice - Saturday, February 17 - Winner: Trevor Phelps

Club West Gaming Lounge

140 VLTs are available daily in our spacious Club West Gaming Lounge from 10 a.m. through 1 a.m. Enjoy complimentary coffee or tea. We also have fantastic deals on daily drink specials, happy hour specials, daily lunch and nightly food features. Please note that our VLTs are sanitized between play.

Free daily draws take place for your chance to win cash!

• Break Open Bonanza! Draws to win $10 plus 20 break-open tickets! Monday through Friday from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m.
• Lucky Spins! Draws for $20 in FREE VLT Spins Friday, Saturday & Sunday from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. 

$11.95 Daily Lunch Specials

Enjoy breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks from our Club West Dining Room menu or try our ever changing $11.95 lunch special.

• Club West Dining Room & Lounge menu
• Daily Happy Hour specials

Daily Drink Features All Day Long

• Monday - Margarita $6 (lime, peach or strawberry)
• Tuesday - Corona $5
• Wednesday - Wine $4.50 (6 oz. glass of house white or house red)
• Thursday - Beer $4.75 (house pint of beer)
• Friday - Trifecta Tea $6 (Absolut peach vodka, lemonade, sweet tea)
• Saturday - RazDerby Lemonade $6 (Absolut raspberry vodka, lemonade)
• Sunday - Caesar $6

Daily Evening Chef's Specials

Monday - BBQ Ribs $19.95: Smoky char-broiled ribs with our signature BBQ sauce. Served with french fries and coleslaw.

Tuesday - Tacos $9.95: Two flour tortillas stuffed with taco beef, chicken or fish, lettuce, green onions, cheese and diced tomato. Served with a drizzle of avocado cilantro lime sauce and taco chips.

Wednesday - Two Topping Pizza $14.95: Thin crust pizza with mozzarella and tomato sauce. Choose from pepperoni, bacon, ham, spicy beef, chicken, tomato, mushroom, peppers, black olives or onions.

Thursday - Chipotle Mozza Burger $14.95: Our signature sirloin patty and crispy bacon smothered in melted mozzarella. Topped with fresh sliced tomato, fried onion rings, chipotle mayo and sweet bold barbeque sauce.

Friday - Steak & Suds $24.95: 8 oz. Sirloin steak charbroiled and seasoned with our smoky dry rub. Served with fresh vegetables and a choice of mashed potatoes or french fries. Plus a complimentary pint of ASD Lucky Lager.

Saturday - Prime & Wine $29.95: Certified Angus Prime Rib (8 oz. cut.) Served with fresh vegetables and a choice of mashed potatoes or french fries, horseradish, and Yorkshire pudding au jus. Plus a complimentary 6 oz. glass of house wine.

Sunday - Fish & Chips $14.95: Two pieces of beer battered cod with tartar sauce and lemon. Served with french fries and coleslaw.

Reservations are not required. The above specials are available from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily.

Everyone who purchases one of the above specials will receive a coupon to play our free "Pick to Win" game in the VLT lounge for a chance to spin our lucky cash wheel where you can win up to $100 cash!

Former Horse Owner Sees Similarities to ASD in New Zealand

Newspaper clip highlights glamour, trend of young people returning to racing

Molly Bloom is led to the winner's enclosure after winning New Zealand's 1,000 Guineas. (AJ Berry/ New Zealand Herald)

Longtime Assiniboia Downs fan and former horse owner Chuck Whalen recently returned from a trip to New Zealand with his wife Marie, daughter Shelley, and grandchildren Tye and Megan. He only got a glimpse of the country's thriving horse racing scene, but the trip also reminded Whalen of his own decades-long history with horse racing right here in Manitoba.

A former horse owner and handicapping champ at ASD, Whalen’s introduction to horse racing stretches all the way back to his childhood in Ontario, but soon after arriving in Manitoba in 1975, he started going to Assiniboia Downs, a track he has now been visiting for over 45 years

Whalen says one of the best parts of going to Assiniboia Downs is the opportunity to socialize. "I know quite a few people there, and even in the off season, I'm over there for meals and that, so that's a big part of it," he said. "I've been retired for quite a number of years, and so we have get togethers there."

Whalen ended up getting directly involved in racing as an owner at the Downs from 2009-2012. "We had fun for the four years we were owners," he recalled.” I owned horses with Ian Wright, Phil Reese and trainer Clayton Gray. We had six winners in the first two years. It's an adrenaline rush, to be part of it, especially owning a horse and going to the winter circle. It's a lot of fun to be that close and watch those races and see how close they are.

"I'd come out and watch when they were doing workouts with our horses in the mornings. And then when the horse was racing, I was back over with a group. Clayton was great over the years. I'd ask friends if they were interested in going to the barn, and they'd say, yeah, can you arrange it? And I'd get a hold of Clayton, and we'd work it out. We'd meet him, and he'd give us a tour through his barn and tell us about the horses. And these people thought it was a great thing.

"I enjoyed feeding them carrots and spending time with them, that was fun. I think it's their demeanor most of the time. You can see it in the eyes of the horse. Pretty incredible. You can come up and pet them, and they usually don't rear up on you or anything, and they're big animals, so to get that close and to see them on the track and win these races, it was pretty special."

Chuck Whalen's favourite horse Escape Clause returns after her victory in the La Canada Stakes (G3) at Santa Anita. (Benoit Photo)

So when Whalen had the chance to visit New Zealand, he was eager to get a look at racing in the country. The main purpose of the trip was to visit his grandson and granddaughter-in-law, who were living and working there for a year.

One event he had hoped to attend was a race day at Auckland's new Ellerslie Racecourse, which can draw crowds as big as 12,000 people, but "I saw that it was sold out, so I wouldn't have been able to get tickets because we were just in there for a couple of days.”

Still, reading about the race and seeing pictures of dressed-up young fans made him think of the revival horse racing has experienced back home. "It's becoming like a place where young people can get dressed up and have a place," he commented.

Although he didn't make it to any live racing, Whalen's trip offered plenty of reminders of his enduring passion for horses. Reflecting on the highlight reels of races he saw on TV, he observed that one family's horses seemed to generate an infectious enthusiasm, both at home and in Australia, where the New Zealanders take pride in competing.

Even without attending a live race, Whalen gained a sense of the communal joy and national pride generated by horse racing in New Zealand. Those same qualities continue to draw him to Assiniboia Downs decade after decade. Whalen sees horse racing as a unique spectator sport that breeds camaraderie and emotional investment. "It gives you a deeper connection with the animals when they're racing," he said.

Whalen brought back an article from the New Zealand Herald to show to people, including ASD CEO Darren Dunn and horse owner/breeder Barry Arnason.

"I wanted to pass the article I found on to Barry," said Whalen. "He's a close friend of mine, has been a friend through hockey, that and the horses for years. We coached together here.”

Whalen’s favourite horse locally was Escape Clause, which was owned by Arnason, True North and Don Schnell. "I kept telling Barry he's making history,” said Whalen. “He's going to be in the history books."

One quote especially stood out in the article, from famed New Zealand trainer Lance O’Sullivan, “Racing has become trendy again… a place where young people can get dressed up and have a good time; a place people want to go.”

Just like home.

Download a copy of Condition Book #1 here or click on the image above.

No Intention of Changing

Original painting by Tim Cox

“There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude, a quiet joy.” ~ Ralph H. Blum. "No Intention Of Changing" painted by Tim Cox. See more original paintings from Tim Cox here.

Road to the Kentucky Derby

• Fountain of Youth (GP) - Mar. 2 - 50 points
• John Battaglia (TP) - Mar. 2 - 20 points
• Gotham (Aqu) - Mar. 2 - 50 points
• Tampa Bay Derby - Mar. 2 - 50 points
• San Felipe (SA) - Mar. 3 - 50 points

2024 Kentucky Derby points standings - here

Easter Brunch - Sunday, March 31

We are excited to announce our Easter Brunch on Sunday, March 31 in the Terrace Dining Room from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Join us for a delicious brunch with your family and friends.

Our menu includes a variety of dishes such as:

• Carved Ham with Grilled Pineapple
• Scrambled Eggs with Green Onion
• Sliced Certified Angus Prime Rib in Mushroom Sauce
• Eggs Benedict
• Omelette Station
• Bacon
• Sausage
• Hashbrowns
• French Toast and Syrup
• Caesar Salad
• Broccoli Salad
• Golden Beet Salad
• Wild Rice Salad
• Local Cheese, Kolbassa & Pickles
• Smoked Sockeye Salmon Pizza
• Rolls, Flatbreads and Butter
• Croissant
• Sliced Fruit & Berries
• Cakes & Pastries. 

Tickets are priced at $39.95 (adults), $22.95 (12 & under), and $9.95 (5 & under). To purchase tickets, please call Samantha at 204-885-3330. 

Can't make it to the track to wager?

Watch and wager at one of our off-track betting locations:

• Canad Inns Windsor Park - 1034 Elizabeth Road
• Green Brier Inn - 1611 Main Street
• Rookies at Central Hotel - 201 Melrose Avenue East
• Quest Inn - 367 Ellice Avenue
• McPhillips Station Casino - 484 McPhillips Street
• Club Regent Casino - 1425 Regent Ave W
• Nor-Villa Motor Hotel - 1763 Henderson Hwy
• Club 3D - 3317 Portage Avenue
• Wager 24/7 at HPIbet.com

"I Won Bigg" Wagering Group

Saturday at 10:30 a.m. (2nd floor plaza)

Join the "I Won Bigg" wagering group this Saturday at 10:30 a.m. The wagering group is open to everyone. This week they will be playing Tampa, Gulfstream and Aqueduct. $20 per share. If you would like more information please email Larry.

Time has erased the official race details from this photo, but 65 years ago, on July 2, 1959, George Monroe’s (seen here with his 15-year-old son, Milo) Cameo Queen topped a field of $1,000 claimers and paid $33.40 to win. This race marked the Monroe family’s debut as well as their first ever win at Assiniboia Downs. A great many more wins would follow! (Assiniboia Downs Archive)

Sovereign Awards: Media Finalists, Groom, Special Sovereign

ASD Track Photographer Jason Halstead nominated for 'Thank You'

"Thank You" by Jason Halstead, is a media finalist for the 49th annual Sovereign Awards!

Manitoba Sovereign Award Nominee! Photo of trainer Mike Nault's groom Olive Johnston giving Commandoslastdance a kiss after her victory in the 61st running of the Buffalo Stakes for owners A2 Thoroughbreds and True North Thoroughbreds and breeders Keaton and Aiden Ziprick on Sept. 18, 2023. Chavion Chow up. (Jason Halstead / Assiniboia Photo) Congratulations Jason! See all the Sovereign Award Media Finalists at the Canadian Thoroughbred here.

2024 Santa Anita Handicap Cheat Sheet

Seven rivals face off in one of North America's most prestigious races this Sunday

Salesman has been listed at 6-1 for the $400,000 Santa Anita Handicap (G1) on Sunday. (Bill Denver)

The $400,000 Santa Anita Handicap (G1) Presented by Yaamava’ Resort & Casino at San Manuel, which was rescheduled from Saturday, March 2, to Sunday, March 3, is an important early-season test at Santa Anita Park for older horses. The 1 ¼-mile “Big ’Cap” is one of the most prestigious races in California and has a long, storied history dating back to when it was first held in 1935. Analysis of all seven contenders from America's Best Racing here.

Kentucky Derby: Fountain of Youth a starting point for Dornoch

Remsen winner favoured on stakes-packed Saturday card at Gulfstream Park

Dornoch (right) was resurgent in the Remsen, coming back on to beat Sierra Leone by a nose. The Remsen has turned out to be a highly productive race. (Barbara D. Livingston)

The expedition to the Kentucky Derby begins in earnest Saturday when Dornoch makes his highly anticipated seasonal debut in the $400,000 Fountain of Youth Stakes (G3) at Gulfstream Park on a stakes-packed Saturday card. The Fountain of Youth, at 1 1/16 miles, offers its top five finishers (50-25-15-10-5) qualifying points toward the Derby. More from the Daily Racing Form here.

Kentucky Derby Rankings by Steve Haskin

The Road to the Derby, February 26, 2024 – Week 6

"With a big weekend coming up and an uninspiring Rebel Stakes field won by the heavily favored Timberlake on Saturday, some of the comments this week and part of Knocking on the Door will be of a more personal nature, as I will be focus more on observations and whatever thoughts, off-the-wall or not, pop into my head." ~ Steve Haskin. Read more at Secretariat.com here.