Sarasota Kennel Club
Sarasota Kennel Club, located in Sarasota FL, has been open since 1926 offering live Greyhound racing. Not only a premier facility for greyhound racing, the state-of-the-art poker room is home to cash games and daily tournaments. OffTrackBetting.com is a US licensed Sarasota Kennel Club OTB that legally accepts greyhound wagering online.
Sarasota Kennel Club History
In the fall of 1925 a number of men associated with real estate development helped organize the club and build the track. Shortly before the first race, the sports writer for the Sarasota Herald wrote in florid terms about the "palatial grandstand," the last minute flurry of activity to ready the quarter-mile sand oval track and the expectation of the largest sporting crowd in Sarasota's history. Parking for hundreds of cars and three ticket windows were highlighted to underscore the capability of the facility to handle a large crowd.
The kennels housed 165 dogs, including "some of the fastest canine racers in the county." The opening races were on the evening of Tuesday, February 9, 1926. Two of the nine races were of special interest. The Burns Cup race was made possible by the donation of a loving cup prize by Owen Burns III, well-known Sarasotan.
The Special Sweepstakes matched dogs of three local owners, who paraded their dogs before the audience prior to the race. Badly Blended, Jr., owned by Mrs. E.H. Price, won, competing the 5/16-mile race ahead of Sarasota Boy, owned by Owen Burns, and Oakland Hook, owned by Hal Yohe, one of the Kennel Club's vice presidents.
For the rest of the season, the Herald covered the races. Dogs, racing results, and frequent commentary shared the front page of the sports section with stories about the New York Giants in Sarasota for Spring Training and the golfing exploits of Bobby Jones. Names of frequently winning racers, such as Happy Hooligan, who won the featured race the second evening, became common for racing fans. Unfortunately for local dog owners, Sarasota Boy, Badly blended, and Oakland Hook did not compile winning records that first year. Other dogs, however, set track records for both racing times and financial returns on the fans' "investments."
Soon after the opening of the Sarasota Kennel Club, A.S. Skinner, another Sarasota Kennel Club vice president, advertised prize building lots in Sarasota Kennel Club Park. Located south of the club on Bradenton Road, the subdivision contained lots measuring 50 feet by 100 feet, the prices for which began at $770. Skinner appealed to potential buyers by advertising the rural area as only a few minutes from Five Points (in downtown Sarasota), on a busy thoroughfare, and nest to high-class developments. The development ultimately failed, and Village Gardens has since been built on the site.
Fortunately for dog racing fans, the promotion and management of the Sarasota Kennel Club were more successful than those of the subdivision with the same name. Greyhounds still race at the club's track off Old Bradenton Road, but it is no longer a rural setting.
Sarasota Kennel Club Live Horse Racing Schedule
Jan 01 to May 31
Post Time at Sarasota Kennel Club
SUN - no live racing
Matinee Races
Monday thru Saturday - Post Time: 12:30pm
Evening Races
Friday & Saturday - Post Time: 7:30pm
Sarasota Kennel Club Track Code
Exotic Wagering at Sarasota Kennel Club
$2.00 EXACTA
$2.00 QUINELLA
$2.00 TRIFECTA
$2.00 SUPERFECTA
Current Weather Conditions at Sarasota Kennel Club
Sarasota Kennel Club Contact Information
Sarasota Kennel Club
5400 Bradenton Rd.
Sarasota, FL 34234
Mailing Address:
5400 Bradenton Rd.
Sarasota, FL 34234
Website: www.sarasotakennelclub.com
