Located in the northwestern corner of Pennsylvania, Presque Isle Downs began offering Thoroughbred horseracing in the fall of 2007. It was a pacesetter from the beginning, holding the first meet on its new track with the revolutionary synthetic Tapeta Footing surface, made of sand, rubber, and fiber coated with wax. This was North America's first one-mile track made of synthetic footing.
Presque features 100 days of racing annually, beginning in May and stretching through October. Racing days during the week vary as the season progresses. Often races will be held five days a week. Daily first post times are at 5:25 p.m. Most days, the racing card has eight races.
Presque holds several significant Thoroughbred races. Most prestigious is the Grade II Presque Isle Downs Master Stakes, a 6-1/2 furlong race for fillies and mares three years and older. Run in mid-September, the guaranteed purse is $400,000. This is one of more than a dozen stakes races held at Presque.
As with many modern Thoroughbred tracks, Presque also has a casino within the racing complex. The gaming venue boasts more than 1,500 slot machines, 32 table games, and seven poker tables. Another popular feature of the casino is sports betting, which enables patrons to wager on virtually all popular sporting events.
Of course, OTB (off-track betting) is another staple of the Presque venue. OTB actually preceded Presque. It had been held at a Peach Street location until the track and casino opened. The complex offers five locations for dining in addition to beverage purchases and concessions.