The 2018 staging of the Dave Wood Memorial was a race to remember for connections of TNT Roulette who rallied late to secure victory at Daytona Beach and landed the $20,000 prize purse in the process. It was a momentous Saturday evening at the track with the Florida venue celebrating 70 years of greyhound racing and TNT’s Roulette’s success helped cap off an entertaining night for fans of the sport.
Source: News Journal Online via Twitter
Whilst many US states no longer allow the practice of racing greyhounds, Florida remains the perfect place for fans of the sport to enjoy all of the action at the track. Daytona Beach is one of the premier venues in America and has just finished a week of celebrations to mark this significant milestone in its history.
The original track was opened in 1948 under the name of the Volusia County Kennel Club and instantly became popular with both locals and visitors to the area. It has been a mainstay of the entertainment industry which has been an important money-maker for by the region.
The track was forced to change location after a long-running dispute over it’s proximity to the nearby NASCAR track but that didn’t deter visitors from attending in their droves. Every single race is staged over one of two distances; 550 or 660 yards and the track record for the latter was broken in 2014 by LB’s Food Court who clocked a hugely impressive 36.72. He sits alongside Here Comes Danny in the Daytona Beach Hall of Fame who became the first greyhound to finish inside thirty seconds when notching up an eye-catching 29.97 in June 2015. Whilst these two stars of the track may have their name in lights, it is Gilded Sherry who is considered the greatest greyhound to take to the track by regular attendees, who no doubt witnessed the sprinter clock up 113 victories at Daytona Beach.
Source: Jeff Wilen via Twitter
Daytona Beach hasn’t always flourished and with the greyhound racing industry generally in decline in the US, it has fought off the threat of closure on many occasions. There are just 18 dog tracks left in America with 12 of these located in Florida. The sport continues to thrive elsewhere with both the UK and Ireland showcasing top-class events such as the Greyhound Derby and the Sussex Cup each year. William Hill, who sponsor the Northern Puppy Derby which takes place at Newcastle offer ante-post betting on each of these events as well as streaming a number of tracks through their Betting TV service. There is still a demand for greyhound racing with regular fans always keen to unearth value in the pre-race markets.
The aforementioned Dave Wood Memorial takes place each July and is one of the richest races to be staged at the track and is held in honour of the hugely popular former track director. The event is always well-attended and attracts a number of high-profile competitors. TNT Roulette’s name will go down in history at this iconic track and the event will continue to be a standout race at Daytona Park. The venue has served greyhound racing fans in Florida for 70 years and they remain positive and defiant that they will be celebrating further milestones in the near future.
Photo Credit: By AngMoKio [CC BY-SA 3.0 or GFDL], from Wikimedia Commons
