Moments after Aces High won the first race Friday, it dawned on Eric Heitzmann. "I can say I'm the leading trainer at Canterbury Park,'' he said with a laugh, knowing that designation might last only until the next dash around the Shakopee oval.
By the time the eight-race card ended, that honor belonged to Joel Berndt, who picked up a pair of victories on Canterbury's opening night. Heitzmann still considered it a grand way to begin the 67-day season. As Canterbury started its meet on Kentucky Derby weekend for the first time in nine years, a crowd announced at 6,762 turned out on Derby eve for a season opener that felt like a dry run for Saturday's main event.
Heitzmann beamed as Aces High was sponged down after his victory, his bay coat glistening in the late afternoon sun. The trainer expected the meet's earlier start to be an advantage for his well-conditioned string of 25 horses, and Aces High rewarded his faith.
"You're always excited to win any race, but this is really nice,'' said Heitzmann, who is returning to Canterbury for the fourth time. "We love it here. To get off on the right foot with a win on opening night, it's a great way to start.''
Canterbury Park President Randy Sampson chose to move the start date up by two weeks to coincide with the Derby, which typically draws one of the year's largest crowds. Friday's card began earlier than usual, at 4 p.m., and attendance was lighter than Sampson hoped. On-track live handle was $157,098, with total handle of $579,881.
Still, he viewed it as a good way to get ready for Derby day, and for what he hopes will be a strong season. The last time the track opened on Derby day, in 2008, it drew a crowd announced at 18,230, the sixth-largest in Canterbury history.
"Our goal was to get a softer opening,'' Sampson said. "In the past, when we opened on Derby day, it was really hard. By opening Friday, we'll be better prepared.
"We really are excited about the prospects this year. Even though opening day wasn't as successful as we hoped, I'm really confident we'll have a great Derby day. We think that will create a lot of energy, get people excited about racing and get the meet off to a great start.''
Sampson said the track has attracted a few new stables and a talented jockey colony this season, and it is anticipating a full complement of 1,600 horses. Canterbury expects to pay total purses of about $14 million in the sixth season of its 10-year, $71 million purse enhancement agreement with the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community.
The track also is benefiting from legislation that legalized online wagering on out-of-state racing. The law, which took effect in November, allows Canterbury to capture a share of those wagering dollars, which could generate about $700,000 for the track and the purse fund this year.
While Sampson hopes for a blockbuster start Saturday, a horse named Keats Corner showed how it's done on opening night. The gelding followed a strong debut in 2016 with three poor performances, finishing 27 lengths behind the winner in his last race of the season.
In Friday's fifth race, Keats Corner took the lead in the stretch before Monday Confession ran him down. Keats Corner — co-owned by Claudia Goebel, whose family's history with thoroughbreds is older than Canterbury — eyeballed his rival and found another gear, powering to his first career victory.
"What a turnaround from last year,'' Goebel said. "And to win one on opening night, it's just super exciting.''
