HARRISBURG PA – Hard to believe, but it’s already time for the 2022 Pennsylvania Fair Sire Stakes season, with the first draw on Sunday for races Tuesday and Wednesday at the Big Butler Fair in the western part of the state.
Draws for the fair races, 16 stops at the fairs and five for “two-day events” as prescribed by Pennsylvania law, will take place two days before the first day of racing, with the box closing at 10 a.m. Entries can be made through the USTA system, or by calling 610 513 7957 or 610 874 5200.
Just under $100,000 is expected to be at stake in the “A” and “B” divisions of the Pennsylvania Fair Sire Stakes, for top-class sons and daughters of Pennsylvania-based stallions, at each of the twenty-one stops on the circuit. The top pointwinners during the entirety of the fair season will meet on Friday, October 7 for bragging rights in their eight Pennsylvania Fair Sire Stakes Championships.
After Butler, the fair racing continues right on at York on Thursday and Friday, with the draw for those races on Tuesday. Since Pennsylvania rules call for three days between starts for fair horses, it’s likely that the first stops will consist of the western-PA-based horsemen at Butler and the eastern-PA-based horsemen at York. There are very few of this type of overlap during the three-month program.