With Virginia’s summer racing season on the horizon, Frank Hopf, Senior Director of Racing Operations at Colonial Downs, has been busy preparing for the longest meet ever at Colonial Downs. The campaign will run from June 25 – September 7 with racing every Thursday thru Sunday afternoon.
Featured returning flat events include the Festival of Racing card on August 1 and the Old Dominion Derby program on Labor Day, September 7. The Festival card includes the G1 Arlington Million, G2 Beverly D. and G2 Secretariat Stakes. The closing day program includes the $500,000 Old Dominion Derby (G3), $250,000 Old Dominion Oaks and $150,000 Colonial Cup. Several additional under card stakes will complement the showcase trio each day.
Hopf spoke of the robust stakes schedule this summer which features 35 stakes worth more than $6.5 million.
“As we get more race dates, the stakes program is going to continue to evolve,” he said. “Adding more stakes for Virginia-restricted horses, for Virginia and Maryland-bred and -sired horses, and with open stakes, elevates the whole program.”
The track will introduce four new open stakes at $100,000 purse levels, including the Maggie Walker, Yorktown, Colonial Turf Dash and Shenandoah Turf Dash. The $100,000 Love Sign, an open stakes sprint for fillies & mares, returns. Continued collaboration between Virginia and Maryland stakeholders has resulted in six stakes restricted to Maryland- and Virginia-bred or sired horses. On tap is the Star De Naskra, Miss Disco, Find, All Brandy, Jamestown and Dolley Madison.
Hopf is particularly excited about a change in the weekly race schedule which replaces Wednesday cards with Sunday afternoon programs.
“I’m pretty bullish on where we’re going with family friendly activities on Sundays and related marketing opportunities,” he said. “On Saturdays, we can focus on our racing program and offer key stakes. On Sunday, we get another weekend day to pivot and provide a cost-effective outing for mom, dad and the kids. I’m very excited to see how Sunday turns out. We want to continue to build a live program and crowd. It is very important to us. We’ll get plenty of simulcast exposure on Sundays too with Saratoga and Del Mar running.”
Fresh on the heels of a second straight sellout crowd at the Virginia Derby in mid-March, Hopf was beyond pleased with the turnout and momentum it provided.
“In a best-case scenario, I never could have imagined the kind of crowd we’ve seen at the first two spring Derbies,” Hopf said. “It was great how excited people were for the race and especially day of, how people stayed for the entire card. That will really help us carry momentum into the summer meet. You can see it now by how well ticket sales are going. We’re expanding big event days into summer with the Festival of Racing and Old Dominion Derby Day programs. We want to keep on building those events.”
Hopf has guided the track through an increase in the number of race days per week, from three in 2024, to four per week in 2025 and again this summer.
“Honestly, any time you go from racing three days a week to four days, you need to be mindful of participation,” he noted. “Having a full barn area has helped out for sure. Cooperation with Maryland has been a benefit to both of us. It looks like four-day race weeks are here to stay and we’ll keep building on the field size.”
“We’re very excited to have Dan Bork back for a second season as racing secretary,” he added. “Dan knows how to put a condition book together and how to work with the horsemen. We’re wrapping up the stall allocation process and are overfilled again with applications from both returning trainers and new outfits looking to come for the first time. It’s exciting to see people focusing on this meet and to be part of what’s going on here.”
New to the Colonial Downs mix this summer is a pari-mutuel race card on Monday June 29 dedicated solely to steeplechase racing. This will be the first “jump only” card at the New Kent track since the Dogwood Classic — which replaced the Strawberry Hill Races — and was last held in April of 2013. That one-day card will include seven races worth a combined $375,000 in purse money. Featured race is the renamed $100,000 Theodora A. Randolph filly & mare stakes, the first leg of a newly created “Triple Tiara” stakes series. There will also be a $25,000 flat race for jumpers on the card.
Steeplechase racing will continue on three Thursdays later in the meet, each featuring a trio of races. The July 23 card is highlighted by the second leg of the Triple Tiara, the $100,000 Life’s Illusion. Jump competition continues on August 13 and September 3. The latter program features the third Tiara leg, the $100,000 Marion DuPont Scott which will be run at Colonial for the first time. All three of the filly and mare stakes have been given Grade 2 status.
“Having been here for a few seasons now, we’ve been able to take a look at how jump racing has been presented and then debated about what works best,” said Hopf. “We want to find the right niche for steeplechase, especially since wagering has been offered on those races the past two seasons. We’re going to dedicate a full day to the jumpers to see how that works and to give them that opportunity. There is a strong history of jump racing in Virginia and I’m appreciative of that tradition.”
Dr. Al Griffin, President of the National Steeplechase Association, thinks the 2026 plan could a win-win situation.
“Colonial had been carding several steeplechase races on Thursdays during the flat race scenario the past two years and Saratoga had been doing their jump race program on Wednesdays so there was a lot of back and forth among horses, horsemen and officials which was a little bit tough. The one-day meet on June 29th gives us a chance to ship in a good number of horses and riders and it creates an opportunity where logistics greatly improve. It should also help Colonial with their setup plans. We’re really excited about that one-day opportunity.”
“The other three steeplechase days this summer in New Kent have a focus on filly and mare races,” he continued. “Colonial is going to kill it with the Triple Tiara Series and it’s the perfect place to do it.”