About Fonner Park Race Track

Fonner Park sits as the entertainment heart of the Nebraska heartland, and the heart of Fonner Park is horse racing. The season here runs from mid-February through early May, with live racing taking place in the afternoons Friday through Sunday. The facility hosts numerous stakes races, with the most lucrative one in Nebraska, the Bosselman/Gus Fonner Stakes, running on the last Saturday of April. Fonner Park Race Track offers much more, though, than a place for horse racing and horse race betting; it is run by a nonprofit corporation that distributes its proceeds to 4-H programs and charitable activities.

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Fonner Park Track History

The Hall County Livestock Improvement Association established Fonner Park Race Track back in 1953, and the first races took place on April 29, 1954. The inaugural season included a total of 13 race days, a number which has since grown to 31. Fonner Park Race Track was originally built to host the county fair, with horse racing to take place only on days when the fair wasn't open. Racing quickly took center stage, though, and the venue expanded a few times over the years. The facility put additions on the grandstand four times, added five barns for horses in the 1960s, put up a big red barn in 1970, and constructed a clubhouse soon after.

A 7-year-old gelding, Wenga, set the track record of 2:30.4 for 1 7/16 miles on May 1, 1968. Fonner Park Race Track hosted its first Bosselman/Gus Fonner Handicap in 1990, with Complicate, ridden by Ron Warren Jr., finding the winner's circle. The venue added the 6,000-seat Heartland Events Center for concerts, sporting events, and trade shows in 2006 and became the host of the Nebraska State Fair in 2010.

Fonner Park Track Details

Fonner Park Race Track features a five-furlong racing oval, and fans can take in the action from the grandstand or clubhouse. The facility offers simulcasting throughout the year, so guests can partake in horse race betting even when the track isn't hosting live racing. Fonner Park provides stable accommodations for about 1,300 horses spread out across 20 barns and a half-mile track for training. In addition to the race track, the venue includes a concourse exhibition hall, the 4-H Building and Cafe, and the Nebraska Racing Hall of Fame.

Address

700 E. Stolley Park Road, Grand Island, NE 68801