Opelousas, Louisiana :: Evangeline Downs Racetrack & Casino recently concluded 2006 spring/summer thoroughbred season, the second at the new facility, showed across the board gains in all major categories including on-track handle, total handle, purse distribution, and average field size for the 92 night meet.

Sparked by three $2,000,000 + nights, including an all-time record handle of $2,182,506 wagered on the 2nd annual Louisiana Legends night, all sources handle posted the largest gains, as a total of $142,571,255 was wagered on the 92 nights, an increase of more than 45 million. The average nightly handle of $1.55 million was more than 32.5% higher than the 2005 season.

Increased business and casino proceeds also drove purses to an all-time level. The daily purse distribution of more than $170,000 was a full $10,000 more than last year's and featured a bulked up stakes program. A total of seventeen stakes worth $1.5 million were contested during the meet highlighted by the $150,000 Evangeline Mile and the $150,000 D.S. "Shine" Young Memorial Futurity. Dreamsandvisions rallied from last to win the Mile under jockey Luis Quinonez, while Carolina Panthers' quarterback Jake Delhomme received his biggest thrill in racing as his two-year-old Woozy captured the "Shine" for jockey Willie Lozano Jr. Horsemen responded in kind to the rich offering's and produced an average field size of almost 10 runners per race over 922 races, one of the highest in the nation.

Executive Director of Racing Operations David A. Yount stated "While we are certainly proud of our season and the success we've enjoyed, we have no plans to rest on our laurels. Our seven furlong chute was opened just past the mid-point of our season and this offered horsemen more options and also allowed us to card full fourteen horse fields at both 6 & 7 furlongs in addition to our 6 furlong races which our fans and bettors clearly enjoyed." Yount further added "construction of a seven furlong turf course is set to begin in the near future, and the expansion of our OTB parlors and network are just two more steps in our long range goal of becoming the preeminent destination site in Louisiana."

In addition to improved business, racing also showed a dramatic increase in quality. Local fans were treated to the sight of many new outfits making their way to South-Central Louisiana to take advantage of the rich stakes offerings as well as the strong overnight program. A plethora of Graded Stakes performers too numerous to mention made appearances this summer as well as many notable horsemen and riders.

Keith Bourgeois & Kirk Leblanc captured the leading trainer & jockey titles. For Bourgeois it was his third consecutive at Evangeline Downs, while Leblanc earned the title in his first season back after plying his trade in other jurisdictions.

Racing will start back up in just two weeks with the 40 night fall quarter horse season. Beginning on Wednesday, September 20, and thru Saturday, November 25, racing will be conducted on a four evening a week schedule, Wed-Sat with a first post of 6:40 p.m. central time. The one exception will be Thanksgiving, Thursday, November 23, which will have a special post of 11:10 a.m. central time.

The 2007 spring/summer meet will begin on Wednesday, April 4th, 2007 and run thru the traditional closing night, Monday, September 3rd, Labor Day.

For more information contact Evangeline Downs at 337-594-3000.