Aqueduct opened on Sept. 27, 1894 in Queens, New York. In 1941, a new clubhouse and track offices were built.
The track itself has three courses: The Main Track (dirt) has a circumference of 1 1/8 miles (1811 m); inside of this is the Inner Dirt Track (consisting of a special type of dirt over which races are run during the winter months), which is exactly one mile (1609 m) long; and the innermost course is a turf (grass) course, spanning 7 furlongs plus 43 feet (1421 m). Today a single meeting is held annually at Aqueduct beginning on the last Wednesday in October and runs all the way through the first Sunday in May. Races are run on the Inner Dirt Track between the second Wednesday in December and the third Sunday in March in most years.
Hall of Famer Kelso won 20 of 27 career starts at Aqueduct. Aqueduct was the first New York track to host a Breeders’ Cup on November 2, 1985. The Cigar Mile is named for the horse who won the race (then the NYRA Mile) in 1994.
Major Races: $150,000 First Flight Handicap; $150,000 Long Island Handicap; $150,000 Red Smith Handicap; $350,000 Cigar Mile; $200,000 Remsen Stakes; $200,000 Demoiselle Stakes
