A night at the dog track

I have many fond memories of going to the dog track.

Geneva Lakes Kennel Club in Delavan opened in 1990 when I was just eight years old, and since my grandma and my aunt and my uncle all lived in Delavan, our whole family would go on occasion, and I'd watch, fascinated, as the adults in my family placed their bets and watched the races intently, hoping to win big. I'd sit and sip my kiddie cocktail, and ponder which dogs I'd pick if I were old enough to bet.

When my friends and I all finally turned 18 our senior year of high school, spending a Friday evening at the dog track – preferably on 50 cent night, when admission, programs, hot dogs, pizza and soda were all just 50 cents – topped our list of things to do.

I never won any huge amount of money at the dog races, but the glimmer of hope was always there and that made it fun.

However, the popularity of dog tracks has been dwindling in recent years.

After 15 years in business, Geneva Lakes Kennel Club ended its live racing on November 6 this year, and it will officially close its doors completely next June. (Read about the closing here, here, and here.) Several other Wisconsin dog tracks have also closed in recent years, and now only one remains: Dairyland Greyhound Park in Kenosha.

Friday night, Dave and I went with Christi and Tara for a night at the dog track. It was something none of us had done in quite some time, so we figured we'd try our luck.

We got there just after the first race, and we were all pretty surprised at how dead it was inside. There were maybe 200 people in the entire place. Maybe. And it was "Dollar Drafts and Dogs" night, too.



We settled in and made our bets on the second race, but none of us won any money. When we looked to see how much we WOULD have won, we were further discouraged. Payouts aren't very big when the crowd is so thin.



Still, we all made bets on every race. By the end of the night, Christi and Tara both came out ahead, but Dave and I hadn't won anything. I decided that I don't really enjoy betting on dogs anymore. To me, there's just no rhyme or reason to it, and I feel like I have absolutely no control over whether I win or not. Poker or blackjack on the other hand, I at least feel like I have some control.

After an evening of cheap beer, greasy hot dogs, zero winning, and being surrounded by the very … interesting … clientele (can you say mullet?), I was ready to head home. I find it sad that a night at the dog track just isn't what it used to be, and that business is bad, but I can definitely understand why that is. It's probably only a matter of time until the Kenosha track closes, too, and then Wisconsin will be dog track-less.

No matter what happens, and even if I never go to the races again (which I don't think I will), I'll always remember my days at the dog track fondly.

Comments

[Andre]

Now that they're closing, they've got buttloads of dogs they need to get rid of. I guess Greyhounds make decent (though lazy) pets. They go really fast for ten minutes and then sit on their ass the rest of the day.

For whatever reason the track's website isn't working... www.genevagreyhounds.com

[Albert]

"Think occasionally of the suffering in which you spare yourself the site." I had a friend who lived in a farm house just off I-94 in Kenosha. Laid back guy. Blue collar. Peaceful. Non-activist. Occasionally, he'd hear what sounded like shots at 2 a.m., 3 a.m. in the morning coming from across the street. Could never quite figure it out. One day he took a walk across the street. His neighbors were greyhound breeders. Hmmmm... Wonder what was being shot? And for what?? I'm more than thankful that a night at the dog track just isn't what it used to be. Can't wait until the world is dog track-less. "Think occasionally of the suffering in which you spare yourself the site." ~ Albert Schweitzer