DOWNTOWN BEAUTY
Business community in Travers takes part in window-decorating contest
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. >> The Spa City’s downtown storefronts are looking extra special this track season as businesses participate in the 150th Runhappy Travers window-decorating contest.
Leading up to the 150th running of the Travers on Saturday, Aug. 24 at Saratoga Race Course, the Saratoga Springs business community is celebrating this anniversary with racing-themed storefront displays for shoppers and fans to enjoy.
In addition to the Travers 150 pole banners set up along Broadway, a group of 20 local establishments are participating in the 150th Runhappy Travers window-decorating contest to help decorate downtown for the occasion.
“We want to reach out to the racing fans. We want them to have a reason to come and see everything else that we have here,” Saratoga Springs Downtown Business Association President Deann Devitt said on why the organization decided to hold this contest, along with the New York Racing Association and the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce.
Furthermore, “It’s a ton of fun,” Devitt said. “Everybody gets to show their own creativity through their windows.”
Window designers from downtown shops Lifestyles of Saratoga and Caroline and Main chose to present “The Midsummer Derby meets A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” mixing horseracing and Fairyland themes.
"We want to reach out to the racing fans. We want them to have a reason to come and see everything else that we have here." — Saratoga Springs Downtown Business Association President Deann Devitt
At Impressions of Saratoga, the store displayed some vintage Travers pieces from past races. “We try to incorporate as much product as we can and show what we have to offer in the store,” said co-owner Maddy Zanetti.
Over at The Dark Horse Mercantile, the shop is also celebrating the 100th anniversary of the store’s namesake Upset defeating Man o’ War at Saratoga Race Course. “So we incorporated the 100th anniversary and the 150th anniversary together,” Zanetti continued.
Contest winners will be chosen by a panel of judges from NYRA, the Saratoga Springs Downtown Business Association and the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce.
The top three window displays will receive special recognition during the Travers post-position draw on Tuesday, August 20.
Also on Tuesday, a meet and greet and autograph session with some of Saratoga Race Course’s leading riders will be held at 5 p.m. in front of Impressions of Saratoga in downtown Saratoga Springs. This event will benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys’ Fund.
During the contest, fans also have an opportunity to win a pair of Clubhouse reserved seats for the 150th Runhappy Travers by completing the enter-to-win form located at each merchant participating in the window decorating contest. Entries will be accepted through Monday, August 19.
The 150th Runhappy Travers will be run on Saturday, August 24 as the centerpiece of a card featuring seven stakes and six Grade 1s at Saratoga Race Course. It will be televised on the FOX Broadcast Network in a one-hour show on August 24 that begins at 5 p.m.
The inaugural Travers took place on August 2, 1864, as the first race ever held at the present-day Saratoga Race Course. The Travers was run one year after the first organized thoroughbred race meeting in Saratoga which occurred at the original Saratoga Trotting Course located near Horse Haven on the Oklahoma side of the track. The Travers was named for William R. Travers, a co-founder of Saratoga Race Course, who won the inaugural running with Kentucky.
As the oldest stakes race for three-year-olds in the United States, the Travers is an annual highlight of the Saratoga Race Course meet, and a big draw for racing fans visiting the Saratoga Springs area.
“This is such a fun and creative collaboration between NYRA, the City, the DBA, the Chamber and the participating businesses,” Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce president Todd Shimkus said about the contest. “It will draw attention to the participating businesses and showcase the historic significance of the Travers. I’m not sure there is a better way to celebrate just how special a destination Saratoga is today and has been for 150 plus years for Thoroughbred horse racing and history.”