Rillito Park Horse Racetrack

Recently remodeled, the Rillito Park Horse Racetrack is a five eights of a mile track that features thoroughbred, quarterhorse, and Arabian horse racing. The track is famous because it is the location where a number of racing innovations were developed. The Southern Arizona Horse Breeders Association has been hosting races at the track since 1941. The track was one of the first to use derbies, weighted handicaps, grading, stakes, and photo electric timers, all features that were tried out here and later applied to other races. Famous names to have run at Rillito include Miss Panama, Hard Twist, Queenie, and Joe Reed. Rillito is one of the most famed historic tracks in the United States. It was dedicated an historic landmark in 1988. Horse racing in the west became popular due to Americans moving in that direction and taking quarter horses with them. During the late 1930's,students from the University of Arizona began breeding their own horses. This led to racing them and the sport eventually took off in the Southwest. Today quarter horses still run on a straight track due to the events that occurred early on at Rillito. The track season runs from January to March and there is live racing on Saturdays and Sundays. There are two restaurants at the track, as well as a training area, grandstand, barns, special event areas, picnic areas, restrooms, and drinking fountains.