Fair Grounds’ Track Crew Wins the Battle Against Historic Winter Storm

By Joe Kristufek —-

Fair Grounds’ Track Crew Wins the Battle Against Historic Winter Storm

New Orleans, La (Jan. 24, 2025) – Before Tuesday it is highly likely that most New Orleanians believed there was a better chance that they’d cross paths with the Rougarou than experience a blizzard in the Bayou. The unthinkable reared its ugly head on Tuesday, and it wasn’t in the form of a mythical swamp monster.
“It is safe to say Tuesday’s Southeast Louisiana snowstorm immediately became legendary,” WDSU meteorologist and avid horseplayer Jim Syoen said. “It’s the largest snowstorm in this century, and even the previous century. It was a metrological combination of superb timing that included the coldest air of the season rushing down from Canada, and moisture approaching from the West — moisture that 99 times out of a hundred, would have just been rain.”
Reading the tea leaves early in the week, Fair Grounds’ management transferred Thursday’s scheduled racing card to Monday. To resume live racing on Friday as planned/hoped, track superintendent Pedro Zavala had a major challenge in front of him.
“As the snowstorm was moving toward New Orleans, the temperatures quickly dropped to record levels which caused mechanical issues to our entire fleet of track maintenance tractors,” Fair Grounds’ senior director of racing Jason Boulet said. “Snow is never a weather situation that we are prepared for in our city, so dealing with freezing temperatures in addition to clearing snow forced Pedro and his team to accomplish what was seemingly impossible. In a matter of 48 hours, they had our track ready for training and racing with the use of one only one tractor. A process that usually would take two hours became an all-night marathon to assure we stayed on schedule. Track maintenance can be a thankless job at times, but words can’t express the appreciation and admiration that we all have for Pedro and his team.”
According to Syoen, the ten inches of snow officially recorded at Louis Armstrong International, the French Quarter, Metairie, and the Fair Grounds neighborhood “set, or possibly tied a record”. It was a snowstorm that would have made even the track maintenance crews at Hawthorne in suburban Chicago and Aqueduct in New York quiver.
“Many have seen the pictures that are available at the local museums, historical societies, and even the internet of the great New Orleans snowfall of 1895,” Syoen explained. “Ten inches of snow was also officially reported on that occasion, but there is a little skepticism regarding the measuring tactics of the day. The only other snowstorm of note since then occurred on December 31, 1963, when the airport received 2.7″.”
A member of the Fair Grounds track maintenance crew for 16 years, Zavala admittedly had no experience combating snowy conditions. He reached out to fellow trackmen Javier Barajas and Jim Pendergest for advice, and he and his crew got to work.
“There were some headaches with the equipment, and we put in some long shifts,” Zavala said. “My crew and I haven’t gotten much sleep. Mother Nature will push you to the limit, but we never lost our determination to do what needed to be done.”
Friday’s eight race program went off without a hitch and live racing resumes on Saturday with a first post of 12:45 p.m. CT. All turf racing scheduled for this racing week (through Monday) has been called off, but Zavala is hopeful grass racing will proceed as scheduled on Thursday, January 30.

Fair Grounds to Conduct “Twilight Tailgate Racing” on Super Bowl Weekend
With New Orleans serving as the host city for Super Bowl LIX, Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots will be joining the festivities by holding “Twilight Tailgate Racing” on Saturday, Feb. 8th. First post for the 8-race program will be 5 p.m. CT and all races will have a Super Bowl theme. There will be a DJ in the Jamison Bar from 4 – 9 p.m. and The Wiseguys will be playing on the 4th floor in the Clubhouse from 8 – 11 p.m. Tickets are on sale now at www.fgno.com and through Ticketmaster.

Fresh Content on Fair Grounds YouTube Channel
The latest edition of the WEEK REWIND video series highlights recent performances from some top local 3-year-olds on the Road to the Kentucky Derby & Oaks. Wins by Hypnus, Disco Time, Simply Joking, Pretty Sassy and Dennis’ Moment and a January 17 breeze by East Avenue are featured. You can access the video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKxEI6W8_IU and subscribe to our YouTube channel @fairgroundsnola.

Twin Spires Tournaments

Sunday, Jan. 26 — $1,000 Fair Grounds/Oaklawn KDBC/NHC Qualifier ($600 Bankroll + $400 Prize Pool)
Monday, Jan. 27 — $160 Fair Grounds Feeder to 2/1 Oaklawn KDBC Qualifier ($80 Bankroll + $80 Prize Pool)

The Kentucky Derby Betting Challenge will be held on Saturday, May 3, 2025. Prizes include but are not limited to 2026 KY Derby Tickets + 2026 KDBC/2025 BCBC Seat + Cash (guaranteed 250,000 Prize Pool). $5,000 Total Buy-In ($3,500 to Bankroll + $1,500 to Prize Pool)
For the complete Twin Spires tournament schedule and to register, visit https://www.twinspires.com/bet/tournaments.
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About Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots
Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots, one of the nation’s oldest racetracks, has been in operation since 1872. Located in New Orleans, La, Fair Grounds, which is owned by Churchill Downs Incorporated (NASDAQ Global Select Market: CHDN), also operates a slot-machine gaming facility and 15 off-track betting parlors throughout Southeast Louisiana. The 153rd Thoroughbred Racing Season–highlighted by the 112th running of the Louisiana Derby–will run from Nov. 22, 2024 through March 23, 2025. More information is available online at www.fgno.com.