EIGHTH ANNUAL DICK MCGUIRE TROT THIS THURSDAY NIGHT, AUGUST 3, AT YONKERS RACEWAY REMEMBERS KNICKS AND ST. JOHN’S GREAT, BASKETBALL HALL OF FAMER; N.Y.S.S. FOR THREE-YEAR-OLD COLTS & GELDINGS AT EMPIRE CITY CASINO’S HISTORIC HARNESS OVAL WORTH $169,499
Yonkers, NY — The eighth annual Dick McGuire Trot, which was inaugurated in 2010 to pay tribute to the legendary Knicks and St. John’s point guard and basketball Hall of Famer, is set for this Thursday night, August 3, at Empire City Casino’s historic Yonkers Raceway.
The New York Sire Stakes for three-year-old colts and geldings is worth a total purse of $169,499, split into three divisions worth more than $56,000 apiece, and carded as the fourth, fifth and sixth races of the evening.
The “McGuire” remembers the ardent $2 horse player who starred at St. John’s and then at the Garden with the Knickerbockers as one of the game’s greatest playmakers.
Members of the McGuire family who will be on hand include Dick’s wife Teri, sons Scott and Michael, daughter Leslie Dwyer, and an assortment of grandchildren.
“Dick went to the track hundreds of times, and each and every time he got home, he said: “I broke even,” says his wife Teri with a laugh.
Casino and Raceway president and CEO Timothy J. Rooney and COO Bob Galterio put their stamp of approval on the McGuire Trot for its inaugural rendition in 2010 soon after McGuire’s passing, and it has become a fixture on the summer stakes schedule for New York-bred sophomore trotters.
McGuire was a racing devotee, and could be regularly found at harness and thoroughbred tracks across the country, including the venerable Yonkers half-mile oval, and wherever his Knicks scouting missions and training camps might take him.
Says Rooney: “We are truly delighted and privileged to continue to honor one of New York’s greatest sportsmen, and an avid racing fan, with the seventh annual Dick McGuire Trot. Yonkers Raceway looks forward to continuing this tradition for many years to come, and to having Dick’s family, friends and many fans honor his memory at our historic track during the height of our summer stakes season.”
Born in the Bronx, a product of the Rockaways, and a long time Dix Hills, Long Island resident, McGuire was a part of the Knicks organization for 53 seasons as a player, coach and scout before his passing on February 3, 2010 at age 84. The St. John’s University star was one of the most selfless players in NBA history. The deft-passing McGuire was a five-time NBA All-Star and led the Knicks to three straight NBA Finals in the fifties. His number 15 was retired to the Madison Square Garden rafters in 1992, and he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame the following year. McGuire’s legend, along with his historic NBA career, includes his love of horse racing, spending memorable times at racetracks across the country during his travels as a player, coach and scout.
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