Canterbury Park announced it will run five stakes races with purses of $100,000 or more in 2013, the largest number since the Shakopee track reopened in 1995.
The schedule includes the $200,000 Mystic Lake Derby on Aug. 3, which offers the track's largest purse since the $250,000 St. Paul Derby in 1991.
The Aug. 3 card also will include a new race, the $100,000 Shakopee Juvenile Stakes, and the $100,000 Northbound Pride Oaks, which has increased its purse by $25,000.
The July 13 card includes another new race, the $125,000 Mystic Lake Mile, and the $100,000 Lady Canterbury Stakes.
The Minnesota Oaks and Minnesota Derby, to be run on Aug. 10, will pay $75,000 each, their richest purses since the late 1980s.
Total purses for the 26 stakes races are $1.76 million, an increase of more than 20 percent over 2012. Canterbury's 69-day season begins May 17.
RACHEL BLOUNT
