Maryland’s Preakness Stakes took place this past weekend at Laurel Park just outside of Prince George’s County, the first time in 118 years the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown was not run at Baltimore’s Pimlico Race Course.
Pimlico is undergoing a $400 million state-sponsored rebuild, which required the temporary relocation. But the move has reopened a wider conversation about what Maryland is willing to spend to keep horse racing, and the Preakness brand, anchored in the state.
Michelle Betton is a fan who drove from Silver Spring to take in the scene at Laurel. For her, the weekend carried a sense of rediscovery…