OXFORD — Thursday was Senior Citizens Day at the Oxford Fair, and hundreds of seniors took advantage of the discounted $3 ticket price for bingo, harness racing and the frying pan toss.

At the betting parlor, Ruby Coolidge and Patty Burnham, both of Bethel, were asking for advice on betting on the harness racers. Neither had ever bet on horses before, and wanted to try it out on a lark.

“I just thought I’d try it,” Coolidge said, reading over descriptions of the six horses running. Each bet a couple of dollars.

“Then we can’t say we never played the horses,” Burnham said. “I think I’m going to go with four or six, but I don’t know.”

After the race, Burnham said she won on all three of her horses. She bet on horses 1, 3 and 5, in that order. “They came in exactly that order,” she said with a laugh. The three winners were Bold Freshness, Photosinfulsis and Indian Creek Joe.

Volunteer Eva Mills of Greenwood said this year is looking good so far. She was selling racing guide books at the betting parlor Thursday, but said in past years she’s volunteered in cooking, education and announcing at the fair.

Mills said the fair overall is running well this year, and credited new fair President Jackie Young. “Jackie has done a fantastic job in my estimation,” Mills said. “Things have come together real well.”

She said the betting parlor is doing well, but she expects Saturday to be the big day at the parlor and the rest of the fair. Country music singer LeAnn Rimes will be performing Saturday at 8 p.m.

At 1:30 p.m. Saturday, the fair will feature the Oxford Fair Maine Open, a race with a $10,000 purse featuring only Maine horses. The casino also sponsored a sire’s stake race Wednesday.

Friday is Woodsmen’s Day and will feature demonstrations in the 4-by-4 Arena at 9 and 11 a.m. Horse pulling, pig scrabble and a demolition derby are also scheduled.

treaves@sunjournal.com

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