POCATELLO, ID— May 3, 2015—Two trials for the AQHA Maiden Challenge will head the opening card today (Sunday) as the spring season kickoffs at Pocatello Downs at the Bannock County Fairgrounds.

Trials for the Pocatello American Quarter Horse Association Maiden Challenge are featured as Race 6 and 7, with first post at 1 p.m. (MDT).The 10 fastest qualifiers will return on Sunday, May 17 to vie for a $5,000-added purse going 350 yards.

“We’re looking for nice weather, fast horses and a good crowd,” Pocatello Downs president Jeremy Price said. “I’m sure it will all work out great.”

New for this spring’s races is a remodeled paddock area where spectators can see the horses before and after the races and have a good view of the whole track. The races Sunday range from 250 to 350 yards and attract horses, jockeys, trainers and owners from eastern Idaho, Utah and Wyoming. Racing at the fairgrounds will continue each Sunday in May, culminating in the Rocky Mountain Quarter Horse Futurity and Pocatello Derby on May 24.

Two jockeys to watch are Utahn Justin Vanderwoude, who won the Pocatello Futurity last year, and Tyson Lusk, a leading rider from Evanston, Wyo. Pocatello trainer Jimmy Hanson has two entries in the AQHA maiden trials: Heza Shocker in the sixth race and Royal Blush Fire in the seventh.

Vanderwoude is aboard Ivory Mist in the 250-yard first race, BG U Don’t Know Jack in the third, BR Pleasure in the fourth and BG Jess Blue By You in the sixth. Lusk will begin riding next week as trials for the Rocky Mountain Quarter Horse Futurity begin.

Besides revenue generated at the track, funding for Pocatello Downs is also provided by the Idaho State Racing Commission. Admission fee for each day’s racing is $2.