The Travel Effect: Dominic Polito – Balmoral Park Race Track

“I’m living my dream job here at Balmoral Park.”

When Balmoral Park Race Track Announcer Dominic Polito started attending races at Balmoral Park in Crete and the now-defunct Washington Park in Homewood with his father in the 1960s, he would do whatever he could to catch a glimpse of the local announcers as they called a race.

Since August 2001, Dominic has been the full-time track announcer at Balmoral Park.

He arrives a few hours before the 7:10 p.m. post time on race nights (Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday) and memorizes the horses for the 10-12 races that night, does handicapping for the program and stars with publicity director Tom Kelly on the Balmoral Beat show which reviews the races and gives their locks and long shots of the night.

Dominic started pursuing announcing in 1979 with qualifying races and working the county fair circuit. More than 35 years later, the thrill of the race is still a powerful feeling. “On any given night there are a handful of races that are exciting, and you can hear the people getting into it,” said Dominic. “It’s a really exciting experience to have.“

Balmoral Park is one of the many attractions in the Chicago Southland and the state of Illinois that attract visitors who annually spend more than $32 billion in Illinois.