Finger Lakes Region
Sports
Watkins Glen International, Auto Racing, Watkins Glen
Both of the major NASCAR and Formula One Races that are held here each year attract huge crowds to the area. The stands hold almost 40,000 people but many more find other ways to watch the races which bring many more people to the area than those who actually live here. Jeff Gordon, Mario Andretti, Tony Stewart and many other world famous Indy and NASCAR drivers have been here over the years.
Rochester Red Wings, Triple A Baseball, Rochester
Since 1929 the Red Wings have been a Triple A franchise. They have been the Triple A team for 4 different Major League teams, but people in Rochester love going out to see a ball game. Little known factoid - the Red Wings played in the longest game in professional baseball history in 1981. The game went 33 innings and took 8 hours and 25 minutes before they lost to the Pawtucket Red Sox. The stadium that they play in, Frontier Field, holds over 13,000 people, but for most games there are plenty of available seats!
Rochester Amerks, American Hockey League - Rochester
The Amerks are the farm team for the Buffalo Sabres who play in the NHL a scant 60 miles away. Since their founding in 1956, they have won the Calder Cup 6 times and they consistently have a competitive team in the league that helps to feed the Sabres good players.
Rochester Knighthawks, National Lacrosse League - Rochester
Since the sport of lacrosse was invented in New York State, it is not surprising that there is a local team in the National Indoor Lacrosse league. The Knighthawks have played in the Blue Cross Area since 1995.
Finger Lakes Race Track - Farmington
If you like to watch the ponies, do some betting, and play some slots, Finger Lakes Gaming has you covered. The horse races go from April to November, but the race-sino (as they call it because they don’t have table games) is open all year. If you are in Rochester and you want to get your gamblin’ on, this is the closest place to do it. The Thoroughbred racing in the summer is a fun afternoon activity as well.