Slightly before 9 a.m. on Friday, April 24, a van full of nine Thoroughbred horses passed through the stable gate for trainer Panagiotis “Peter” Synnefias, marking the first equine arrivals on the grounds at Monmouth Park as the track readies for its 81st season, commencing on May 9.

Among the first to set hoof in the stable area was Surface to Air, last year’s winner of the Monmouth Cup and Iselin Stakes, the former marking the first graded stakes win for his 27-year-old trainer.

“This is my home and there’s no other place I want to be,” said Syneffias, who will have over 30 head under his care this year. “We had tremendous success last summer and we’ll look to build on that for an even better season this year.”

The Grade 1 NYRA Bets Haskell Stakes will again highlight the summer season, when it is renewed for the 59th time on Saturday, July 18. Five other stakes will be featured that day, including the recently upgraded Molly Pitcher, now running as a Grade 2 with a pot of $500,000.

The live racing schedule will run from May 9 through Sept. 13. Post time on Fridays will be 2 p.m., when that day is added to the calendar starting June 26. Saturday and Sunday post times will be 12:50, except Haskell Day, when the first race goes at noon.

Parking is free throughout the meet.