Located on 64 acres of the long abandoned Sun Shipbuilding & Dry Dock facility, the track offers sparkling views of ships and tankers passing by on the Delaware River. Hall of Famer Carl Manzi, driving Silver Flash, won the first official race. Chester Casino & Racetrack launched a new era in harness racing in the Delaware Valley on September 10. Roland is betting the good times are back. The sport disappeared in the Delaware Valley when first Liberty Bell, then Brandywine and finally Garden State Park were shuttered over the past 20 years. 'There would be 15,000 people on a Saturday night,' recalled Roland, now a trainer and resident of Jennersville, Pa. As a kid Brian Roland remembers the thrill of traveling to the Brandywine Raceway with his father, a standardbred trainer.