It won’t be the only thoroughbred meeting going on over the next six weeks, but when it comes to quality, tradition and reputation, Saratoga Race Course stands alone.

The 140th summer of racing gets under way on Wednesday. Last year’s meet produced winners of seven Breeders’ Cup races, six horses that went on to earn year-end championships in the U.S. and Canada and the top trainer and jockey in North America.

Breeders’ Cup winners who ran at Saratoga last year included War Pass (Juvenile), Indian Blessing (Juvenile Fillies), Nownownow (Juvenile Turf), Maryfield (Filly & Mare Sprint), English Channel (Turf), Ginger Punch (Distaff) and Midnight Lute (Sprint).

Among those who used Saratoga as a springboard to year-end championships were Todd Pletcher (trainer) and Garrett Gomez (jockey), Maryfield (female sprinter), English Channel (male turf), Ginger Punch (older female), Midnight Lute (sprinter), Lawyer Ron (older male) and Kodiak Kowboy (Canada’s top 2-year-old male).

“Quite simply, it is the best race meeting in North America, from wagering, attendance and racing perspectives,” New York Racing Association executive vice president and chief operating officer Hal Handel said. “That’s sort of the magic trifecta right there.”

One of biggest reasons for that popularity can be found in Saratoga’s lucrative stakes schedule. This year will see 47 stakes, 33 of them graded, 15 of those Grade 1, worth nearly $10.5 million during a 36-day run that continues every day but Tuesdays through Labor Day, Sept. 1.

The meet’s showpiece event, the $1 million Travers stakes, will be contested for the 139th time on Saturday, Aug. 23. First held in 1864, it is widely considered an extension of the Triple Crown, predating the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes as the oldest race for 3-year-olds in the country.

Last year, Street Sense became the first Derby winner in 12 years to run in the Travers, edging Grasshopper in a thrilling stretch duel. It appeared unlikely that Big Brown, whose Triple Crown bid ended shockingly in the Belmont, would run.

Among the horses that could show up in the Travers are stakes winners Da’ Tara, Denis of Cork, Pyro, Macho Again, Anak Nakal, Behindatthebar, Ready’s Echo and Harlem Rocker.

“Someone always jumps into the mix,” said NYRA racing secretary P.J. Campo. “No one really knew who Grasshopper was last year, and he ran the race of his life. You always see some names pop up at Saratoga that people aren’t familiar with, and they become a star.”

That is especially true with 2-year-olds, who once again will have a major stakes presence with the Schuylerville, Adirondack and Spinaway for fillies and the Sanford, Saratoga Special and Hopeful for colts.

The Spinaway on Aug. 31 and Hopeful on Sept. 1 are the first Grade 1 races in the country for juveniles, and the first time they are asked to run as far as seven furlongs.

NYRA did away with the Adirondack and Saratoga Special in 2004 and the Schuylerville and Sanford in 2005, restoring the six-race series in 2006.

“We had such a negative response to getting rid of one of them,” Campo said. “It has become a cornerstone. Saratoga is all about 2-year-olds, turf racing and the Travers.”

One noticeable change to the stakes structure occurs in mid-meet. The Grade 1 Sword Dancer on turf for 3-year-olds and up was moved from its typical spot on the third Saturday to co-billing with the Grade 1 Alabama, the Travers sister race for 3-year-old fillies, on Aug. 16.

Taking the Sword Dancer’s place will be the $100,000 Yaddo Handicap for New York-bred fillies and mares, also on the grass. It will be the only Saturday of the meet without a graded stakes, although Campo plans to write five other overnight stakes, at $100,000 apiece, for the Aug. 9 card, which is the 140th anniversary of the race meeting.

“We moved the Sword Dancer to Alabama day to create another blockbuster Saturday and create a better program with better timing for the older male turf division,” Campo said. “Instead of having the Yaddo by itself, we wanted to do something exciting and create six stakes and give away $600,000 in purses.

“A lot of people don’t understand, racing six days a week for six weeks, you kind of run out of that horseflesh in the middle. This will kind of pump it up a little bit. It should be exciting.”

Last summer, Saratoga was the launching pad for the “win and you’re in” initiative that offered automatic entry to the Breeders’ Cup World Thoroughbred Championships, and was well-received. This year’s Breeders’ Cup will be held Oct. 24 and 25 at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, Calif.

The Sword Dancer (BC Turf) has been added to the list of Saratoga’s qualifying races that includes the Grade 1 Whitney (Classic), Grade 1 Diana (Filly & Mare Turf), Grade 1 Go for Wand (Distaff) and Grade 2 A.G. Vanderbilt (Sprint). All four of those races will be held on Saturday.

Friday’s 1 1⁄16-mile Lake George, the first of Saratoga’s 10 graded stakes in its 13th year, was elevated from Grade 3 to Grade 2 status for 2008.

To coincide with the annual induction ceremonies earlier in the day, the Grade 2 National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame Breeders’ Cup will be held Aug. 4.

In addition to the Spinaway and Hopeful, closing weekend is anchored by the Grade 1 Woodward on Saturday, Aug. 30, paired with the Grade 1 Forego. This will be the third straight year for the Woodward at Saratoga, after being moved from Belmont Park’s fall meet.

Thanks to simulcasting, Handel said Saratoga’s reach extends to 39 U.S. states and 27 major Canadian racing venues, as well as those in Mexico, Jamaica, Barbados, Bermuda, Puerto Rico, Panama, England, Austria, Germany, Trinidad, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.

“Collectively, that represents over 1,000 sites that are involved in Saratoga racing, which is a critical component of the purse structure and economic underpinning of the race meeting,” he said.

“We have every reason, because of the quality of the product, the allure of the racetrack and the demand for the product around the country and the world, for Saratoga to remain successful and have another great summer of racing.”

Reach Gazette Sportswriter Phil Janack at 395-3154 or janack@dailygazette.com. .dailygazette.com/weblogs/janack.