The numbers are in. Saratoga Race Course broke the one million attendance mark during its 40-day meet for the sixth consecutive summer, according to the New York Racing Association.

“This is a community built on people gathering together,” Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce President Todd Shimkus said. “They couldn’t do it for 18 months. As soon as they were allowed, they came back.”

It’s a crowd that business owners around downtown were betting on.

Mare Barker, one of the owners of Impressions of Saratoga, said, "For our business, this is our Christmas.”

Racing fans bet a record-breaking handle of more than $800 million — a 15.6% increase over the prior record of $705,343,949 set in 2019 — and did not shy away from shopping, according to business owners.

“This year is looking to be a banner year,” said Barker. “Not the best ever, but definitely better than expected.”

Impressions has been a popular shop on Broadway for more than 40 years.

“It was great to have them back. People were excited to be here,” said Barker. “I think they really missed not being here last year, and we’re trying to make up for lost time.”

There is talk, though, whether the turnout this summer will be enough to make up for what was lost last year due to COVID-19.

“We’ve got a lot of ground to make up. There is no way we do that in one summer,” said Shimkus. “It’s got to be something that extends out over the next couple of years to fully see our economy recover.”

As trackgoers filter out of town, one challenge lingers.

“Staffing definitely was the one limitation we had this summer,” Shimkus said. “Restaurants had to stay closed certain days. Retailers needed to reduce hours. The owners had to work harder than ever. And you can’t make that up.”

It’s an issue Barker is determined to solve.

“Staffing has never been an issue for us ever in the past, but this year, we’re going into the fall with just four of us,” she said. “And we’re going to have to look at our hours and see when we can be open to maximize, but we are on the hunt.”