Quote from: The Tin Man on December 21, 2013, 08:26:01 AM
I wish so too. It is truly a gem. Best track, best paddock, best winner's circle, traditionally safest track(most important), most beautiful gardening and infield and backside in SoCal IMO.

Background scenery goes to Santa Anita. Love Clocker's Corner too!

Del Mar ... Meh ... I've nothing good to say about it ...

What?  NOTHING good to say about Del Mar?

I'll say three good things about it!

First, its racing in 70 degree temps with the sun shining.

Second, ten to twenty five thousand people routinely attend the races there, especially on weekends, unlike the three-four thousand people crowds that usually attend at HP and SA.

Third, the people that go to the races at Del Mar are primarily young, and are obviously having a great time.  Unlike the primarily old, sad, down on their luck crowds we see at HP (especially) and at SA.

Come on, Tin Man.  NOTHING good to say about Del Mar?

. . . trashing Wise Dan and his ownership while lobbying for Mucho Macho Man as HOY.

http://www.drf.com/news/andrew-beyer-mucho-macho-man-deserving-horse-year-title

I agree with at least one major point you make, Curtis.

I've always been unhappy that at Del Mar, every year they only have 10-14 days --- from July 4, the Del Mar Fair's closing day --- until about July 16th to get the synth track and turf course in racing shape. 

That's a joke.

Unbelieveable post, MOT.  Higher quality writing than you find in the DRF, that's for sure. Thanks for taking the time to write such a great piece.

Now I don't feel like such an oddball for preferring HP to SA!

Quote from: curtis on December 18, 2013, 11:15:44 AM
I remember when the Cushion Track was installed at Hollywood Park, track officials went with that brand because it had the lowest ratio of synthetic material to dirt than any of the competitors while still staying within the parameters set by the CHRB.  In other words its the dirtiest synthetic track out there.  It is much different to both Del Mar (Poly Track) and Golden Gate (Tapeta).  I think you can get a better idea of a horse's ability to run on dirt when they transition from the Hollywood Park surface.  Santa Anita, however, is a paved highway.  I hope they give Shared Belief a race over the track before the San Felipe, to see whether he likes the track well enough in the afternoon.  If not, Team Dorf can ship him east where he can run on a kinder surface--like, I don't know--Interstate 10.

A Christmas wish would be for the Hollywood Park track surface to replace the Del Mar surface.  My fear is that to get the Breeder's Cup, Del Mar will go back to dirt, something that was problematic there, especially just before the switch.

Thanks for this post, Curtis, with lots of interesting info.

While with Zenyatta at HP on Saturday, I remarked that when HP shuts down, they should collect all the artificial "dirt" and store it somewhere, to sell it to somebody who wants an artificial surface. 

I agree that HP's Cushion Track has been the best Socal artificial surface, although Del Mar may now be giving it a run for its money. 

I think last summer's artificial surface at Del Mar only had one fatal breakdown during live racing, and only one fatal breakdown during training.  An all-time low.

And remember that the purpose of installing these artificial surfaces was to reduce the super-high breakdown rates at the SoCal tracks when they were all dirt.

By the way, I think Churchill Downs also had only fatal breakdown on dirt during their spring meet in 2013.

So far, so good with Shared Belief.  Actually, VERY good.

Next task is to race, win and be impressive doing it on dirt. 

Until that happens, he is just a synth monster.

Quote from: The Tin Man on December 17, 2013, 08:18:30 AM
I'm hoping he just lets the last race run in silence. Its one of the things he's been pondering.

I think it would be awesome ... very powerful ...

Then he could wait a full minute, in tribute, after they cross ... and then do the recap and verbal farewell to this lovely place.

Any thought on what his last call you be like?

I think silence would be appropriate for the last race.

You know, back in the 60s and 70s Keeneland --- if I remember correctly --- did not even have an announcer calling the races live.  The theory, supposedly, was that if you needed a race caller to identify the horses, you didn't really belong at the track! 

Love the snobbery of Kentucky hardboots!

Quote from: The Tin Man on December 17, 2013, 09:50:42 AM
I think I'm gonna be unglued all weekend. It will be very emotional for sure. I'm love HP and the memories there. Its a gorgeous track. 

It will be interesting to see the entries of the last race on Sunday. I would imagine pretty much everyone will want to be in that last race ... and, aside from the last winner, it will be an interesting sidenote as to who is the last horse to cross the line ... and the last to leave the track.

I wish they'd do a ceremony after the last race and allow trainers, jockeys, workers, etc. to ramble on about what HP meant to them. That would be nice. We could all mourn together.

I like HP too.

Although SA gets all the hype, with the mountains in the background, I have long preferred HP.  Perhaps it is because I sometimes attended during the late spring - early summer meet, when the temps were nice and the sun was always shining.  For years it seemed better maintained and landscaped than SA, with fresher paint, more flowers, the sparkling lake, and the always-present sunshine.  In contrast, most of my visits to SA were during the late winter-early spring meet, when it was often overcast, cold and rainy.  Yuck. If I want that, I will go to New York for winter racing.

Too bad the economic forces battering horse racing and HP's terrible location in Inglewood contributed to cause its demise.

Quote from: Senator L on December 17, 2013, 09:11:27 AM
I thought the call was over the top a bit IMO. He reminded me of the guy at Woodbine
Dan Louiselle. I thought his voice went wacky in the stretch run lol

I think Vic is an excellent race caller. He is fast, clear and accurate, and often exciting.

But sometimes he overdoes it with a his "this is a future superstar" hype while watching some horse win a race by daylight. 

I like Shared Belief, but history has seen lots of hot shot two year olds who look like future superstars, and instead turn out to be nothing more than physically precocious horses who are bypassed when their peers physically grow up as three year olds.

But the nature of virtually all sports venue public address announcers (in football, basketball, etc.) is to try to create excitement among the fans by giving exciting "calls."  Its part of the job these days.

. . . and yet another DRF column on HP, with a different take on it.

http://www.drf.com/news/mary-simon-hollywood-park-wont-be-forgotten

. . . and here is a nice article from the DRF about HP's history.

http://www.drf.com/news/hollywood-park-what-run-it-had

. . . are moving.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-renegade-holly-park-flamingos-20131216,0,5440639.story#axzz2nkGBQyER

Quote from: Giant Oak on December 16, 2013, 07:01:55 PM
The true moment of the year for 2013 happened on January 8th!! 

http://www.paulickreport.com/news/bloodstock/grade-1-winner-giant-oak-sires-first-foal/

:chickendance:

Your Friend,

Giant Oak
Multiple G1 Winner And Proud Papa!

You're right!

It should be an unanimous vote!

Quote from: Zenyatta on December 15, 2013, 03:51:41 PM
And.....the very impressive Shared Belief got a 106 Beyer, head and shoulders above the rest of the two year old crowd.

Whoever decided to run Karma King yesterday should be drawn and quartered. That horse reared up, abd then ran off at full speed for half mile. I was standing in full view of it and everyone figured he would be a late scratch. Dumb, very dumb.

I agree.

The stewards were clowns for letting that horse race after he sprinted half a mile before the race while his jock held on for dear life.

. . . as a protest.

http://nypost.com/2013/12/16/horses-used-in-labs-end-up-on-french-dinner-tables/