That is excellent.

lovely, sure poetry

I guess I am biased too, but I would hardly classify the Arlington meet as "dreadful." If it is dreadful, then what adjective would you use to describe the dozens of meets which are vastly inferior to Arlington?
Most of the Saturdays are quality, and then you have Preview Day, the Washington Park Handicap, Arlington-Washington Breeders’ Cup Lassie & the Arlington-Washington Breeders’ Cup Futurity, the Prarie State Festival, and of course the big races on Million Day.
Is it Saratoga or Del Mar....no.
Is it "dreadful"....no.

You can't be serious because saying its dreadful is completely off base. I have never heard Chicago racing referred to as dreadful. It isn't, and I feel that I am unbiased in this regard. I can understand if you were just trying to get a reaction from certain Chicago people.

Sorry Arl but I wasn't trying to get a rise. I think the fact that KY takes the midwest top stock makes a huge difference. Is there an occasional decent day, sort of, though Million Day is clearly an outlier.

most weekend days at arlington are pretty good. during the week it's no good except maybe sometimes mid-meet after the KY horses come up. their stakes days are some of my favorites. i may be a homer, but for the low purses they pay out, they get pretty good stock for most of their racing season once it heats up. I think that based on the purses they pay, they're right where they should be.