Del Mar... NO MORE POLYTRACK
 

http://www.drf.com/news/del-mar-plan...irt-track-2015

Goodbye, farewell, good riddance. Don't ever come back.

Great news. Now if Keeneland makes the move we will be all set.

Its the right thing to do.

Remember the big polytrack craze when it all started a few years back? it sure died pretty quick.

Amen! Get rid of it altogether

I would wager so much more if Keeneland was dirt. Speed biased or not.
The Blue Grass could actually be a real prep again.

Yeah it's a shame that one of our premium race meets is run on polycrap

After rushing to a decision that ultimately completely ruined California racing, they are finally getting everyone back to dirt. What was the damn point? They've lost so many people like myself that won't wager on this junk that I don't know if they can ever get back.

Premium meet? The turf is fine but the main track is a sideshow. And it's remarkable how the 'racing as it's meant to be' Keeneland organization that people slavishly fawn over, has completely escaped criticism for their craven money grab as partner with Polytrack/Martin Collins. They singlehandedly precipitated this preposterous 'synthetic era' before quietly disassociating themselves.

But, Steve, how can you dislike a surface that made Grade I winners out of Shotgun Gulch, Dr. Zic, Lilacs and Lace, Karlovy Vary, Joha, Dominican, Wickedly Perfect and Negligee?!!??!

I don't understand. So you don't wager on Santa Anita anymore, even though they've switched back to dirt?

It's been promoted and talked about as the equivalent of our version of Ascot

:tro:

how much did the ridiculous mandate in california cost these tracks? between the expense, the problems with the track surface at santa anita, and then the change back....what a complete mess.
i'm glad that del mar is making the move, but this stuff should never have happened to begin with.

no better example of the adage ' the road to hell is paved with good intentions'

YEAH !!! :D

Don't forget Monba

The problem is wagering has been actually strong at Keeneland, which I don't understand. Every big bettor I know treats the place like the plague. The results are not handicappable by any manner other than throwing darts. It's a wonderful place to visit, but not to wager. They deserve and get a lot of criticism as far as I'm concerned.

I, and most others, don't have a problem with synthetic as a replacement for dirt- as long as it's actually LIKE DIRT. Hollywood was perfectly playable. Del Mar and Keeneland are not.

I know I'm in the huge minority on this. But I hate that they're switching back. No, they shouldn't have switched in the first place, but unlike SA they had no major drainage or other issues, right?

My main reason for being opposed to the move is I usually do really well anytime one meet ends and another meet starts and they switch surfaces. You can usually nail long shots early in meets that can't run on one surface, but wake up on the other.

I mean like when Arlington goes to Hawthrone
When SA goes to Hollywood (and now Del Mar)
Keeneland to Churchill to Turfway
Golden Gate to the fair tracks with dirt.

So my reasons are purely for handicapping, but that's why I want Del Mar to stay synthetic. The one outcome that I hope comes from this, that in the future when SoCal horses can't hack it on dirt, maybe a lot more will ship to GG to try and get some success from that surface?

****, I'd even love the Aqueduct inner to go synthetic lol

For you guys naming all these synth winners, is it really any different for a horse that can't run a step on dirt, but thrives on turf?

Horses work out more than they race and get injured more often training than in racing. IF safety was the main selling point then why not install them in more training tracks rather than racing surfaces.

most are the same

Well said.

We've lost a decade with this surface nonsense.

Not to mention a lot of our $$ :D

that's a little overboard don't you think?

There have been rumblings about Keeneland going back to dirt for a while now.

Zenyatta

Yeah... Everything she did was a complete fluke... especially because of the surface... yeah. Glad she ran up the track at Churchill and Oaklawn to cement that statement

Bring back the dirt and quit your whining.

In fact with breeding mistakes based on poly form I can assume the damage from this idiocy is probably worse than a decade cumulatively.

Plenty of mistakes are made regardless of surface

Obviously. Surface never had to be one of them.

I honestly dont know what a breeding "mistake" would be that doesnt involve Tennessee.

coming from the guy who's been whining for 10 years lol...

I'm just saying I think there's room for both and as I said from page 1 of this thread I love it when a race meet ends and when another starts up there's a surface switch. Love. It.

If being an advocate for a better game and treatment of bettors is whining than I am all for it. I think Doug whines about it more than I do in fact. And he's right to....But I'm sorry for your loss of Poly. You still have Presque Isle. Enjoy.

Amen!

Very little. Less than 5% of what I used to. Once you find other ways to spend your money, you're a lost customer.

In all seriousness, how did bettors get dicked over when tracks went to poly? Please explain.

Also, Doug whines about the place he handicaps for a newspaper? He's an expert on a place that has synthetic (Presque Isle).

I've seen him whine about how much the Cal tracks spent on poly, so he questioned why they're giving up on it for the expense it took to put it in. Those are his tweets from yesterday.

But also, be honest- Do you bet Del Mar? Arlington? Keeneland? Woodbine? Dubai? I bet you devote plenty of your wagering $$$ to those tracks (and don't say "only the turf races")

Actually poly was small potatoes for me, I think it was a very silly foray by racing but you are right you vote with your wagering dollars. Rarely bet Del Mar. Do like to bet Keeneland and Woodbine but more for its randomness which is not exactly what handicapping is supposed to be....so yes, being fair I do bet poly but over the course of a year, I doubt it's more than 20% of my action.

Not sure what Doug was going for with that CA comment. How was California supposed to see the synthetic initiative through when 1 of the 4 major ovals closed, 1 had a faulty product and 1 now needs to be replaced?

Hollywood utilized their OK Cushion surface through to the end of the track's life; Del Mar explained that after 7 years the Poly is falling apart (issue Polytrack has had at WO and TP) and would have needed to be replaced anyway even if they weren't shooting for BC; Santa Anita's Pro-Ride was improperly mixed and installed and wouldn't drain properly necessitating cancellations; Golden Gate's Tapeta (the best of the synths) is staying.

The CA synthetic push was a rush to judgement mistake by Richard Shapiro and the CHRB and most of the purported attributes of synthetic have turned out to be false. It was a pig in a poke.

:tro: