Poly vs. Dirt Kickback
 

Knowing that many of the Derby horses are training at Keeneland and have had several races on the poly surface, will the kickback from a dirt track possibly affect some horses on May 5th negatively? If so, who might it cause problems for?

Is there much of a difference between the two surfaces for a horse having it kicked into his face? This is an angle that has me curious.... looking forward to your thoughts.

If you can handle the kickback on the poly you can surely handle dirt kickback. The poly kicks back about 2 miles

In my opinion, poly kickback is less severe when it hits the horse than dirt kickback. But at this stage of the game, a horse better be able to handle any type of kickback.

I believe that the kickback is usually much, much worse on dirt, which is a reason why closers do better on poly than on dirt, and why grass horses tend to prefer poly over dirt.

I would favor a horse in the first group of runners in the KD.

I think sumitas hit the nail on the head.

Unless your the lead dog, everyone else is looking at your *** !