|
Originally Posted by Champali Chick
I've only loosely read this thread, so please excuse me if I repeat something that's already been discussed.
Anyone -ANYONE- who thought/thinks Polytrack was going to be a "cure all" for racing's many problems is delusional. The synthetic surface is a step in the right direction, not a magic wand to solve all problems that be.
I saw talk about kickback - as if there wasn't any kickback when there was a dirt surface? I recall jockeys coming back bloody on the dirt surface after being whacked with frozen dirt clods - broken goggles, noses, etc. Horses came back with eyes swollen shut too. I've yet to see a single horse come back in bad condition because of Polytrack kickback. Get serious, folks.
If you would also recall, the dirt track also clodded up in their feet - worse than I've ever seen Polytrack. At least on this surface, spraying their feet with a no-stick cooking spray, or a silicon spray, seems to work OK.
Breakdowns are going to happen: Period. No matter what surface you run a horse over, there's going to be a breakdown. Anyone who thinks it's only the fault of the racing surface is - to be blunt - an idiot. Have we forgotten that sometimes (many times) trainers run their horses when they shouldn't have? The business is full of cheaters, don't forget that.
As far as the resurfacing goes, before they re-did the Polytrack, horseman were complaining because it was too slow (the name of the game is get there first no matter what the final time). It was tweaked, and now it's fast, a little harder than it previously was, and a little stickier, too. You'll never guess what the horsemen are complaining about now... IMO, it's either slower and safer, or faster and riskier... I'd prefer slow times and horses in one peice.
Those of who you think Polytrack is terrible for the game, etc. need to open your eyes and see the bigger picture. It's narrow, close-minded, ignorant people like you who help keep the game at the same shoddy level it's at. "It's been this way forever!" is one of my biggest pet peeves - nothing can change for the better if everyone's afraid to change because "it's been this way forever."
Change is here, and the industry needs it. It's going to take a lot more than a synthetic racing surface to fix horse racing. Better breeding, No Tolerance when it comes to medications, no muscle-enhancing steriods on young sale horses, etc. The list could go on. So the fact that there is a positive thing happening with the benefit of horse and rider in mind, and you people are "hating" on it...
|