[Riot]

I am not anti-synthetic but 12 horses have broken down or been vanned off in 17 days at GG so far. That is an insane statistic.

I guess the numbers being thrown about (here, Pace Advantage, ATR) reference GG are from Dan Ilman's DRF form blog? What I count from what Dan actually posted is:

2 broke down, 9 vanned off, 5 walked off, 1 stopped work as saddle slipped.

01-04-8:
Dan Ilman: Here's what I found for the last few weeks at Golden Gate:
December 12 - none
December 13 - King of My Castle vanned off, Haint's Deal walked off
December 14 - Roman Wish vanned off
December 15 - Deputy Bertrando walked off, Hampton Way vanned off
December 16 - none
December 22 - Jump Rope Girl broke down
December 26 - Gassan Snow walked off, Guydancefromabove vanned off
December 28 - none
December 29 - Freedom Wins vanned off, Above a Whisper walked off (saddle slipped)
December 30 - none
December 31 - Everlasting Fame walked off
January 1 - Ticketsandtomatoes vanned off, Shawn's Mr. Comet walked off, Fit to Dream vanned off, Mt. Whitney broke down, Inspired Candi vanned off
January 3 - Chestnut Affair vanned off

In thirteen days, seventeen horses had to be helped off the track [Note: Dan is counting the horse whose saddle slipped (??), and those that walked off themselves in his number]. That's not a very good ratio. It may be premature to blame the track, however. Some of these horses were big longshots, and some competed in cheap claiming races prone to sore horses. Still, it's a trend worth following.

More from Dan's Blog:

Blog question: I just wanted to comment on the races on the Tapeta course at Golden Gate. Another 2 horses fell in todays 7th race. I haven't heard anything on the condition of the Horse #7 Gaylas Gala or her jockey. If anyone knows, please respond. I can't believe there has not been any info put out yet by DRF or any other news source.
Craig

Dan Ilman: In my opinion, the incident in race seven on January 7 was a freak accident, and had nothing to do with the surface. One horse clipped heels before going down, and another fell when unable to avoid the first horse. The statistics since the middle of December are a bit disturbing, but one has to question whether it's the track, the quality and soundness of the horses in the first place, or a combination of both.