Del Mar... NO MORE POLYTRACK

[pmayjr]

Originally Posted by Kasept

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.

I do remember when you had Baffert on your show in the weeks before Hollywood was closing, he said the reason he hated that it was closing the most, was he loved training horses over the racing surface. He said it was a great racing/training surface. So too bad that SoCal racing lost that surface (and of course the track itself) for reasons not having to do with the surface. I probably wouldn't be whining as much about the Del Mar switch if Hollywood was still open.

Excerpt from the recent Bloodhorse article
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-raci...-era-nears-end

Joe Harper, president of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, cited that fact as one of the reasons Del Mar plans to return to dirt.

"With all the other tracks in Southern California (racing on) dirt, it's time," Harper was quoted as saying by the San Diego Union-Tribune. "Plus, our track is falling apart. They said the life of Polytrack was seven years, and guess what, we're seeing it.

"The asphalt (foundation) is disintegrating because of the petroleum base in the wax. We had no other choice. This is the safest decision we could make."

Harper could not be reached for further comment. But Dr. Mick Peterson, executive director of the Racing Surface Testing Laboratory, said he was unfamiliar with a track foundation's disintegration as described by Harper.

"I don't understand it all. I've never seen it before," said Peterson, widely considered to be the foremost authority on track surfaces, by phone from Maine Feb. 19. He said if the asphalt base was breaking down, "the wax would actually help seal" the problem areas.

Does Dr. Mick Peterson have a bias towards synthetics when offering his opinion? I'm just saying it looks like he's poking a hole in Joe Harper's explanation.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Turfway was the first to install synthetic (poly) in the U.S. They replaced their synthetic surface a year into it, to perfect the formula after it wasn't holding up to the harsh winter conditions. Since then, link me an article saying where they've had issues? Yes they still have cancellations due to weather, but I don't think it's due to track condition as much as it's due to the weather just being to shitty in general. When did

Did Woodbine have to replace or repair theirs? I also like that Woodbine specifically tells you between which races they treat/groom their track.