Hollendorfer barred from Stronach tracks

[King Glorious]

Just ignore the fact that since the original spate of breakdowns that caused the initial closure, Santa Anita has been one of the safest tracks around. Compare the number of breakdowns at Santa Anita since late March with the number of breakdowns at Belmont since late April. Compare late March til now at Santa Anita with a full season at Saratoga.

Santa Anita doesn’t have a problem with the racing surface.

[Dahoss]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

Just ignore the fact that since the original spate of breakdowns that caused the initial closure, Santa Anita has been one of the safest tracks around. Compare the number of breakdowns at Santa Anita since late March with the number of breakdowns at Belmont since late April. Compare late March til now at Santa Anita with a full season at Saratoga.

Santa Anita doesn’t have a problem with the racing surface.

It wasn’t the ONLY problem, but it was one of them.

Surface isn’t an issue now but it was.

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by Dahoss

It wasn’t the ONLY problem, but it was one of them.

Surface isn’t an issue now but it was.

I think yes and no. The surface was an issue but it wasn’t because it was a bad surface. Unless you live in Southern California, it’s hard to relate to how unprecedented the amount of rain was that fell. They weren’t prepared for the conditions because the conditions were so unusual.

[Dahoss]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

I think yes and no. The surface was an issue but it wasn’t because it was a bad surface. Unless you live in Southern California, it’s hard to relate to how unprecedented the amount of rain was that fell. They weren’t prepared for the conditions because the conditions were so unusual.

So what are you saying exactly?

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by Dahoss

So what are you saying exactly?

I’m saying that there has been an extreme overreaction to an unprecedented situation. The surface was never bad, per se. It wasn’t like when they switched to synthetics and had all kinds of man made problems. The conditions were never unsafe because of man made error or negligence. The problems haven’t been the horsemen, the same horsemen that were there before and are still there now.

Perhaps some good can come from the new rules and oversights. In the end, that’s all anyone should want, a safer sport. Going after Hollendorfer does nothing towards that end.

[moses]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

I’m saying that there has been an extreme overreaction to an unprecedented situation. The surface was never bad, per se. It wasn’t like when they switched to synthetics and had all kinds of man made problems. The conditions were never unsafe because of man made error or negligence. The problems haven’t been the horsemen, the same horsemen that were there before and are still there now.

Perhaps some good can come from the new rules and oversights. In the end, that’s all anyone should want, a safer sport. Going after Hollendorfer does nothing towards that end.

If it snows and the roads turn icy but I decide to drive 80 mph on the highway, spin out, and wreck my car...is that caused by man made error or negligence?

Saying it rained a lot doesn’t absolve people if they continued to field races on an unsafe surface. I don’t know all the facts with Santa Anita, but just because it rained an unprecedented amount doesn’t mean there aren’t people to blame in connection with the fatalities related to the racing surface over the winter/spring.

[Kasept]

Occured to me this morning, how/why did Santa Anita's 'Workout Approval' system allow American Currency to drill on Saturday? Hollendorfer had to submit the gelding for the OK and they let him work. Or has that part of the 'safety initiatives' been forgotten?

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by moses

If it snows and the roads turn icy but I decide to drive 80 mph on the highway, spin out, and wreck my car...is that caused by man made error or negligence?

Saying it rained a lot doesn’t absolve people if they continued to field races on an unsafe surface. I don’t know all the facts with Santa Anita, but just because it rained an unprecedented amount doesn’t mean there aren’t people to blame in connection with the fatalities related to the racing surface over the winter/spring.

Exactly. There are people to blame. Track management is to blame. They don’t need to blame the horsemen. They didn’t need to blame track maintenance crews. They didn’t need to overreact with these new rules and safety precautions because the ones they already had worked fine. They simply needed to halt racing until things got back to normal. Which they did. Since that point, racing and training has gone back to normal and the number of breakdowns has decreased to levels lower than other tracks comparable activity.