Santa Anita will replace its track
Santa Anita officials announced Monday that its synthetic track will undergo a complete overhaul beginning July 14, the day after the current Hollywood Park meet ends.
Ron Charles, Santa Anita president, said five to six weeks are being allotted for the project, although it could be finished in three weeks.
The synthetic track was installed last summer for nearly $11 million by Cushion Track, but Santa Anita suffered major drainage problems and lost an unprecedented 11 racing days in January and February.
Overseeing the job will be Ian Pearse, managing director of Australia-based Pro Ride, a competitor of Cushion Track. Pearse oversaw temporary repairs to the track during the season.
“Ian was able to turn a dysfunctional track into a functional one for us in just four days,” Charles said. “Now, he’ll have three full weeks to work with. . . . The entire track will have the same consistency and texture.”
Charles said before the decision was made to go with Pro Ride, there were extensive discussions with Frank Stronach, chairman of Santa Anita’s parent company, Magna Entertainment Corp., and Magna track consultants.
“We are firmly convinced the people at Pro Ride can provide the product our racing demands,” Charles said, “and just as importantly . . . to guarantee this surface drains properly.”
The hope is that the track will be in great condition for the Oak Tree meet at Santa Anita, which begins Sept. 24 and includes the two-day Breeders’ Cup Oct. 24-25. The 2009 Breeders’ Cup will also be held at Santa Anita during the Oak Tree meet.
Pearse said the project will begin with the removal of the six-inch racing surface which consists of about 80% sand, plus fibers, binder and rubber chips. “We’ll take off the top three inches, then the bottom three inches,” Pearse said.
That will be followed by replacing the asphalt base. Then the top three inches of the removed surface will be treated and used as the bottom for the new track. The bottom three inches of the original surface, contaminated with rocks, will be discarded. Clean material, left over from the last summer’s ill-fated installation and stored in a back parking lot, will be used as the top layer for the surface.
Charles declined to say what the overhaul will cost. During the repairs, Hollywood Park will remain open for training and stabling purposes. --
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