JC / Railbird

Del Mar Archive

Fast and Fair

As Valerie commented earlier, Del Mar racing secretary Tom Robbins underestimated how much watering would affect the Polytrack, with Plan for Fun, winner of the $10K claiming race that kicked off the 2008 meet, going a mile in a track record setting 1:37.82 (or approximately five seconds faster than the same distance would have been run in 2007 over the sun-baked synthetic surface). The third and fifth races also set new track records, for the 6-furlong and 5.5-furlong marks, and according to Steven Crist, the five main track races on the opening day card “went an average of 38 Beyer points faster than the ones on last year’s very similar opening-day lineup.”
Not only was the track faster, it appeared to play fair as well, with main track winners scoring from far off the pace, mid-pack, or on the lead:

[1ST-P = Position at first call; 1ST-L = Lengths behind at first call/if leader, lengths ahead; 2ND-P = Position at second; 2ND-L = Lengths behind at second/if leader, lengths ahead; FRAC = Final split. View full spreadsheet here.]
“Now they’re kicking in down the lane. Before, everybody used to be floundering,” said trainer Art Sherman, who won the third race, referring to how races would fall apart in the stretch last summer. “Now you can tell turning for home that horses had momentum and were moving forward, which we didn’t have last year” (Blood-Horse).

Posted in Del Mar on July 17, 2008

Call Him Crazy

… because Jeremy Plonk likes handicapping synthetic surfaces such as Del Mar:

Call me crazy too, I’m also a fan of the synthetic era.

Posted in Del Mar, Synthetic Surfaces on July 17, 2008

Checking In

Few posts this week, as preparations are underway to move Railbird headquarters north for the upcoming Saratoga meet, and there’s been a little project consuming many of my hours lately. In the weeks since I announced this web site, I’ve been delighted by the response from potential readers and contributors, but whenever anyone has asked for details — as so many have — I’ve been evasive. “I’ll let you know,” I’ve said. “I’ll email.” And then I’ve changed the subject. The secrecy is ending soon; Raceday 360 is nearly ready for unveiling, just in time for the Spa …
But first, Del Mar opens tomorrow, and track officials are confident the Polytrack will play faster in the afternoon, now that watering will be part of daily maintenance. “I hesitate trying to predict time, but I would be surprised if we didn’t break 1:40,” said racing secretary Tom Robbins, referring to the meet’s first race, a $10,000 one-mile claiming event (DRF). That time would be about two seconds faster than a mile run over the surface last summer. As with last year, it’s worth it to pay attention to pace and time, especially for the first few days — a simple spreadsheet noting the early positions and final fractions of winners, maintained from the start, can yield much useful information through the meet.
The opening day feature is the Oceanside Stakes, split into two divisions, with the first (race six) coming up slightly more interesting. Indian Sun, a bit player in the California Derby preps this spring, starts off a brief layoff for trainer Dan Hendricks. The colt’s won twice over turf, once at the distance, and finished second in his other three grass starts, including his last, the G3 Will Rogers. Moral Compass, third in the G3 Hill Prince at Belmont last month, ships west to make his first start for trainer Jack Carava and gets Garrett Gomez aboard.
The best racing meets of the year are upon us … as Frank of That’s Amore put it so well, “Summer is here.”

Posted in Del Mar on July 15, 2008

Del Mar Getaway Day

There’s nearly a million dollars in the Del Mar pick six pot, thanks to a two-day carryover, and because today is the meet’s closing day, there’ll be a mandatory payout, which makes throwing together a pick six ticket or two very tempting since even the consolation payouts will be juicy. But what a card there is to handicap! There’s not a single race with a true standout; every race offers a full, competitive field. The pick six starts in race five, which is scheduled for 4:05 PST. Plenty of time to come up with something …

Posted in Del Mar on September 5, 2007