JC / Railbird

Del Mar Archive

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

Slo-Mo Classic Upset

Longshot Student Council ran the biggest race of his 20-race career in the Pacific Classic, winning the 1 1/4 mile $1 million stakes by half a length over Awesome Gem. Hello Sunday was third. Final time for the race, run for the first time over Polytrack, was 2:07.29 — Lava Man won last year’s edition, run over dirt, in 2:01.62. What a difference a surface makes. This year, Lava Man finished sixth as the even money favorite. “He tried hard,” said jockey Corey Nakatani of Lava Man’s effort. “But he was struggling a bit out there. He wasn’t really getting the track” (Blood-Horse).

Posted in Del Mar on August 19, 2007