Santa Anita resumes racing, but postpones decision on
future of Cushion Track
Santa Anita, which was forced to cancel three straight cards because of
persistent drainage problems last weekend, resumed racing on its embattled
Cushion Track surface when fair skies returned on Thursday. With drainage
problems looming whenever the rain reappears, however, the future of the
synthetic surface remains in doubt.
A return to a conventional dirt surface is currently under consideration. An
announcement regarding plans for the main track was originally set for Thursday,
but Santa Anita President Ron Charles revealed that a decision would not be
forthcoming that morning.
“Potentially, we’re going to take out the entire Cushion Track and replace it
with another surface,” Charles said. “If we’re going to put dirt in, we have to
make sure we have a very high-quality surface…and we just need more time. This
is a major, major decision.”
Racing was canceled last Saturday, Sunday and Monday after the Cushion Track
failed to cope with a deluge of rain in the Arcadia, California, area. The
Cushion Track re-opened for training on Wednesday, and on Thursday, a total of
243 workouts were recorded on the synthetic oval.