DEL MAR: Polytrack remains meet's hot topic

Synthetic surface led to slower times, fewer fatalities

By JEFF NAHILL - Staff Writer | Wednesday, July 16, 2008 12:19 AM PDT ∞

DEL MAR ---- When Del Mar opens its gates Wednesday for its 69th year of horse racing, the No. 1 issue will be its $9 million Polytrack surface, which will be in its second year of use.

Trainer Barry Abrams just doesn't understand why everyone complained last summer, when race times were slower but there were only six fatalities on the surface ---- and none in the first 39 race cards of the meet ---- compared with 14 the year before on the more conventional dirt surface.

"It looks good (this year), but it looked great last year, too," Abrams said this week. "It was different in the mornings and afternoons. That's why everyone had complaints, but I didn't. I just thought it was a safe track.

"It was slower, but if you look at the numbers, Del Mar had one of the highest win percentage of favorites in the country, so as far as the bettors saying it was slower, they were really just running to form. I didn't see the problems everyone else had."

Abrams has a bigger stake than others have, too.

He is an owner/breeder. His sire, Unusual Heat, rang up the most Polytrack victories (nine) during the annual 43-day meeting. Sires Tribal Rule, owned by Rancho Santa Fe's Pam and Marty Wygod, and Old Topper registered eight Polytrack wins each. All three of the top sires stand in California.

Del Mar always had been known as a "horses for courses" track. Some liked the cooler ocean air. Others didn't. Now it's even more so.

"It's important to keep an eye on the hot sires last year and the results this year to see if the same trends continue," said John Lies, Del Mar's inter-track wagering host. "As the sample gets bigger, we get more and more solid information on which ones have the edge. Because they are trying to maintain the track a little different this year, it's important to see if it's turned upside-down."

Del Mar has made changes since last year, when Student Council won its featured $1 million Pacific Classic in a pedestrian 2 minutes, 7.29 seconds over 1 1/4 miles. It was more than four seconds off the 2006 running and 8.18 seconds off the track record for the distance.

A layer of wax was added to the Polytrack this spring, before the San Diego County Fair, and water trucks will be used during the afternoon races to keep the track temperature down ---- something Del Mar president Joe Harper wouldn't allow in 2007.

"With the addition of the extra wax and maintaining it with water to keep the temperature down, it should give us a little faster track," Harper said. "We have a plan. It depends on how hot it gets.

"(Track superintendent) Steve Wood has a good handle on how much water he needs to keep it a certain temperature.

"It's been positive the last couple of days. Everyone I've asked seems to think it is doing well. The test will come on these really hot afternoons."

But Lies cautions that bettors shouldn't use Polytrack sires as the sole handicapping tool.

"It's just a factor," he said. "I don't want it to dominate the ABCs or 123s (of handicapping) that remain there. You're still looking for the fastest horse ---- the one that is going to get the right setup. It's a factor to throw into the giant equation, more so than the other tracks we have in Southern California. It stands out more here."

Contact staff writer Jeff Nahill at (760) 740-3550 or nctnahill@aol.com.

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