Santa Anita replacing track again

The one-mile primary dirt track at Santa Anita Park will be renovated this summer for the fourth time in seven years.

New dirt being staged in northeast parking lot.

More than 20,000 yards of dirt will be moved and replaced with a single-source material consisting of “highly-coveted” El Segundo Sand, a natural soil that will ensure balanced drainage during periods of wet weather and uniform, safe cushion year ’round, according to track officials. “Beginning July 11, we’re going to take out the existing surface and go down to the base of the track,” said Santa Anita Track Superintendent Dennis Moore. Once again the track will need to be closed to training for more than seven weeks from July 10 through the conclusion of the Del Mar’s final weekend, Aug. 30 & 31. Santa Anita’s first-ever spring season ends June 29, and the Autumn Meet begins September 26, with the unprecedented third consecutive Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Santa Anita Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.

In 2007 the entire dirt track was replaced for the first time in more than 60 years by order of California racing authorities to a synthetic track believed to be safer for horses at a reported estimated cost of $10 million – 11 million. The rainy days during Santa Anita’s annual winter meet resulted in a record number of rainouts and dangerous running conditions, sparking a complete overhaul of the drainage system and replacement of that track material to a new synthetic track. That second synthetic track also didn’t drain properly and was believed to cost Santa Anita another Breeders’ Cup at the time and the chance to become a permanent home for the global two-day competition that draws neary 100,000 attendees to the track over the two days. That second synthetic failure sparked another complete do-over back to a dirt track in late 2010 at a reported estimated cost of about $6 million. That third replacement track had to have a major fine-tuning just a month later in January 2011 when more sand was added to the dirt.

Moore says he anticipates this latest renovaion process will take about four or five weeks. “We’re very fortunate to have been able to locate this soil which is currently being excavated due to construction projects over at LAX,” he said. “El Segundo Sand is naturally occurring and we won’t have to mix it with any other material, which is best-case. The best surfaces around the country are all made of naturally occurring soils that are indigenous and not made by man.” The material, which is currently being trucked from LAX and staged in Santa Anita’s Infield parking lot adjacent to its hillside turf course, is in the process of being screened and will be ready for installation upon the removal of the existing main track.

Moore, said to be one of America’s most highly respected track superintendents, was hired by Santa Anita following a highly successful run at Hollywood Park, which closed Dec. 22, 2013. He also currently oversees a newly-converted one-mile oval at Los Alamitos and has built and maintained track surfaces the world-over for the past 40 years.

— By Scott Hettrick