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A17
Saturday 9 March 2019

Santa Anita

tested as FOUR

hoof beats

yield to

sounds of

silence

By BETH HARRIS
AP Racing Writer
ARCADIA, Calif. (AP) — The
dirt track at eerily quiet
Santa Anita is being tested
extensively after the deaths
of 21 thoroughbreds in two
months forced the indefi-
nite cancellation of racing
and disrupted the worka-
day world of horses, train-
ers and jockeys.
The sound of pounding
hooves on the dirt was re-
placed Thursday by silence
punctuated by the honk-
ing of two Canada geese
flying over the green Art
Deco grandstand.
Clockers’ Corner, the pop-
ular morning hangout for
owners, trainers, jockeys
and fans to watch work-
outs and grab breakfast,
was empty save for a few
people.
The stable area, usually
hectic with horses mov-
ing back and forth to the
track, was wide open. With
nowhere to jog or gallop,
horses gazed out from their Fleetwood and Bradley open
stalls.
A machine moved around up four-stroke lead at Bay Hill
the mile oval under over-
cast skies, raking and aer- Tommy Fleetwood, of England, reacts after missing a
ating the track after heavy
rain a day earlier turned putt on the 16th green during the second round of the
the dirt into a gooey, pea- Arnold Palmer Invitational golf tournament at Bay Hill,
nut butter-like substance. Friday, March 8, 2019, in Orlando, Fla.
Dennis Moore, track su- Associated Press
perintendent at Del Mar Page 19
and Los Alamitos in nearby
Orange County, walked
along the inner rail, paus-
ing in spots to check the
dirt. Moore was called in
by Santa Anita’s owner,

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