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View Full Version : Big crowd at Santa Anita today

dilanesp
10-01-2016, 05:07 PM
Good product can still draw.
CincyHorseplayer
10-01-2016, 05:13 PM
I'll keep it simple! :ThmbUp:
Redboard
10-01-2016, 09:31 PM
The fact that the Breeders Cup is going to be there in a few weeks helps the buzz.
AndyC
10-01-2016, 09:39 PM
Is 18,563 really a big crowd?
dilanesp
10-01-2016, 10:35 PM
Is 18,563 really a big crowd?

More than 2x normal.
no breathalyzer
10-01-2016, 11:08 PM
18,563 watched one of the all time greats today
EMD4ME
10-01-2016, 11:25 PM
18,563 watched one of the all time greats today

You deserve ALL the happiness that you receive when CC runs. He is quite the beast.
SandyW
10-01-2016, 11:29 PM
Is 18,563 really a big crowd?

Not really, take a look at the crowds on a big Saturday card at Oaklawn, Saratoga, or DelMar. Very disappointing.
Saratoga_Mike
10-02-2016, 01:33 PM
Not really, take a look at the crowds on a big Saturday card at Oaklawn, Saratoga, or DelMar. Very disappointing.

...especially given its proximity to a huge metro area
andtheyreoff
10-02-2016, 01:45 PM
Considering there were 13,000+ for their Breeders' Cup prep day last fall, 18,563 is pretty good.
Saratoga_Mike
10-02-2016, 01:55 PM
Considering there were 13,000+ for their Breeders' Cup prep day last fall, 18,563 is pretty good.

In relative terms, it was a great day, just lamenting what's now considered a great crowd.
thespaah
10-02-2016, 09:57 PM
There will be more people attending opening day at Keeneland this Friday
Psychotic Parakeet
10-02-2016, 11:18 PM
In relative terms, it was a great day, just lamenting what's now considered a great crowd.

I remember back in the early 90s, I would go with my neighbor's kids - and we would get there before the gates opened so we can grab a spot in the infield. It was always crowded on those weekends. It is just so weird to watch it progress into a ghost town over the years.
burnsy
10-03-2016, 07:26 AM
I remember back in the early 90s, I would go with my neighbor's kids - and we would get there before the gates opened so we can grab a spot in the infield. It was always crowded on those weekends. It is just so weird to watch it progress into a ghost town over the years.

And that's the problem.....we're old enough to remember what a "great crowd" for horse racing was. It used to be 30,000 plus easy for big days like that.

18,000 is not awful but 9,000 were there because of CC. If he didn't run it would of been the usual 9 or 10 thousand.

Great day of racing, sure the handle was fine, but when will this sport realize that getting butts in the house has much merit? The tracks literally live a feast or famine life now where attendance is concerned. Why do some people act like this is good?
anotherCAfan
10-11-2016, 07:45 PM
Who wants to come out to Arcadia in 90+ weather when USC and UCLA are playing the same day... would think those all affect crowd size.
burnsy
10-11-2016, 07:58 PM
Who wants to come out to Arcadia in 90+ weather when USC and UCLA are playing the same day... would think those all affect crowd size.

Yeah, its only 87 degrees there with no shade. Unless you are in the "right" side of the stadium. That's the problem, the heat. Has nothing to do with 2yo's hardly racing and just about every good horse retiring at 3. People love two horse races in a 5 horse field when the other 3 are 10 lengths behind all the way around. :rolleyes:
dilanesp
10-12-2016, 11:00 AM
Yeah, its only 87 degrees there with no shade. Unless you are in the "right" side of the stadium. That's the problem, the heat. Has nothing to do with 2yo's hardly racing and just about every good horse retiring at 3. People love two horse races in a 5 horse field when the other 3 are 10 lengths behind all the way around. :rolleyes:

It's worth noting the heat is a problem. Santa Anita was built in 1934 with the intention of running December through March. They had no air conditioning (a recent technology in the 1930's) and designed the structure to be cooled by huge open air vents front and back which would allow air to circulate through the facility. There are also no lights so they can't run at night.

Now that they run in May and June, and in September and October, the heat is a much bigger problem and Santa Anita has never done anything about it. They should consider installing lights and running at night (although I am sure Los Al would hate that) or attempting a redesign of the grandstand to cool it down a bit.

I don't think that's the reason that people aren't going to Santa Anita as much any more, but you still want to make people comfortable.