Quote:
Originally Posted by AskinHaskin
The problem with your theory... is that Stronach "felt the need to make a change" as soon as he took over at SA, ages ago. His then need was to make money by selling-off some of the land. (anything that happened since was just molding data and opportunity to fit the original narrative)
The racing accident that doomed the downhill sprints for the final time had far more to do with traffic than with the dirt cross-over, and said incident was merely used inappropriately to put the final nail into the coffin of the downhill sprints.
These fools have bungled Santa Anita into a nearly unrecognizable mess from day one.
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I'm not sure I understand the claim about Stronach and selling land. The TSG people definitely think that the big parking lot behind the grandstand and perhaps some of the area near the shopping mall where the stables are now located are potentially targets for redevelopment- they have floated plans to do that for years.
But the downhill turf course and infield parking lot sit behind the backstretch of SA. They are part of the track's backdrop. People don't want to go to Santa Anita and see a bunch of development back there blocking the San Gabriel Mountains, and I doubt the City of Arcadia, which is very much a bedroom community, would it allow it anyway. (There are residential neighborhoods just behind that parking lot and hill.)
Plus, everything TSG has said publicly indicates they like the downhill turf course. Indeed, they are not even ruling out holding 6 1/2 down the hill races again, despite the new chute. They certainly think the chute is fine for longer races where the horses don't cross the dirt at such a high speed.
I don't think this is a land issue. This was a safety issue- and actually, one that has been known about for three decades, at least since River Drummer's breakdown in the 1980's.
