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[Bobzilla]

...... and the more All-Weather surfaces there are in time will lead to less chaos and confusion to exploit by the sharp opportunists of today; an eventuality more likely once maintenance crews learn to manage these surfaces better and the switching between traditional dirt and AWSs ceases to occur. Keep in mind, track uniformity is the ultimate goal for racing's Illuminatti. I believe board member Bruddah is correct when he suggests the internationalization of the sport has much to do with the current trend towards AWS installations, more so than the public relations ploy and red herring of safety. It's only during this current period of transition that many of these chaotic yet ripe opportunities exists for the more erudite. Is it not possible that in ten to fifteen years from now a universal surface might be more predictable than traditional dirt surfaces ever were? The confusion of the lumpen will not last forever. If that's true then the homogenization of racing surfaces will lead to less variables to consider which will dumb this game down and possibly depress parimutuals. Again, talking long term here. Nuances between different tracks is a strength of racing and not a liability. The distinction between today's three surface types is a strength of racing and not a liability. It's ironic that some don't like AWSs today because they aren't at this time uniform and they want them to be uniform, and others don't like them because they feel that in time they will be uniform and they don't want them to ever be. Though I don't necessarily want to see all AWSs disappear as the current environment of confusion suits my contrarian nature just fine; I will offer, however, that we're giving up more than most realize at this time by neglecting to preserve our heritage of North American main track racing on traditional dirt.