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Racecourse Managers Learn To Make Their Tracks Safer During UK Grading School

In horse racing, safety of the horse and rider is paramount. A University of Kentucky professor and leading racecourse managers recently showed racetrack employees how to improve safety by properly grading the surface.

“The track's subgrade is the foundation and without a good foundation, you can't have a good structure, which is your track's cushion,” said Harrison Young, assistant superintendent at Colonial Downs and grading school participant. “This class is a great opportunity for people like me to learn from people like Mick Peterson and Dennis Moore about practices and methods that can minimize the risk of injuries to horses and riders, through the understanding of the importance of testing, surveying and grading. Safety is our motive, and the more we can learn, the better the industry will be.”

During the three-day UK grading school, entry to mid-level track surface employees learned from Peterson, Alfredo Laureano, superintendent at Keeneland Race Course and Moore, who is a superintendent of the tracks at Santa Anita, Los Alamitos and Del Mar and a private consultant.

“One of the priorities of this program is getting the up-and-coming racecourse managers experience with some of the more complicated equipment used in the critical roles on the track. One of these critical areas is the grading of the surface,” said Peterson, professor in the UK Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering and director of the Racetrack Safety Program.

Surface grading is vital to keeping horses and riders safe during a race. Grading school participants received one-on-one instruction operating a new grader and an older one. They also learned how to properly grade synthetic and dirt racetracks. All hands-on instruction was at Keeneland.

“You have to keep the hard base underneath the surface consistent not only because of the impact of the hoof on the ground, but to keep the moisture content consistent,” Peterson said. “You also must have consistent banking in straightaways and the turns so the loading of the legs is even, and when lead changes occur, horses and riders can use the same visual indicators to change lead.”

The industry has a strong interest for educational programs and workforce training centered around safety. The grading school received 15 applications for the five participant spots in this first school.

“The more education we have and the more knowledge we can learn about the new methods helps allow us to keep horses on the track and to be able to continue horseracing in the safest way that we possibly can,” Young said.

The grading school is the second segment of the Racecourse Manager Certification Program, a joint effort of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association Safety and Integrity Alliance, the UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment and the Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory. The first part was on turf courses.

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Racecourse Manager Certification Program Launches ‘Grader School’ Course At Keeneland

The Racecourse Manager Certification Program, a continuing education initiative launched in June with an online curriculum focused on educating the next generation of racing surface managers, is now accepting applications for its first in-person course to be held Sept. 13-15 at Keeneland Race Course. Grader School, focusing on combined theory and practice sessions on the grading of racing surfaces, will offer a select number of early career professionals the opportunity to develop highly focused, hands-on expertise that will allow them to adapt and excel to the changing demands of horse racing surfaces.

Grader School will consist of online lectures and examinations in preparation for a two-day intensive workshop at Keeneland. Taught by superintendents of two of the leading racecourses in the United States, Alfredo Laureano and Dennis Moore, the class will include the operation of both a state-of-the-art and an older model grader. Practice sessions will include measuring grades on turns and straights and the proper operation of a grader on dirt and synthetic surfaces.

The initial class is limited to six students. Both the hands-on workshop and online training will be expanded as demand increases. The Sept. 13-15 session requires completion of an application form and a letter of recommendation from an experienced racecourse manager. Priority will be given to younger full-time track maintenance personnel who demonstrate an interest in a career in racetrack surface maintenance. Applications may be obtained by emailing a request to info@racingsurfaces.org.

The Racetrack Certification Program is a combined effort of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) Safety and Integrity Alliance, the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and Environment and the Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory.

“The most common surfaces used for Thoroughbred racing are dirt and synthetic surfaces. One of the highest priorities and the most difficult part of maintaining a racecourse is the accurate grading of dirt and synthetic racing surfaces.” said Michael “Mick” Peterson, Ph.D., Director of the Racetrack Safety Program at the University of Kentucky and Executive Director of the Racing Surfaces and Testing Laboratory (RSTL).

Information about the overall program, including the turf program, is available here. The recorded courses can be watched for free on the UK Ag Equine Programs YouTube channel. The University of Kentucky will be administering the certification program. The Racecourse Manager Certification Program is sponsored by John Deere, Duralock, Horsemen's Track and Equipment, Inc., and Equinox Racing.

Individuals interested in current and future programs that are part of the Racecourse Manager Certification Program, can sign up to receive email updates at https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/UZUC6mf/Racecourse.

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Renovated Laurel Dirt Surface Reopens For Training Tuesday Morning

The four-month reconstruction of Laurel Park's dirt surface, which included the replacement of the cushion, base and substructure, officially ended Tuesday morning on schedule when horses once again began training over the track.

The multi-million-dollar track renovation by the Maryland Jockey Club included the installation of an entirely new cushion on top of a newly laid base with subsurface drainage improvements. The main dirt track was closed on April 11th after necessary remediation was identified as part of ongoing maintenance.

Dennis Moore, Senior Track Superintendent, 1/ST RACING said, “Using the opportunity of the temporary pause on racing this spring to invest in a complete main track rehabilitation has resulted in a superior racing and training surface at Laurel Park which will serve in the best interests of year-round racing in Maryland for many years to come.”

Trainer Jose Corrales, who galloped approximately 15 horses on the track Tuesday, said: “The feedback for the whole morning from what I hear, because I listen to everybody from different stables because I stay by the gap, and the feedback was [the track] was very good, very even. I didn't hear one negative thing today. You would expect it could happen, but there was not one negative thing from anybody or any of my riders. They did a very good job, and it looks very even, even though yesterday it rained like crazy here.”

Trainer Anthony 'TJ' Aguirre Jr., who gallops his horses, said, “I was really happy the way they were skipping over the track, switching leads. No stumbling problems or loose footing problems. And I thought it was really good for as much rain as we got. I thought it had a good amount of cushion.”

Matt McCarron, who gallops for Rodney Jenkins, said, “I give them a thumbs up. What I found most striking was the consistency. That was the biggest difference I saw. It was consistent throughout.”

While the main track at Laurel Park was closed, the Maryland Jockey Club also enhanced the turf course irrigation infrastructure for more consistent water application and improved the turf drainage with an aggressive deep-tine aeration program. Both initiatives are ongoing investments to enhance the long-term consistency of the turf.

“We would like to thank the Maryland horsemen, jockeys and the backstretch teams for their patience and support while we affected this important remediation of the track surface,” said Aidan Butler, Chief Operating Officer, 1/ST RACING. “The investment made by 1/ST RACING and the Maryland Jockey Club reflect our company's commitment to delivering best-in-class racing and training for our stakeholders in Maryland. Today, we are thrilled to welcome horsemen back to Laurel Park as we prepare for what is shaping up to be a competitive and entertaining fall meet.”

Laurel Park's fall meet, with a $3.525 million stakes schedule, featuring the Jim McKay Maryland Million, begins September 9th.

For more information on the Maryland Jockey Club at Laurel Park, visit www.laurelpark.com or follow on social @MarylandJockeyClub.

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‘Way Bigger Than We Originally Anticipated’: Laurel Track Work To Stretch Into Summer

Officials from The Stronach Group announced June 14 that the track renovation at Laurel Park will take longer than originally planned. On a webinar for horsemen, track management revealed that while they had hoped to resume stabling and workouts on the surface in early July, early August is now the target after excavation revealed more serious issues with the base. Dennis Moore, senior track superintendent for 1/ST RACING, reported that it appears a “high plasticity clay” was added to the base at one point “which should have never been there.”

The clay retained water, which was a particular problem since a spring ran under the track surface. The spring originally had a French drain system to remove the water, but that was plugged up at some point.

“It was really just a wet sloppy mess,” said 1/ST chief operating officer Adian Butler. “You don't need to be a track engineer to understand there's a lot of water underneath there.”

The clay has been removed and there will be some regrading done around the quarter pole as well as some surface consistency adjustments on the backstretch.

Additionally, Butler said there were two active sewer lines discovered underneath the track's homestretch, as well as one inactive stormwater drain. The entire base of the track will be replaced and ultimately the pipes discovered there will need to be filled with a solid material so that if they crack, the material above them won't shift.

“It's way bigger than we originally anticipated … we're not going to do this unless we're going to do it properly,” Butler said.

The base will be completely replaced, and Butler could not rule out a need to do additional renovations in two or three years.

In the meantime, the track is replacing boards and doing extensive painting and power washing in the barn areas, and continuing to battle the rat issue.

When horses do return to the surface, Butler and others stressed that it would be a gradual process to get up to full steam. Horses will be allowed to do light work, followed by timed work, followed by racing with extensive surface checks along the way by The Stronach Group and the Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory. Butler was hopeful racing could return to Laurel sometime after horses come back the first week of August, but stressed the timeline is dependent on weather and the supply chain for the track surface materials.

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