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Turfway Operator Error Led to Pavement Chunks in New Tapeta Surface

Human error on the part of a heavy equipment operator at Turfway Park has been identified as the cause of several chunks of pavement being discovered in the recently installed Tapeta Footings synthetic track at Turfway Park that just opened for racing in December.

During the Jan. 26 Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund (KTDF) advisory board meeting, Tyler Picklesimer, Turfway's director of racing and racing secretary, was asked to update the board on how the new Tapeta surface was performing.

Picklesimer told the board members via teleconference that, “We've had no complaints. Everybody's been happy with the surface. It's performed well within the cold, actually better than the Polytrack did in severe cold weather. But no, so far so good–everybody's happy.”

Bill Landes III, the chairman of the KTDF advisory committee, then asked Marty Maline, the executive director of the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (KHBPA), if that assessment squared with the general consensus of his organization's membership.

Maline responded by saying, “The horsemen are just elated with the surface [and] its drainage. It's running really true to form.”

But then Maline added: “We had a little hiccup about a week or so ago. A horseman actually brought a couple of rocks [from the racing surface] in to the office, and it, of course, started a panic of sorts.

“But right away the [Turfway] track man explained that when they were actually getting the surface into the front-loader [when installing it], they actually had chopped off a couple of pieces of blacktop,” Maline said. “And so it was a very limited situation.”

Maline said that right after the discovery, KHBPA board member Bill Connelly walked the circumference of the one-mile oval to inspect it, adding, “at about 15 F degrees, [he's] a stronger man than I am.”

Maline said after that inspection, “there was about two or three of these pieces of blacktop, and they were taken care of. [Tapeta Footings executives Michael Dickinson and Joan Wakefield] came in and reviewed it, and explained it wasn't the bottom, because the bottom is all [a different type of uniform-sized] rocks. And so everything died down. There wasn't any real problem with it.”

Maline closed out the subject by reiterating his overall positive impression that the Tapeta track has “been a godsend, really. It's a great surface.”

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Southwell to Switch to Tapeta Surface

Southwell Racecourse’s fibresand surface will be replaced by Tapeta this spring and the project will be completed by the summer of 2021, the Arena Racing Company announced on Monday. A planning application was submitted for the new surface because the fibresand has come to the end of its operational life. Fibresand was first laid down in 1989, the start of all-weather racing at the Nottinghamshire venue. Tapeta, developed by Michael Dickinson and Joan Wakefield of Tapeta Footings, has already been laid down at Wolverhampton and Newcastle-also ARC courses-since 2014 and 2016, respectively. It is also in use in North America at Presque Isle Downs, Golden Gate Fields and Turfway Park Stateside, as well as Woodbine in Canada. This project follows the construction of floodlights in 2019 and the development of a flood alleviation scheme to protect the racecourse.

“Racing at both Wolverhampton and Newcastle has benefitted hugely from the installation of Tapeta, as we have worked closely with Michael Dickinson, Joan Wakefield and their team on the maintenance and upkeep of both surfaces,” said ARC Chief Executive Martin Cruddace. “Tapeta represents the next generation of artificial all-weather racing surface, in terms of its appeal to both trainers and jockeys, and it offers a number of benefits regarding its safety record, relative lack of kickback and fairness for horses. In addition, it has the ability to handle very low temperatures and significant rainfall.

“The installation of Tapeta will give us an opportunity to look at the flat programme at Southwell and possibly introduce some Fast Track Qualifier races for the All-Weather Championships, for example. This work represents another significant step forward for racing at Southwell, which we intend to be one of the finest all-weather tracks in the world.”

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Report: Gulfstream Considers Adding Tapeta Course To Offset Turf Use

The Stronach Group's COO Aidan Butler told the Thoroughbred Daily News this week that Gulfstream Park may become the first track in North America to have three surfaces, adding a Tapeta surface to its standing dirt and turf courses.

The addition of a synthetic track would offset the use of Gulfstream's turf course, Butler explained, which now faces an increasing work load in 2021 after the closure of Calder. Running Calder as Gulfstream Park West for two months out of the year, Gulfstream officials had been able to give the primary turf course a rest.

Mike Lakow and Bill Badgett were the initial forces behind the idea to install a Tapeta course.

“This was Billy and Mike's idea, that we maybe could get a Tapeta track in there as part of the turf course,” Butler told the TDN. “You would then have the perfect three surfaces. That would rest up the turf a little bit. And should the weather change, it would give you a lot of options to keep turf races together. Also, from a safety standpoint, it would be nice to have more than one surface for training in the mornings.”

Read more at the Thoroughbred Daily News.

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Gulfstream May Install a Synthetic Surface

Looking for ways to avoid overusing the turf course at Gulfstream Park, The Stronach Group may install a synthetic Tapeta surface at the South Florida track. The news was revealed by Stronach Group COO Aidan Butler during his appearance on this week’s TDN Writers’ Room, presented by Keeneland. Butler said that The Stronach Group is looking into the possibility of having three tracks at Gulfstream, dirt, turf and synthetic.

The grass course at Gulfstream is under heavy use throughout the year, but it had been getting a two-month break while racing shifted across town to Gulfstream Park West/Calder. With Gulfstream Park West having run its last race Nov. 28, Gulfstream officials were faced with either trying to race over the turf course 12 months a year or finding some other alternative. With turf horses tending to run well on synthetic surfaces, a Tapeta track could be used to complement the regular diet of grass racing. It could also be used as an alternate surface when inclement weather would mean a sloppy dirt surface, which often brings about a number of scratches.

“Without Calder, the smart approach would be to put in a synthetic track at Gulfstream and have three surfaces,” said Butler, who was this week’s Green Group Guest of the Week. “We are all aware that we have an amazing turf course. But, using it that much, it does get cut up. And should the weather change, which it often does in Florida, that can decimate a card. These cards can get blown apart. There’s now so many scratches that these cards can become mediocre.”

Butler, who had been working primarily at Santa Anita, recently took on the added role of overseeing the operation at Gulfstream. He said the idea to put in a Tapeta surface was first raised by Gulfstream executives Mike Lakow and Billy Badgett.

“This was Billy and Mike’s idea, that we maybe could get a Tapeta track in there as part of the turf course,” he said. You would then have the perfect three surfaces. That would rest up the turf a little bit. And should the weather change, it would give you a lot of options to keep turf races together. Also, from a safety standpoint, it would be nice to have more than one surface for training in the mornings. This would be a way of approaching the needs that have arisen with the closing of Calder. Calder gave us a break because it gave the turf at Gulfstream Park a rest.”

Gulfstream would become the first North American track to have all three types of racing surfaces–dirt, turf, synthetic–in use at one time.

During his appearance, Butler touched on a number of subjects, including the widely-praised decision to end the post time drag at Gulfstream.

“We all understand that on certain days, on certain races, on certain betting events, like a mandatory payout day on the Pick Six, having a drag gives people more time to get their bets in, and that’s a good thing,” he said. “It can help the handle. There are people who have really studied this. When the drag becomes the norm, it removes any upside or positivity. In the end, I thought all it was doing was to make us look unprofessional. How can you be Gulfstream, in my estimation a track that is as good as any in the world, and not even get the fundamentals of running on time down right?”

In the West Point Thoroughbreds news segment, the writers reviewed last week’s major races, including the GI Cigar Mile, weighed in Chad Brown posting comments on Twitter criticizing Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey and addressed the latest problems with the Gmax timing system.

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