Third horse in three days dies at Santa Anita Park, while animal rights activists continue to push for a nationwide ban on racing. The race horses were named Tikkun Olam, Uncontainable, and Harliss. The California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) was given authority, in legislation backed by Governor Gavin Newsom, to suspend racing. Officials at Santa Anita Park released a statement reaffirming their commitment to horse safety. See also Arcadia Weekly, p. 1, January 23, 2020.
Thoroughbred horse owner George Sharp has filed a lawsuit against Santa Anita Park saying his horse League of Shadows would have won race if veterinarin had not removed it. Sharp wants at least $90,000 in damages--the winner's share of the $150,000 purse because he believes his horse was likely to win. Sharp alleges the racetrack's owner Stronach Group has created a "culture of hysteria in the horse community by implementing ad-hoc and ever changing rules" in response to more than 40 equine deaths since December 2018.
Santa Anita Park: no crimes in horse deaths report says. California Horse Racing Board's yearlong investigation into deaths of 23 horses at Santa Anita Park has determined there were no violations of animal welfare laws and no evidence of illegal medications, but exams possibly were compromised by anti-inflammatory medications. All but two of the horses that died between December 30, 2018 and March 31, 2019 appeared to have preexisting injuries caused by high-intensity racing and training. Senator Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. said the report makes it clear that transparency is needed in the sport. She has called for the passage of the Horseracing Integrity Act, a bill that would establish a national anti-doping authority for the country.
Sounds of silence. Santa Anita Park like an old west ghost town as horses race without fans. No fans in attendance at the races yesterday due to the coronavirus COVID-19. Only media, owners, trainers, and essential personnel were in attendance. By Art Wilson.
Santa Anita Park will stay closed; Derby to be rescheduled. Santa Anita Park will remain closed for live racing, at least through the upcoming weekend, as a result of last week's order by the Los Angeles County Health Department in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. More than 1700 horses are stabled at Santa Anita Park and are cared for by more than 750 people who live and work at the track. A track press release said, "We will continue to work with county officials and health authorities to familiarize them with the protocols already in place and our plans to protect the health and safety of the community who works with the horses and calls Santa Anita home."
Stuck in the backstretch. At Santa Anita Park racetrack, coronavirus cuts off horse caretakers from the outside world More than 750 backstretch workers at Santa Anita Park now live and work in isolation to prevent the spread of COVID-19. They sleep in worn dormitories, sometimes in pairs, tucked among the barns. New restrictions bar visitors. There is a sense of anxiety in the community about the novel Coronavirus and the future of their jobs. No cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus have been reported at Santa Anita Park, which ceased racing last month, but there isn't any proactive testing either. The worries have to do with the track being shut down, or trainers moving to other states and these workers having nowhere to work or stay. If they lose their jobs, they lose their medical benefits and will be struggling.
Santa Anita Park workers rally, seeking return of horse racing. More than 50 backstretch workers at Santa Anita Park rallied outside Board of Supervisors offices in downtown Los Angeles to request county support for a proposal to resume live horse racing. They argue they are onsite daily already caring for horses stabled at the racetrack and there would be little additional risk to host racing without spectators.
Santa Anita Park targets May 15 to resume live racing. Track makes plan to race when county stay-at-home order could be lifted, pending approval from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.
Santa Anita Park is approved by Los Angeles County Health Department to resume tomorrow. Live racing to come back without fans, ith strict safety protocols to prevent spread of COVID-19.
Back on track. Santa Anita Park resumes racing today, still minus spectators and with several precautions. The last time there was racing was March 27, when the track was shut down by Los Angeles County Health Department to slow the spread of coronavirus. Some of the most important protocols include: restricted zone that will house jockeys, valets and essential personnel, all trainers, employees and essential racing personnel must wear face cloths covering their nose and mouth and practice social distancing, all trainers, employees and essential racing personnel must wear a race-day wristband signifying they passed the daily health screening.
Santa Anita Park primed for historic day with Derby and Gold Cup, to run on the same day. The Santa Anita Derby was postponed from its original April 4 date because of coronavirus.
Santa Anita Park modifiest rack after horse deaths. It is the first significant change in 67 years. Horses running 6 and 6 1/2 furlongs will instead start on a new turf chute under construction at the racetrack's northeast corner, near the Gate 5 entrance. Santa Anita Park will host a short meet September 19-October 25, still without spectators due to the coronavirus. The racing board delayed the start of the meet to give the horses time to rest and to ensure its COVID-19 protocols were in place. County officials recorded 38 coronavirus cases at Santa Anita Park by the end of its previous meet in June.
Foothills threatened as Bobcat Fire swells. Santa Ana winds lead to San Gabriel Valley evacuation warnings. The fire started on Sunday, September 6 near the Cogswell Dam and West Fork Day Use area. It had grown to 10,344 acres with no containment by Tuesday evening. It is moving slowly toward the residential areas of Monrovia, Arcadia, or Duarte, but an evacuation warning has been issued for Arcadia.
Santa Anita Park to delay start of fall meet, due to poor air quality of Bobcat Fire, to September 25. The Red Cross is using Santa Anita Park as the evacuation zone for people, including many of our horsemen, whose homes are less than 2 miles from here.
Santa Anita Park looking for a brighter future. When Aidan Butler, Executive Director of California Racing Operations for The Stronach Group took over at Santa Anita about a year ago, he couldn't have envisioned the road blocks his first year--heavy rains that postponed opening day, the COVID-19 pandemic, recent brush fires that forced the fall meet to be postponed. He discusses the difficulties this year, the new turf chute and the future.
Fall racing begins with empty stands at Santa Anita Park. No in-person cheering as smoke-delayed, 16-day meet begins. Poor air quality from Bobcat Fire forced the delay of the fall meet by one week.
Two related stories.
Early to the party - Voting: Poll workers say regional centers are swamped on first day of in-person balloting.
Scattered paper jams, tech glitches don’t spoil first in-person day at the polls. many of 2020’s early voters showed up to voting centers before they even opened on Saturday, Oct. 24, the first day of in-person balloting in Los Angeles County.
But much to the relief of voters and elections officials, the kind of polling-place meltdowns that left voters angered and election officials worried back in March, when the county debuted its $300 million network of vote centers, did not repeat. Back in March, for the primary, many voters were left seething after tech glitches delayed the opening of some sites and even forced the Hollywood site to close down.
But Saturday’s voting played out much more smoothly. And when issues did pop up, they appeared to have been resolved quickly in most cases.
Behind the scenes, poll workers reported paper jams and other tech issues, some of which caused short delays.
Many voters were certainly eager to cast their ballots. Several voting centers saw a line wrapped around the building before they opened. Such hubs included large polling locations, such as the Arboretum and Botanical Gardens in Arcadia, stocked with 45 of the county’s new voting devices.