The price hasn't been right for bettors at Santa Anita Park. It's too easy to pick the winners. Betting favorites are winning 46% of the races since the meet opened December 26. That's much higher than normal in thoroughbred racing (about 33%), than the highest for any of Santa Anita's 85 previous winter-spring seasons.
Santa Anita Park cancels all weekend racing due to unprecedented winter weather forecast for Southern California. A storm is expected to drop 6 inches of rain through Saturday.
The Shops at Santa Anita (formerly Westfield Santa Anita mall, changed name in 2022) hosts a holiday winter wonderland with synthetic ice rink, hot cocoa, and face painting, 6-8 PM today. Event is on the Promenade area. Skating rink is free but donations accepted. Proceeds benefit the Arcadia High School Marching Band. The Shops at Santa Anita is at 400 S. Baldwin Avenue.
California State to loosen its mask mandate at end of day February 15 for vaccinated people, due to the 65% drop in infection rate since the peak of the winter surge caused by the omicron variant of the coronavirus, as well as stabilization in hospitalization numbers. This won't affect Los Angeles County, which plans to keep its own rules in place past the deadline. Lifting the indoor mask requirement in Los Angeles County will require the level of transmission to fall to the "moderate" level as defined by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and stays there for two weeks straight, said Barbara Ferrer, the Los Angeles County Public Health Director.
Another horse euthanized at Santa Anita Park after training injury. It was a 3-year-old colt named Uncle Boogie, owned by Eric Homme and trained by Andrew Lerner. Eleven horses died from a racing or training injury during the winter/spring meet, which ended June 20.
Jockey Flavien Prat wins 6 consecutive races at Santa Anita Park's winter-spring meet. He became the fourth rider to win 6 races on a single card twice at the Arcadia track, when he accomplished this during Friday's eight-race program.
Santa Anita meet opens: no fans but record betting. Santa Anita park began its 84th winter-spring meet yesterday with no audience, but had a record-breaking opening day in betting handle, as $23,003,159 was wagered on the 11-race card. The old record of $20,491,016 was set in 2018. First-year General Manager Nate Newby hopes fans will be allowed back soon. Until such time only essential personnel and horses' owners are allowed to attend races.
Santa Anita Park ready to open 84th winter-spring meet with new turf course. The new turf chute will accommodate sprints up to 6 1/2 furlongs. Nate Newby is the new General Manager, who began as an intern in 2002. COVID-19 repercussions make it difficult to run the track but there have been no fatalities over Santa Anita's main track during afternoon racing in 2020, following a disastrous 2019, when 37 horses had to be euthanized.
Arcadia City Manager Dominic Lazzaretto has appointed Captain Roy Nakamura as the city's 30th police chief. He is a 28-year veteran of the Arcadia Police Department. He succeeds Chief Robert T. Guthrie, who is retiring. Nakamura is the first police chief of Japanese and Asian descent in a city that once temporarily incarcerated Japanese and Japanese-Americans at Santa Anita Park. Arcadia's population is currently 60.8% Asian.
Santa Anita Park: weather could impact track. Santa Anita Park agrees to California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) demand to cancel horse racing in case of inclement weather during the winter-spring meet that begins December 26. Jockey Joel Rosario is mentioned in this article.Gregory Ferraro, new chairman of the California Horse Racing Board, a former race track veterinarian who was appointed to the board by Governor Gavin Newsom earlier this year, pledged the state board would be pursuing stricter regulations than it has in the past.
Is Breeders' Cup next fatality? Santa Anita Park trips its way to finish line of disastrous meet that saw 30 horse fatalities. Protesters gather outside Santa Anita Park on the final day of the winter/spring meet. Breeders' Cup board meets in New York to decide if it really wants to honor its commitment to Santa Anita Park in November. See also same date, p. B1, B7 "Questions abound as Santa Anita meet ends," by Art Wilson.
Santa Anita Park. Track to boost race day rules. Owner, in a historic step following the death of a 22nd horse at the winter meet, announces medication ban, limits on riding crop use.
Holiday gifts come early for jockey Joel Rosario, veteran has nine mounts on today's card as Santa Anita meet opens. Rosario plans to ride full-time at Santa Anita Park this winter.
Santa Anita Park and Mathis Brothers Furniture team to donate $10,000 in college scholarships on its 82nd "Winter Meet" opening day, Wednesday, December 26. See also Arcadia Weekly, p. 14, December 20, 2018.
Santa Anita Park race track gets into the holiday spirit. The park’s inaugural Winterfest, which launched over the weekend, continues through December 23. The park has transformed into a winter wonderland, giving people the chance to ice skate beneath towering pine trees and dance in snowfall amid 70-degree temperatures. Other activities include holiday movies, a giant snow globe photo booth, a petting zoo, food, shopping, an obstacle course and other rides.