Del Mar’s Pacific Classic is now in the record books. No, Lava Man is not a repeat winner, as he ran terribly. As a Lava Man fan however, I have to point out that he did run a good eighteen feet more than the winner. It happened to be the slowest time ever recorded for the Classic, a full seven seconds off the track record. As polytracks slowly take over the sport, more sluggish times are bound to be recorded, but does that really even matter?

Years ago, in the good old days horses were bred for longevity. They raced for many years, and unlike today’s horses where twelve starts constitutes a career, they ran twelve or more times a year. They were iron horses and for whatever reason, they stayed sound. Now whether it is softer training practices or constant inbreeding, horses today are weak, and they absolutely break down more than horses of yesteryear. That is a fact. It is also a fact, that breakdowns certainly don’t help attract new fans. Many say that Barbaro’s story did much for the sport. Did it really? The end was ultimately the same as other racetrack tragedies. What was so spectacular about that?

Horse racing has to change with the times or be left behind. So are trainers going to start pushing young horses harder? That is doubtful, since owners are setting goals for individual races and not a career so they can make the “big bucks” in the breeding shed. Also certain sire lines will continue to be exploited regardless of how sound their offspring are, so that isn’t likely to be a solution either.

The only recourse the racing industry has is to change the course on which the horses run. If they can make that safer, and softer perhaps the new breed of weak thoroughbreds will not break down. It is possible. Last year there were fifteen fatal breakdowns at Del Mar. This year there has only been one. That is significant. Many owners and trainers say that polytrack does not make for a level playing field, but perhaps it does. From now on, maybe the fastest horse will not win the race. The fittest horse will. The horse with enough stamina and training to handle the track and still be running at the end of the race will stand in the winner’s circle. He may not set any records, but he will survive to race another day. If people want a level playing field, all tracks need to adopt the polytrack and then there will no longer be track biases. Handicapping will adjust and eventually not be thrown into a tizzy over what horse runs best over synthetic surfaces. Eventually the best horses will win, and the results will be just as consistent as they have been in the past. The only difference will be that there will be no massacre left in the wake. Maybe then owners and trainers will let a horse mature and race on into their four year old and even their five year old seasons. People will come out to see a champion, and root for them the same way the rooted for Round Table or Seabiscuit. Perhaps horses like Smarty Jones (that had thousands come out to Philly Park just to get a glimpse of his morning workouts) would stick around and draw in new fans. Pat Chapman retired him because she basically said she couldn’t bear it if something were to happen to him on the track after all he accomplished. Afleet Alex was retired for much the same reason. Isn’t it more important to keep horses like that on the racetrack, than to set anymore speed records? People want to see a horse win. Most don’t care about the times on the toteboard. Horses run about four to six times a year now. It is hard to get excited about that for even the ardent fan. Would anyone watch baseball or football games if the games were spread four months apart? Perhaps, that is why their isn’t much popular interest in the sport after the Triple Crown is over. The horses that grace the newspapers for five weeks, disappear until the fall (or forever), and by the time the Breeders Cup rolls around, all that is left standing are the fans the sport has had all along. It is not hard to see why. Last year Bernardini ran in the Classic, but since he skipped the Belmont and was completely overshadowed by the events in the Preakness, the general public was not swooning over him. The star of 2005 was in the breeding shed for the Classic that year as was the star of the 2004 Triple Crown series. This is not a trend that can continue, and if polytracks are the answer than let the record books fall where they may. Trainers and owners will adjust or get out. Just please don’t let the door hit them on their way out.