The highly regarded Camino Real Turf Course at Santa Anita Park is currently undergoing its annual renovation after performing splendidly during the most recent Classic and Hollywood Meets. During a nearly six-month span from Dec. 26 through June 15, the turf course ably hosted 362 races with 2,874 starters, making it by far the most frequented grass course in the nation.
Santa Anita's main turf course is an about seven-furlong oval measuring 4,683 feet at the inside rail. Linked to the main course is Santa Anita's unique hillside turf course. It measures about 6 1/2 furlongs (4,297 feet) from the top of the hill to the finish line. In 2020, Santa Anita also added a turf chute to the main oval that allows for grass races to be contested at both six furlongs and 6 1/2 furlongs.
Upon the conclusion of the Hollywood Meet earlier this month, Santa Anita Turf Superintendent Jesse Martinez and his team got right to work by stripping the existing course in its entirety. Next up is additional maintenance to the soil prior to installation of the new sod, which is composed of Bandera Bermuda hybrid grass.
The entire project, which usually takes from three to four weeks, is scheduled to be completed by next July 4.
"One thing that I often get asked by horsemen is, 'Who is in charge of the turf course?" said Jason Egan, Santa Anita's Director of Racing and Racing Secretary. "Often before I reply, they will say, 'Nevermind. If no one knows his name, it means he's doing great."
During Santa Anita's Classic and Hollywood Meets, 47.5 percent of all races were run on the turf course. The turf course also accounted for 50.3 percent of all starters at the two meets. For the entire six-month season, only seven races scheduled for the turf had to be moved to the main track because of inclement weather.
"To my knowledge, there is no other racetrack in the U.S. with a single turf course that conducts a meet of similar length that utilizes the turf course as much as we do," Egan said. "That is a testament to the hard work and dedication of Jesse and his team, who have done a fantastic job of maintaining the turf in pristine condition."
Live racing will return to Santa Anita on Sept. 26 for the start of its five-week Autumn Meet.
