Eight years ago, heavy equipment was brought onto Keeneland’s race course to install Polytrack. Today, the equipment was back to tear it all out.
Amy Gregory, Director of Communications at Keeneland said “in keeping with our mission, we want to offer the highest quality racing possible for both our fans and our horsemen. And we want to offer the type of racing that is expected of Keeneland and today the indutry’s top owners and trainers prefer racing on a dirt surface.” Gregory says Keeneland has researched the best possible materials for the new dirt track and safety won’t be compromised.
John Howard is overseeing the project, which will take months to complete. “We’ve got it scheduled for 72 days to do the whole project. About 16 days of it to remove the surface. So, we’ve started, we’ll take the material off in single axle trucks, take it to the backside, dump it then reload to bigger trucks to take it on to the storage area.”
Polytrack is made from recycled rubber, carpet and spandex and offers excellent drainage and has been well received at racetracks where horses are expected to perform in cold weather. Howard said Keeneland will try to sell the synthetic material to another track, training facility or farm. The new dirt track is scheduled to be race ready on August 15th.