Oak Tree horse racing meet dawns at night

Pink flamingos wandered aimlessly in the infield pond. Lumbering 747s drifted by on their way to LAX. Beer flowed at $3 a cup as the sun dipped.

Never before had the Oak Tree meeting started with such a scene as the one Thursday night at Hollywood Park. Held since 1969 at Santa Anita, the 22-day Oak Tree meeting began for the first time under the lights at the Inglewood track.

“It’s strange,� trainer Julio Canani said as he looked up at clouds turning orange from the sun’s setting. “If more people come, it’s OK. We have to do something for the industry.�

Trainers and owners didn’t want to hold the Oak Tree meeting at Santa Anita this year because of concerns over its Pro-Ride synthetic surface.

Opening day drew more than 17,000 last year at Santa Anita, but early signs Thursday night indicated a struggle for attendance, though the track was hoping for many late-arriving fans for a concert by the band Sugar Ray.

There are five more night cards scheduled until the meeting ends Oct. 31, and Hollywood Park President Jack Liebau said, “You are seeing the wave of the future with [ Kentucky’s] Churchill Downs going to lights. You have [ Florida’s] Gulfstream talking about going to lights.�

Canani won two races on the card, including the opening race with Summers At Delmar under jockey Joe Talamo, who broke his left wrist in a spill at Del Mar and has been riding 10 horses and more each morning for the past week to show trainers he’s healthy.

“I’ve been riding so much in the morning trying to get some of my business back,� Talamo said.

Santa Anita apparently didn’t want to go unnoticed, because the track announced Thursday that crews would begin removing the existing Pro-Ride surface on Oct. 11 and replace it with a dirt surface by Dec. 6. Still to be decided is the specific composition of the soil.

In the Grade III $100,000 Sen. Ken Maddy Handicap, the speedy Unzip Me won by 1 1/2 lengths over Waveline in the six-furlong turf race. Bonifacio was third.

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