California fires

Through the first six weeks of the Classic Meet, Santa Anita Park posted gains over a strong first weekend in February.  Through last weekend, the Classic Meet maintained increases in both on-track attendance and total all-sources handle for the season, which opened on Dec. 26. Wagering is up more than 7% as total all-sources handle exceeded $185 million. The business increases are despite the track being closed for a week due to the impact of the Eaton Fire on the local community. Additionally, the weekend of Jan. 10-12 racing was...

Hallandale, FL--The Gulfstream Park backstretch on Thursday morning was not for the faint of heart. After a healthy dose of rain in addition to a transient cold snap, the going was less-than-welcoming to both horse and human alike. However, one wasn't likely to hear anybody complain about it. With temperatures falling dreadfully low in the Northeast (think single digits) and snow crippling much of the South causing countless travel delays, temps in the 50s and some rain didn't really seem like a big deal in the bigger scheme of things....

It's nearing two weeks since the fires that have torn across Los Angeles first erupted. Still burning, they're already among the worst in state history. The two biggest fires were the Palisades Fire, on the west side of the city, and the Eaton Fire focused on the northeastern suburb of Altadena, a community in the San Gabriel Mountain foothills where many of Santa Anita's racetrack community live. Together, they have burned through some 38,000 acres. There have so far been 27 confirmed fatalities. AccuWeather estimates the financial toll to be between $250 billion...

Eoin Harty joins this week's TDN Writers' Room to discuss the tragic fires in California and how they have affected racing at Santa Anita. In happier news, the trainer also gave an update on his two Kentucky Derby hopefuls.