Santa Anita called off thoroughbred racing Saturday as rain continued to disrupt the Los Angeles-area track’s winter-spring season.
The announcement in an “attention horsemen” text shortly after 7 a.m. Saturday said a decision about Sunday’s program will be made that morning.
A day of racing is being added Thursday, Jan. 15, on top of the makeup day already scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 8, the announcement said.
Since postponing opening day from its traditional day-after-Christmas spot on the calendar to Dec. 28, Santa Anita has been able to hold only one racing card on its original date. That was Friday, following rainouts Wednesday and Thursday this week.
The card Saturday was to have started at noon, go on until after 4 p.m. and have nine races featuring the Santa Ynez Stakes, a 7-furlong sprint for 3-year-old fillies headed by Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies runner-up Explora. Santa Anita said plans for those races will be announced.
The Weather Channel’s forecast early Saturday called for about an 80% chance of rain in the Arcadia area in the noon hour, climbing to 100% at 1 p.m. and about 95% at 2.
Frequent postponement or cancellation of racing when significant rain is forecast is one of the safety-minded protocols put in place by the sport in California since a spike in the number of horse deaths in early 2019, coinciding with a period of unusually sustained wet weather.
Santa Anita’s Classic Meet is scheduled to run through April 5 and be followed by its Hollywood Meet going to mid-June, with racing Friday, Saturday and Sunday most weeks.
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