Del Mar to let owners watch workouts
Del Mar will allow owners to attend workouts from 6 to 10 a.m. beginning Friday, but the track does not plan to allow owners or other spectators to attend racing at the start of its summer meeting because of the coronavirus outbreak, track officials said.
“The policy is unchanged, as of now,” track president Josh Rubinstein said on Tuesday.
Rubinstein said the track is hopeful for a change of policy later this summer.
“We’re still trying,” he said. “The door is not closed.”
The meeting runs from July 10 to Sept. 7.
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Owners who attend workouts will be given access to the first and second floors of the clubhouse. They cannot bring guests, must undergo a health screening which includes a temperature check and a brief questionnaire, wear a face covering at all times, and maintain social distancing.
Santa Anita allowed a limited number of owners to watch workouts from its clubhouse in the final week of its winter-spring meeting, which ended on June 21.
At the Del Mar meeting, a small number of employees will be onsite to conduct the meeting, a policy similar to what was in place briefly at Santa Anita in March and for the final six weeks of that track’s meeting. Santa Anita housed jockeys in temporary quarters on race nights in the final six weeks of its meeting, but that policy will not be in place at Del Mar.
Del Mar’s policy restricting attendance when some California businesses, notably bars and restaurants in 19 counties, were ordered closed for in-person dining for at least three weeks on Wednesday by Gov. Gavin Newsom to reduce the number of coronavirus positives.
Del Mar officials had hoped that conditions surrounding the pandemic would improve through the summer, allowing for limited attendance at the upcoming meeting.
Santa Anita was informed by Los Angeles County officials on Wednesday that the track must close its simulcast facility following Newsom’s orders. Santa Anita reopened the facility on June 26.