Arlington Park selects Polytrack

Arlington Park announced Tuesday that it has selected Polytrack as the

synthetic racing surface that will replace its dirt track for the 2007 race

meet, which begins May 7. The project, with an estimated cost of $10 million,

will make Arlington the first track in the Midwest with a synthetic racing

surface.

"Arlington Park has always considered the health and safety of the horses and

riders as our most important priority," Arlington Park President Roy Arnold

said. "We are confident that our new Polytrack surface will provide the safest

and best racing surface possible and will strengthen our leadership in the

racing industry."

The Polytrack surface is comprised of sand, synthetic fibers and recycled

rubber that are combined and coated with a microcrystalline wax, which allows

water to flow vertically to a sub-surface drainage system. It is designed to

provide a safer, more consistent racing surface.

The specific mix that will be utilized by Arlington Park will have the same

composition, including jelly cable, as the surface currently used at Keeneland.

"The specific mixture of the Polytrack surface that we've selected has been

tested at Keeneland in one of the nation's premier race meets involving many of

the best horses in the country," added Arnold. "There have been outstanding

results with no significant maintenance issues and consistent praise from the

horsemen.

"With this decision, we expect to improve our quality of racing with more

fit, healthier horses and by attracting more trainers with better horses,

including horsemen from Keeneland who want to run their horses on Polytrack at

Arlington Park too."

Arlington Park began construction during the second week of December and is

scheduled to complete the installation of the Polytrack surface by April 16. The

main track will be open for training on April 25. Since construction began, the

old dirt cushion and pad have been removed and the base has been graded.

Trenching for the drainage system began during the week of January 22 and the

drainage pipes and drainage stones were delivered last week.

The Polytrack materials will be produced locally in Troy Grove, Illinois, and

will be delivered to Arlington Park in stages starting sometime around the

beginning of March.