Golden Gate's first Tapeta meet set to begin

Wednesday's opening-day card at Golden Gate Fields marks the turning of an

era at the 66-year-old East Bay track, with racing set to be conducted on the

newly installed synthetic Tapeta surface. The 62-day session runs through

February 3.

Tapeta is an all-weather synthetic surface which is designed to make racing

safer for both horses and humans. Installed at a cost of $10 million, Tapeta is

a patented wax-coated mixture of sand, rubber and fiber that is impervious to

weather and never turns to mud. Tapeta was developed by trainer Michael

Dickinson, who is known for his outstanding work with Da Hoss, a two-time winner

of the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1) in 1996 and 1998. Dickinson developed Tapeta for

use at his own training center in Maryland and has since installed the surface

at training tracks in England, Singapore, Korea and Dubai.

Golden Gate Fields is the first track in Northern California to install a

synthetic surface and is only the second track in the United States to use

Tapeta. Presque Isle Downs, a new racetrack in Erie, Pennsylvania, was the first

track to race on Tapeta, and the surface received favorable reviews from

horsemen.

Golden Gate Fields will present 13 stakes during the 2007-2008 meeting, and

all but two will be run on Tapeta, including the three richest events -- the

$150,000 All American (G3) on November 17, the $150,000 California Derby on

January 27 and the $100,000 California Oaks on February 2.

The first two stakes of the season, the $75,000 Tanforan and the $75,000 Miss

America, will be contested on the Lakeside Turf Course during opening weekend,

on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

Post time at Golden Gate Fields is 12:45 p.m. (PST) with the following

exceptions: 11:15 a.m. on November 22 (Thanksgiving Day) and February 3 (Super

Bowl Sunday), and 12:15 p.m. on December 26 (opening day at Santa Anita) and

January 26 (Sunshine Millions Day).

Racing will be conducted on a Wednesday through Sunday basis from opening day

through December 22. Thereafter, the standard racing week will be Thursday

through Monday.

Golden Gate Fields will present three single-day handicapping contests during

the meet (this Saturday and Sunday as well as December 15) in which the winner

will earn a berth in the 2008 NTRA/DRF National Handicapping Championship in Las

Vegas.