Horse Racing News
Posted June 26, 2011 – 10:28 pm in: Horse Racing NewsWith the recent crazy weather in the United States, horse betting enthusiasts received a huge scare, as race track Churchill Downs came into the path of a twister. The 136 year old track, which houses the Kentucky Derby annual betting event, nearly was destroyed. Here is the latest update on the condition of the track, as well as the horses.
There was both good news and bad news surrounding Churchill Downs Race Track this week, as a twister touched down in Kentucky. The bad news was that seven barns on the track were decimated by the sharp winds to make up the twister. However, the good news was nobody whether human or horse was killed by the twister.
Since it was built in 1873, Churchill Downs has survived many weather oriented attacks, including heavy rain fall, hail, and two twisters including the one this week. The last time a twister hit Churchill Downs, was 1928.
Dale Romans, the trainer of Triple Crown hopeful Shackleford, along with his crew, had to pull 20 horses out of their barn on Wednesday night, thanks to the twister. Many of the horses were moved to other barns on site, as well as a few race courses in Lexington.
What’s perhaps most intriguing about the twister, is that despite being classified as an F1 which reaches 100 MPH, the Twin Spires, and the clubhouse all went undamaged. For those new to hearing about Churchill Downs, the Twin Spires sit atop the clubhouse where fans can watch the Kentucky Derby and various other races at Churchill Downs take place. The Spires were built in the early 1900s and have never been renovated or anything.
In terms of renovations, this is the third time since 2002 that Churchill Downs has been renovated, as the track was renovated in both 2002 and 2003 with an estimated cost of just over $200 million combined.
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