Deep Horse Racing Thoughts with NYSPI

Now that the dust has settled from the Triple Crown races, which yielded three different winners, now seems like a good time to reflect on horse racing.

We've seen an underdog win the big race, a girl beat the boys, an industry struggle to keep an unprecedented number of tracks open for business and a new initiative on Safety and Intergrity.

In fact, Hollywood Park became the latest track to receive SAIA accreditation.

And then there's the whole polytrack/artifical surface "debate."

Let's make this simple. Here's what we know:

• polytrack is a safer racing surface than dirt
• times are tough

Therefore, any racing venue that has already paid to install an artificial racing surface isn't going to do another 180 and go back to dirt. Right?

In essence, this is causing the industry to gradually accept that the "plastics" are here to stay.

Sure, there will always be the diehard naysayers like Jess Jackson who insist that if it's not dirt then it's the devil, and cost us the chance to see Rachel Alexandra duel Zenyatta in what would be the greatest filly match race in the history of the sport, but the point is that the great debate is over.

Polytrack is and will continue to be an integral piece of the horse racing landscape.

Polytrack is like Michael Jordan: You can't stop it, you can only hope to contain it.

So like they say, if you can't beat 'em...