track superintendent

Veteran track superintendent Javier Barajas has rejoined Ellis Park Racing & Gaming, returning to a role he previously held in 2020. Barajas most recently served as track superintendent at Canterbury Park from 2023 to 2025 and brings more than four decades of experience in racetrack maintenance. His career has included overseeing surfaces at tracks including Arlington Park, Fair Grounds, Golden Gate Fields Keeneland and Meydan Racecourse. Barajas succeeds Chris Bosley, who served as Ellis Park's track superintendent for the past two years and was promoted to assistant track superintendent at...

Thistledown Racino's firing this week of track superintendent Sean Wright followed reports of alleged safety issues with the track's one-mile dirt surface that led to lost days of training and racing. There have also been multiple racing and training equine fatalities since the meet began Apr. 21. The ongoing autopsy on these events has raised compliance question marks (both at Thistledown and nationally) over a key component of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act's (HISA) racetrack safety program. Under this program, tracks are required when operating a meet to submit...

Thistledown Racino in Ohio fired its track superintendent on Monday, and management at the Cleveland-area track has brought in outside racing surface consultants and is working with the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) in the aftermath of four lost days of racing and training this week because of escalating safety concerns with the dirt surface. But Sean Wright, who was only on the superintendent's job four months before his abrupt termination July 21, told TDN in a Wednesday phone interview that Thistledown's troubles on its one-mile dirt oval extend...

The Camino Real Turf Course at Santa Anita Park is currently undergoing its annual renovation after regular use during the Classic and Hollywood Meets, according to a press release from the track on Thursday. Superintendent Jesse Martinez and his team stripped the existing course in its entirety and new sod is on the way, which is composed of Bandera Bermuda hybrid grass. The entire project, which usually takes from three to four weeks, is scheduled to be completed by next Friday, July 4. During Santa Anita's Classic and Hollywood Meets,...

PENN Entertainment's Zia Park Racetrack is seeking applications for a track superintendent and official starter for its 2025 fall season, the organization said in a press release on Friday. The position's duties include managing the track maintenance team, oversight of all equipment, maintaining compliance with HISA and New Mexico Racing Commission rules and regulations, and ensuring a safe racing surface for all equine and human participants. The role of the starter includes the recruitment and managing of assistant starters, starting of all races, gate schooling for horses and oversight of...

The new Maryland Jockey Club (TMJC) has hired veteran John Banno as Director of Racing Surfaces, the organization said in a press release on Friday morning. Previously the superintendent at Thistledown, Banno brings over 30 years of industry experience to the role. He will oversee the TMJC track team as they maintain the dirt surfaces at Laurel Park, Pimlico Race Course, and the brand-new training center at Shamrock Farm. "John is the perfect fit for the Maryland Jockey Club," said President and General Manager Bill Knauf. "He has a proven...

Ken Brown, who held the position of Track Superintendent at the Maryland Jockey Club (MJC), officially retired from the organization Dec. 1. To ensure a smooth transition, Danny Finke has been appointed Interim Track Superintendent. With 40 years of experience on the MJC track crew, Finke has a deep knowledge of track maintenance making him an ideal choice to step into this interim role. "Ken Brown's leadership has been instrumental in navigating MJC through a challenging period and raising the standard of our racing surfaces," said Mike Rogers, Acting President...

Ryan Noffsinger has been named track superintendent at Prairie Meadows. A third-generation horseman, Noffsinger has worked at tracks from California, Arizona, New Mexico and, most recently, in Florida. "In my 18 years working in various roles with track maintenance, I've been able to gain valuable knowledge at tracks like Del Mar, Turf Paradise, Zia Park, Sunland Park, Gulfstream Park West and Palm Meadows which will serve me well as Track Superintendent for Prairie Meadows," Noffsinger said. Prairie Meadows Vice President for Racing Derron Heldt added, "Ryan brings so much to...

Edited Press Release The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) presented the Racetrack Maintenance Innovation Awards to its first class of award winners Monday evening at the Racecourse Managers' Conference and Workshop in Las Vegas. The award was created to celebrate the work of racetrack professionals who have day-to-day responsibilities for the maintenance, protection, and safety of horses and riders at tracks across the US. The 2022 winners distinguished themselves as some of the most innovative racetrack professionals in Thoroughbred racing today. "It's so important to highlight the work of racetrack...

Bob Blackburn has been named the new track superintendent at Prairie Meadows Casino, Racetrack and Hotel. His previous stints include 15 years at Remington Park, 10 years overseeing track maintenance at an Ocala, Florida Thoroughbred Farm and track superintendent at Bandera Downs and Manor Downs in Texas. "I am blessed and excited for this new opportunity in Iowa working at Prairie Meadows," Blackburn said. "Working at racetracks has always been a love of mine, which started in Texas growing up around my dad's Quarter Horses to my experiences either at...

Seven Laurel Park horses have died since Nov. 6, and eight total have perished this autumn after sustaining fractures while racing or training over the newly installed main dirt track there. The most recent death occurred in Laurel's eighth race Nov. 28, and training has been curtailed in the three days since then. A portion of the surface has been dug up in mid-stretch to allow an influx of track maintenance consultants to try and discover if there is an underlying problem that needs to be addressed. Laurel's next scheduled...

Robert "Bob" Beaubien, a longtime track superintendent at tracks including Penn National Race Course, Prairie Meadows, Turf Paradise and Delta Downs, passed away Sept. 1. Beaubien was widely known and respected among his peers, and he was an active participant at the annual Track Superintendent Field Day helping to share his knowledge with others. "Bob was a very nice guy and very knowledgeable," said Jake Leitzel, director of track maintenance at Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course. "He was the type of guy that would do anything for you....