By Paul Duclos
Published: December, 2012
With the fall racing season coming to end in mid-December, you can still participate in the "sport of kings" and do something great for the community at the same time.
Fans will gain free entry to Golden Gate Fields every Sunday through December 16 by participating in the track’s holiday canned food drive. Patrons bringing a canned food item to the track will be offered their choice of either free general admission or free clubhouse admission. Gates open at 10 a.m. and post time for the nine-race card is 12:45 p.m.
In addition to free admission for food drive participants, Golden Gate Fields will offer all fans $1 general parking, $1 general admission, $1 programs, $1 hot dogs, $1 beers, and $1 sodas. The track will also show NFL games on monitors throughout the facility via the Sunday Ticket.
While there is no direct ferry service to the track (yet), commuters have come to recognize this place as northern California’s premier horse racing destination. Golden Gate Fields is located along the Bay in the city of Albany, eight miles from downtown Oakland and 11 miles from San Francisco. The track crosses the Albany/Berkeley city line, and the stable area is located in the city limits of Berkeley.
Golden Gate Fields commenced its first meeting on February 1, 1941. Due to poor track conditions caused by heavy rains, the inaugural meeting lasted only five days. America’s involvement in World War II meant racing at the track wouldn’t resume for six years, and the track became a naval amphibious landing craft base.
Golden Gate Fields reopened on September 9, 1947, and since has produced many of the sports’ greatest thrills. The ’47 season was highlighted by an amazing afternoon of racing on October 4 when two horses, in consecutive races, set world records. Fair Truckle sped six furlongs in 1:08 2/5 and Count Speed ran 1 1/16 miles in 1:41.
The great Bill Shoemaker, who would go on to become the world’s winningest rider, scored his first career victory at Golden Gate Fields on April 20, 1949, aboard Shafter V. He retired 41 years later with 8,833 wins.
Through the years, champion horses like Citation (1948 Horse of the Year), Noor (Handicap Horse of 1950), Determine (1954 Kentucky Derby winner), John Henry (Horse of the Year in 1981 and 1984), Brown Bess (Female Grass Horse of 1989), Tight Spot (Grass Horse of 1991), and Lost in the Fog (Sprinter of 2005) have competed at Golden Gate Fields.
The list of Hall of Fame horsemen to campaign at Golden Gate Fields is lengthy and includes jockeys Shoemaker, Johnny Longden, Ralph Neves, Laffit Pincay, Jr., Chris McCarron, Gary Stevens, Eddie Delahoussaye, and current kingpin Russell Baze (racing’s all-time winningest jockey with more than 11,000 victories).
Trainers such as Charlie Whittingham, William Molter, Hirsch Jacobs, William J. Hirsch, Horace A. Jones, Lucien Laurin, Lazaro S. Barrera, Bobby Frankel, D. Wayne Lukas, Neil Drysdale, Richard Mandella, Ron McAnally, and Jack Van Berg have saddled winners at Golden Gate Fields. Current Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer is the track’s all-time leading conditioner.
Host to some of the greatest views in the San Francisco Bay Area, Golden Gate Fields guests are treated to panoramic views of landmarks such as the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, the San Francisco skyline, and more.
Television and radio personality Sam Spear recently explained to Bay Crossings his take on why the track continues to hold a special place in Bay Area sports history:
"Unlike baseball or football, a gentleman can take a lady here for a quiet afternoon of fun and entertainment. During the race, it’s non-stop excitement, but then they have another break to enjoy the fine dining, live music and outstanding views."
Spear began his nightly horse racing television show on KTSF-TV Channel 26 San Francisco. The nightly replay show is in its 34th year and is the oldest continuously-aired horse racing television show in America. He also produces and hosts a one-hour radio show on horse racing that is carried on KNBR 680 AM.
http://www.goldengatefields.com/
A Good Ferryboat Read
Those commuters seeking an engaging book to read on the ferry should take a look at In Sunlight and in Shadow by Mark Helprin. Not only is this another masterpiece of modern fiction, but much of the narrative takes place on the Staten Island Ferry. Indeed, all of the waterfront images will resonate with readers who understand that the ferry is the most genteel and refined form of public transportation ever developed.
http://markhelprin.com/writings
