Horses crossing the finish line at the Del Mar Racetrack
The track continued to grow in purses, handle, and attendance. This allowed for the creation of the Oak Tree Racing Association at the Santa Anita race track.Ĭhange marked the 1980s when the infield was opened to spectators and in 1984 Trevor Denman became the voice of Del Mar. The track attempted to run a fall meet in the 1960s but later canceled it after lackluster results. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Del Mar continued to be one of the premier racetracks in the country. The track had large purses for many stakes, many of which were won by the famous jockey Bill Shoemaker. Throughout the late 1940s and 1950s, the track became the Saratoga of the West for summer racing. The first Bing Crosby Stakes was held at Del Mar in 1946 and that same year the Santa Fe Railroad began offering a racetrack special bringing spectators, bettors, and horses to Del Mar from Los Angeles. Initially, the grounds were used for training by the United States Marine Corps, then as a manufacturing site for parts to B-17 bombers. Between 19, the facility was closed due to the Second World War. In front of a record crowd that helped make the fledgling Del Mar race track a success, Seabiscuit won by a nose.īy 1940, Del Mar became a summer playground for many Hollywood stars. In the race, Seabiscuit was ridden by jockey George Woolf and Ligaroti by Noel Richardson. In an era when horse racing ranked second in popularity with Americans to Major League Baseball, the match race was much written and talked about and was the first nationwide broadcast of a Thoroughbred race by NBC radio. Howard's Seabiscuit and the Binglin Stable's colt, Ligaroti.
On August 12, 1938, the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club hosted a $25,000 winner-take-all match race between Charles S. When Del Mar opened in 1937, Bing Crosby was at the gate to personally greet the fans. Quigley would remain General Manager of the racetrack until his death at the age of 49 in 1942. He successfully pitched this to Bing Crosby, and together they founded the Del Mar turf Club on May 6, 1936. Quigley, stockbroker, former college football coach, and resident of La Jolla formed the idea of starting a racetrack on the Del Mar Fairgrounds. After the successful opening of the Santa Anita Park racetrack in Arcadia, California on Christmas Day 1934, William A.
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