Oak Trees

Hollywood Park announced on Thursday that it will host the Oak Tree meet traditionally run at Santa Anita beginning Sept. 30. The Oak Tree Racing Assn. decided to move from its home since 1969 in Arcadia across town to Hollywood Park because of uncertainty about the condition of the main track at Santa Anita. The 42nd Oak Tree meet will run through Oct. 31 in Inglewood. Hollywood Park's autumn meet will open Nov. 4. The highlight of the Oak Tree meet is expected to be undefeated Zenyatta making her 19th career start at her home track.

The prestigious Oak Tree thoroughbred race meeting will move to Del Mar as a permanent home, starting in 2011. Sherwood Chillingworth, Oak Tree's executive vice president, said Tuesday that he and other Oak Tree officials would meet Wednesday with Del Mar Chief Executive Joe Harper and his group to finalize those plans. "We've met three times already," Chillingworth said, "and Joe is all for this. " Harper said, "It's what we all want. There's some issues we have to get through, from use of the fairgrounds to environmental issues.

The California Horse Racing Board on Thursday rejected the Oak Tree Racing Assn.'s application to run its fall meeting at Santa Anita after the leaders of horse owner and trainer groups voiced concerns about the synthetic track surface, apparently clearing the way for Hollywood Park to host the Oak Tree meeting. Oak Tree is expected to present a new application to run its Sept. 29-Oct. 31 meeting at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, with a ruling by the board expected next week. Jack Liebau, president of Hollywood Park, said his track was eager to host the Oak Tree meeting, which has been held at Santa Anita since 1969.

The news Wednesday was that a dirt track racing surface will return to the major Southern California horse track. Several other issues remained unclear, mired in the politics and agendas of the sport. Frank Stronach, owner of Santa Anita's racetrack, told an audience of about 250 that he would install a dirt racing surface immediately after the Oak Tree meeting ends Oct. 31 at Santa Anita. He assured them it would be completed in time for the major thoroughbred meeting in Southern California that begins Dec. 26. "When Oak Tree ends, we will move right in," Stronach said.

Because of renewed safety fears involving the synthetic surface at Santa Anita Race Track, the upcoming Oak Tree meeting could be moved to Hollywood Park. Santa Anita has been the home for Oak Tree since 1969, and this year's meet is scheduled to open Sept. 29. But last Friday, in a meeting involving Southern California trainers and owners, fears were raised that a recent aeration procedure on the track had punctured the mesh, or membrane, that is designed to hold base material such as rocks well below the surface.

Normally, Mace Siegel's focus would be only on Rail Trip. The 84-year-old from Beverly Hills, one of the godfathers of Southern California horse racing, owns the 5-year-old with a chance to become only the third-ever multiple winner of Saturday's prestigious Hollywood Gold Cup. The other two, who each won three times, were Native Diver and Lava Man. Being in that company is the chance of a lifetime. But Siegel's mind is all over the place, and with reason. It is a Friday morning at Izzy's Deli in Santa Monica.

Frank Stronach, chairman of MI Developments, which controls Santa Anita racetrack, agreed Tuesday to allow the Oak Tree Racing Assn. to hold its autumn meeting for the final time at the Arcadia track. Stronach made the offer during a meeting of the California Horse Racing Board, and the offer was accepted by Oak Tree officials. Stronach had said earlier, "We don't want a tenant in our house." But later he agreed to a one-year lease after horseman Mace Siegel got involved in the proceedings to find a compromise.

If the company that runs Santa Anita can't make a deal with the nonprofit Oak Tree Racing Assn. to run its annual fall meeting at the Arcadia track, then Hollywood Park and Del Mar are prepared to offer their facilities, executives at both tracks said Saturday. Jack Liebau, president of Hollywood Park, said his track has made an offer to open its facility "rent free" to Oak Tree. And Joe Harper, president of Del Mar, said, "Of course we would be open to running their meet at Del Mar."