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Horse racing oddity: starting gate tractor malfunction

in thoroughbred horse racing by Michael Pizzolla 25 Comments

http://www.horseracegame.com

It may not have been as exciting as Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction, but as Mary Rampelllini reported in the Daily Racing Form:

The featured ninth race at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark., on Thursday was declared a no contest after the starting gate was unable to be pulled from the racetrack because of problems with a tractor. Wagers on the race were refunded, while bets tied into multiple races were given an “all” in the ninth race.

“We had a tractor malfunction,” said David Longinotti, assistant general manager at Oaklawn. “We told it to go, and it wouldn’t go. We’ll obviously completely check out the tractor tonight, and hopefully we won’t have any more problems with it in the future.”

The horses started to be pulled up at the top of the stretch in the 1 1/16-mile race. Jockey Calvin Borel, who was aboard the front-running Richwood Silver, noticed the gate and began shouting to his fellow riders while pulling up his mount. The starting-gate crew and outriders also waved off the field. There appeared to be no injuries as a result of the mishap.

Enjoy this video from March 13, 2008. Terry Wallace is the announcer.

Duration : 0:2:10

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