Originally posted on 05/03/2024:

OK

Here is what I saw at Churchill today:

There are no real worries about the track being deep in certain spots. Why? From what I see, there is not enough cushion to be deep anywhere they will run.

Certainly I cannot see where 2-3" of cushion could have been graded outward because I don't see anymore than 2-3" of cushion period.

To be fair, I don't follow Churchill. I was used to Md. racing and that meant winter and summer as well as the other seasons. I am not knocking Churchill. Not at all. I assumed the track would have more cushion than it does. I was wrong.
How can I see this?? Look at the horses standing at or near the gate or as they approach it. Look at the boots of the gate crew as they load the horses at any point they are standing. I can see a lot of boot and hoof within that slop. I also see the times run. And yes, they are very nice horses running today. That said, they are running fast.

So, was the rail great today? Well, it was not bad at all. I saw some horses with rail trips at non favorite odds run very well. But not sure I say anymore than the rail was fine and maybe a slight advantage.

What does that mean for tomorrow? I'm not sure but I can't see how bogged down a rail might be if there is not that much surface to slide down to bog it down. From what I saw today, the track might be muddy or dry but I don't think that will matter to the vast majority of the horses. We can watch some early races tomorrow to double check that but seems it will be quite fast and probably fair and if it is still wet it will most likely be a wet fast. I saw nothing tiring about that surface today.
If I see anything different early in the card tomorrow, I will talk about it.