Going to the Santa Anita Derby? Here’s what you need to know

San Gabriel Valley Tribune

01 April 2021

Going to the Santa Anita Derby? Here’s what you need to know

It won’t be business as usual Friday when Santa Anita begins welcoming fans back to the race track, but at least one track official is ready to see non-essential workers return to the races.

“We’re just so excited,” Santa Anita general manager Nate Newby said during a telephone interview. “It’s been over a year now, but we can already feel the buzz kinda coming back and hearing from fans. It’s just gonna be an exciting weekend. We’re looking forward to putting on a good show.”

For starters, patrons must purchase their tickets in advance at santaanita.com/open. There will be no walk-up sales.

“It will include admission, program, (self) parking and an assigned seat,” Newby said. Prices will depend on your location.

Every transaction will be contactless and cashless, including wagering.

Don’t plan on eating at El Mercado or the popular FrontRunner restaurant, either. They’ll both still be closed.

“We are encouraging fans, especially in the grandstand and infield seats, to bring your own food and beverage,” Newby said. “But no glass and no alcohol.”

Clubhouse and general admission tickets went on sale Monday, and fans were able to purchase infield seats beginning Wednesday.

There will be food service in the clubhouse with outdoor dining, with every other table open for seating per social distancing guidelines set by the health department.

If you’re one of the many fans who like to head to the paddock to see the horses saddled and observe them in the walking ring before the races, you can still do that, but with caution.

“With the health department, they write guidelines for a stadium, so that’s not necessarily on their radar,” Newby said. “We’re going to have signs up that just encourage social distancing, but we’ll allow fans to move around the facility a little bit. It’s such a big facility. They’ll have access to move around the facility with social distancing and mask required.”

Fans entering the park will undergo health screening and a temperature check.

Here are other guidelines in place:

• Tickets in the clubhouse, general admission and Sirona areas will be sold in “pods” of two, four and six seats to promote social distancing throughout the facility. Individual tickets will not be sold at this time in those areas.

• The infield will be open beginning Saturday on Santa Anita Derby day and will also be open Sunday. Tickets may be obtained in the sun area ($5 and purchased in quantities of 1-6) on the eastside lawn located on the clubhouse turn, or for $10 (quantities of 3-6) in the shaded Picnic Circles located on the westside of the infield.

• Children 2 and older must have a paid admission ticket and be accompanied by an adult or guardian. Children 2 and older must adhere to the COVID-19 protocols.

As of Wednesday, there were still limited grandstand seats and Sirona seats available for Saturday, but Newby said they were going quickly. He said the track is planning initially for a capacity of 7,000-8,000 fans in a venue that hosted 85,000-plus for the 1985 Santa Anita Handicap.

As for the contactless and cashless ordering, Newby predicts the fans will enjoy the new experience.

“That’s definitely going to be a change for people, but I think once they get used to it it’s really convenient because you order it from your box and then the food is delivered right to you,” he said. “You don’t have to get up and deal with any lines. I think actually some of these things people are going to like.”

Newby said there’s no way to predict when protocols will be relaxed to the point where popular locales like the FrontRunner will reopen.

“Certainly that’s our hope,” he said. “If the COVID numbers in L.A. County continue to improve, I think that’s the direction (health officials) are hoping to go, too. But I don’t think anybody can predict that at this point.”

Derby entries

Ten horses were entered for Saturday’s $750,000 Grade I Santa Anita Derby, with likely post-time favorite Medina Spirit drawing the No. 7 post with Hall of Famer John Velazquez in the saddle.

The Derby, one of 12 races, is scheduled to go as the eighth race at approximately 4:15 p.m. and will be televised by NBC Sports Network.