"We'd love to be open for live racing today," noted general manager Eric Jackson, "But we have a situation where the combination of all the moisture from two to three inches of snow, plus the prediction for sub-freezing temperatures over the next couple of nights puts us at risk for losing a number of days of racing, should we push to race today.""We have a good seal on the racing surface right now and would have to open that seal and let in all that water to race. Once the water is in the track the freezing temperatures of the next couple nights would make it virtually impossible for us to race over the weekend, which is when the overwhelming number of fans can get here! to enjoy the sport."Reports from the Arkansas State Patrol helped track officials make the decision to close. "The roads coming to Oaklawn, especially from the north were bad," added Jackson, "And we were told they were going to get worse before they got better. We wouldn't want anyone risking accident and injury under those circumstances. We think it's far more sensible to open for simulcast only today and try to save what might be a nice weekend of racing."
Oaklawn Park, which was forced to postpone its opening weekend, has had to cancel another day of racing because of harsh weather conditions.Live racing at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs, Ark., has been cancelled today. The track will be open for simulcasting.Live racing will resume on Friday.
