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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Churchill Downs is cancelling live racing for a second straight day after the track remained frozen following an early blast of wintry weather.
It's the first time a frozen track has forced consecutive cancellations since Nov. 23-24, 1970. The 10 races set for Wednesday and Thursday have been wiped out after crews were unable to thaw out the one-mile dirt track. Training was scuttled, too.
Churchill president Kevin Flanery says strong winds Wednesday didn't help and the track cushion hasn't dried out evenly to provide a suitable racing surface for the horses. The track was hit with 3 inches of snow on Monday, keeping horses out of training.
Churchill plans to run a 10-race card on Friday, when the forecast calls for a high of 38 degrees and mostly sunny skies. The average temperature in Louisville this time of year is in the upper 50s.
It's just the seventh weather-related cancellation in the track's 140-year history.
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