#US RACING: Del Mar Cancels Sun, Aug 20, 2023 Races Due To Hurricane Hilary

Del Mar cancelled its planned Sunday racing card due to expected rain and wind from Hurricane Hilary.
“For the safety of everyone involved – our horses, our riders and all the workers, staff and fans – we have made the decision to cancel Sunday’s races,” Del Mar president and chief operating officer Josh Rubinstein said Saturday morning. “Unfortunately, the forecast calls for substantial rain and winds that appear to be headed our way. We are hopeful this will only be a one-day thing for us, but it is a necessary step we feel we have to take.”
As of 9 a.m. EDT on Saturday, Hurricane Hilary was about 240 miles west-southwest of Cabo San Lucas, the southern tip of the Baja California according to the National Hurricane Center. It was a category 4 storm with sustained winds of 130 miles per hour, though the National Hurricane Center expects it to weaken as it approaches land.
The National Weather Service predicts tropical storm conditions has issued both a tropical storm warning and a flood watch for a section of southern California including Del Mar. The NWS forecasts winds of 25-35 mph on Sunday, with new rainfall between three-quarters of an inch and one inch. Sunday night's forecast predicts winds slowing to 15-20 mph after midnight, with another three-quarters of an inch to one inch of rain.
This incident will be only the second time in the track’s 84-year history it has lost a day of racing to the elements. In 2019, its Thanksgiving Day card was called off ahead of a projected storm.
Track officials have indicated that no individual make-up day will be scheduled in light of the loss. Instead, the plan is to arrange to work in many of the planned races on different days over the course of coming weeks.
Del Mar's 31-day schedule started on Friday, July 21 and runs through Sunday, Sept. 10. Racing is conducted on a Thursday through Sunday basis primarily with the addition of an extra card on Labor Day Monday, Sept. 4.