Del Mar Fairgrounds


The Del Mar Fairgrounds is an event venue in Del Mar, California, United States. It hosts the annual San Diego County Fair. The venue sits on a property along the Pacific Ocean coastline. It includes the Del Mar Racetrack, built in 1936 by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, with founding member Bing Crosby providing leadership.
The Del Mar Fairgrounds and Del Mar Thoroughbred Club share one address for the complex. The site is owned by the State of California and is managed by the 22nd District Agricultural Association, a state agency that hosts more than 300 annual events. Its staff organizes major annual events and runs Surfside Race Place, the year-round satellite horse racing facility. The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club leases the facilities for their live meets each year.

History

After opening of the Santa Anita Park racetrack in Arcadia, California, on Christmas Day 1934, William A. Quigley, a resident of La Jolla, formed the idea of starting a racetrack on the Del Mar Fairgrounds. He pitched this to Bing Crosby, and they founded the Del Mar Turf Club on May 6, 1936. Quigley was General Manager of the racetrack until his death at the age of 49 in 1942. When Del Mar opened in 1937, Bing Crosby was at the gate to personally greet the fans. On August 12, 1938, the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club hosted a $25,000 winner-take-all match race between Charles S. Howard's Seabiscuit and the Binglin Stable's colt, Ligaroti. In an era when horse racing ranked second in popularity with Americans to Major League Baseball, the match race was the first nationwide broadcast of a thoroughbred race by NBC radio. In the race, Seabiscuit was ridden by jockey George Woolf and Ligaroti by Noel Richardson. In front of a record crowd that helped make Del Mar race track a success, Seabiscuit won by a nose.
By 1940, Del Mar became a summer playground for many Hollywood stars. Between 1942 and 1944, the facility was closed due to the Second World War. Initially, the grounds were used for training by the United States Marine Corps, then as a manufacturing site for parts to B-17 bombers.
The first Bing Crosby Stakes was held at Del Mar in 1946 and that same year the Santa Fe Railroad began offering a racetrack special bringing spectators, bettors, and horses to Del Mar from Los Angeles. Throughout the late 1940s and 1950s, the track became the Saratoga of the West for summer racing. The track had large purses for many stakes, many of which were won by the famous jockey Bill Shoemaker.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Del Mar was one of the premier racetracks in the country. The track attempted to run a fall meet in the 1960s but later canceled it after lackluster results. This allowed for the creation of the Oak Tree Racing Association at the Santa Anita race track.
In the 1980s, the infield was opened to spectators and in 1984 Trevor Denman became the voice of Del Mar and in the 1990s, the track underwent a major renovation. The grandstand of the Del Mar Fairgrounds was demolished and replaced. In 1991, the track ran its richest race to date, the $1,000,000 Grade I Pacific Classic Stakes. The first Classic was won by a top three-year-old named Best Pal.
Beginning in 2000, the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club's marketing team realized they had to attract a more youthful audience as well as a female audience. They focused Del Mar as a fashionable destination, using social media and other avenues to market the racetrack. They adopted the slogan "Cool as Ever" and created a new brand around "Del Mar Scene". They also hired jockey and model Chantal Sutherland to be the new face of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.
Del Mar has changed in demographics and audience attendance. The marketing campaign of the Del Mar Racetrack has been used as a Stanford business study to see if their strategy could be done at other racetracks.
One of the largest draws each year for the Del Mar Racetrack has become Opening Day with its hats contest and parties.
In March 2013, there was a vote to expand the turf portion of the racetrack. Construction began later in the year, and the work was completed in time for the 2014 racing season. The work included widening the course to 80 feet and softening the curve coming out of the diagonal chute, thus allowing more horses to compete in turf races. The following year, Del Mar renovated the main track, installing El Segundo Sand.
Starting in 2014, Del Mar began to run more racing cards due to the closure of the Hollywood Park Racetrack. A fall meet was added, featuring the Hollywood Turf Cup Stakes, Hollywood Derby, and Matriarch Stakes. Del Mar hosted the Breeders' Cup for the first time in November 2017 and for a second time in November 2021. The track is scheduled to host the Breeders' Cup again in 2024 and 2025.
The meet in 2020 was held behind closed doors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Larry Collmus temporarily replaced Denman as Voice of Del Mar after 36 years for the summer meet. Denman did return for the fall meet in November, and resumed calling the Del Mar races in July 2021.
Similar to the meet in 2020, around the COVID pandemic period, it was decided that the KAABOO festival would also be relocated from the Padres to their original place in the Del Mar Fairgrounds. Mark Terry with FLAAC said “it made sense to bring back to its inaugural home where it had performed so well.”  “Its official: KAABOO music festival returning to Del Mar Fairgrounds in September 2024.” from San Diego Union Tribune also states that the “Board members for the 22nd District Agricultural Association, which runs the fairgrounds, approved the deal with Festival Licensing and Acquisition Corp.” KAABOO music festivals change of location was signed Tuesday and will take action in September 2024.

Events

There are over 300 events that take place on the Del Mar Fairgrounds. Some of the most well known include:
The track races from July to September as well as a second meet in November through early December as of 2014. The following graded events were held at Del Mar in 2022.
Grade 1 :
Grade 2 :
Grade 3 :
Ungraded stakes:
Discontinued stakes :
  • Cabrillo Handicap
  • Junior Miss Stakes

    Other events

  • Opening Day at Del Mar with their famous hat contest
  • Family Fun Day every Saturday and Sunday where the infield offers free entertainment for kids.
  • Camp Del Mar: A Daycare center for the kids while the parents are spending the day at the track.
  • Giveaway Days: The items vary each year what is being given away

    Arena

Del Mar Arena is a 3,500-seat arena in the fairgrounds complex; and it is used for sporting events, concerts, and other special events. It was built in 1991. In 2009, it was remodeled and a roof was added.
It was home of the San Diego Sockers indoor soccer team from 2009 to 2012. The Del Mar National Horse Show is hosted here.

Exhibit facilities

Del Mar Fairgrounds features six exhibit halls totalling of space. The largest is Pat O'Brien Hall with of space, a ceiling height of, and seating up to 6,800. Others include the Exhibit Hall seating up to 5,500; Bing Crosby Hall with of space and seating up to 3,500; the Wyland Center with of space and seating up to 3,000; the Activity Center seating up to 2,200; and Mission Tower with of space and seating up to 1,200.

Del Mar Golf Center

The Del Mar Fairgrounds includes the Del Mar Golf Center The Golf Center includes two 18 hole miniature golf courses, a driving range, the Golf Mart golf store, and offers private lessons, clinics, and classes.
During peak demand periods, e.g. during the Live Races and the San Diego Fair, the driving range is used for additional parking.

Racetrack

The horse racing track is exactly long, and races are run counter-clockwise. With a capacity of 44,000, it is the second largest horse-racing venue in the western United States, after the nearby Santa Anita Park. It is known for the slogans: "Where The Turf Meets The Surf" as well as "Cool as Ever." It was built by a partnership including Bing Crosby, actors Pat O'Brien, Gary Cooper, Joe E. Brown, Charles S. Howard and Oliver Hardy. A 100-mile AAA championship Indianapolis-type car race was held at Del Mar in November 1949, but the death of popular local driver Rex Mays in that event caused "big car" racing to disappear from Southern California circuits for 18 years.
There was a temporary auto-racing circuit held in the race track parking lot during the mid-1960s and between 1987 and 1992. The latter hosted an IMSA Camel GT race. Both circuits were long with layouts that were different from each other.
The Del Mar Racetrack runs live racing from July through early September and, since 2014, a second live meet is run in November. A satellite wagering facility operates during the other months of the year. Larry Collmus temporarily replaced Trevor Denman in 2020 after 36 years due to the COVID-19 pandemic; Denman returned to announcing at the Del Mar summer meet in July 2021 while Collmus continues to call the fall meet.