Golden Gate to Resume Jan. 15 After COVID-19 Suspension

Golden Gate Fields, closed since mid-November after an outbreak of COVID-19 cases there, largely among its backstretch workers, will resume live racing Jan. 15, the track announced Jan. 8.

Over the past month and a half more than 300 individuals there have tested positive, mostly with asymptomatic or mild cases, but after "extensive testing in collaboration with the Berkeley Public Health Division, it has been determined that the COVID-19 concerns on the campus have decreased to levels to allow the resumption of live racing," a track release said.

In a telephone interview, Golden Gate Fields general manager David Duggan credited a collaborative effort from medical officials, track management, the health department, and executives from 1/st Racing, a division of The Stronach Group, which owns the Northern California track.

"We're very pleased to be back in the fold. We've got some catching up to do, but hopefully, we get there," Duggan said.

Entries for Jan. 15 will be taken via telephone Jan. 12. The racing office remains closed for in-person business as a health measure.

Duggan acknowledged that Golden Gate has lost some of its horse population to other racetracks during its two-month suspension of racing, with some horses shipping to Southern California for races and others sent away for longer periods to compete in other states, such as Arizona and Texas. Thoroughbred Owners of California director Gary Fenton said data shows Golden Gate's horse population to be approximately 1,100, a relatively small decrease from the track's customary 1,200 horses.

Uncertain when Golden Gate would resume racing, Jonathan Wong, the track's leading trainer in the fall, sent divisions to Turf Paradise and Sam Houston. He still plans to run horses there but is eager for next week's return of racing in Northern California.

"For my owners, it has been tough, obviously no races. They haven't had any chance to make any money on the horses," he said. "That's why we looked into taking some horses to other racetracks, because we weren't sure what was going to happen with Golden Gate."

Illustrating the extent of the COVID-19 outbreak at Golden Gate, Wong said 19 of his 20 employees contracted it. They were asymptomatic, he said.

An early round of testing notified him of 15 positive cases, and while those workers isolated, Wong and four employees handled the care of his entire Golden Gate stable.

"We didn't train them for a couple days, just walked them, showered them, and fed them," he said of his horses. "We did as much as possible. You can only do so much, you know?"

Wong said he was fortunate to never contract COVID-19, though he estimates he has been tested 20 times at the track, which has twice-weekly testing. He knows of only a handful of severe cases of COVID-19 there, he said.

One Golden Gate trainer, Bob Hess Sr., died last month from COVID-19 at age 86—one of more than 28,000 deaths attributed to the pandemic in California.

Wong said this past year was tough for Golden Gate and those that race there, shut down in the spring with the onset of COVID-19 and again late in the year. The track also had to suspend racing at times due to nearby wildfires and smoke.

For perhaps a two-week period last month, Golden Gate trainers could not attend to their horses on the backstretch, limited to observing training from cars parked near midstretch. The move was a safety measure amid the outbreak in cases.

He said the track guided backstretch workers appropriately during the pandemic, but that compliance was not 100%.

"Golden Gate they had all their signs up. They announced it. They provided masks and everything," he said. "It comes down to the individual. Everyone has to do their part. There were a couple people that didn't do their part on it, and personally I think that's how it started, how it got in and spread through the whole barn area."

Fenton, managing partner in Little Red Feather Racing, said his Southern California-based partnership has been mostly unaffected by the Golden Gate suspension, though as a TOC director, he has witnessed the resilience of Northern California horsemen.

"Everything was very positive up there. I didn't get a lot of, 'We're going to go bankrupt,' or 'Oh, my god, we're going to lose some horses,' or 'I'm not buying horses anymore.' 

"It really was, 'Are the backstretch workers going to be OK?' And 'What can we do about getting up and running?' 'Ok, a few weeks, I think we can hang on for a few weeks.'

"There was a sense of community that I saw. There was obviously a sense to get back online as soon as possible, but it was never a sense of 'You better get online or we're leaving.' "

Though Fenton is relieved for a return of racing, he remains frustrated that owners will not be initially permitted to watch racing or workouts at Golden Gate. Health departments in the state at times have restricted access to owners during the pandemic, either in Southern or Northern California.

"I believe the ecosystem of essential workers out there running the operation includes the owner. The owner can be out there in a safe manner," he said.

Golden Gate said in their release they would continue to monitor on-track access for owners and would update TOC of any changes to the policy. Fans are also not permitted.

In a statement released Jan. 7 jointly with the track, Berkeley Public Health Division said over 100 personnel at Golden Gate who had not tested positive for COVID-19 were removed from the track and asked to quarantine off-site for more than three weeks to protect their health and to prevent transmission during the suspension of racing. Golden Gate has begun a phased return of the quarantined group.

The health department said Golden Gate has agreed to continue COVID-19 testing every three days for returning workers who have not tested positive and others who are at risk of COVID-19 transmission. Anyone testing positive for COVID-19 will be isolated and any of their close contacts will be required to quarantine per health guidelines.