Steve Lym getting acclimated to new role as racing secretary

ARCADIA, Calif. – Steve Lym was in his position as racing secretary at Santa Anita for about a day last weekend when the Toronto transplant experienced a Southern California winter storm – a Saturday with about an inch of rain.

Bad weather in California in January has a different meaning than what Lym was used to in southern Ontario, where he held a similar position at Woodbine. Lym was named racing secretary at Santa Anita last month following the dismissal of Rick Hammerle.

Lym, 50, oversaw his first days of entries last weekend, compiling programs for Thursday and Friday. Lym has worked his entire adult life at Woodbine, rising from a horse identifier for clockers on the backstretch to racing secretary.

Sunday, as entries were being compiled for Friday, Lym was introducing himself to trainers and learning the nuances of the racing department.

Lym said he has long-term goals in his new position, notably trying to increase field sizes, a pet project of Tim Ritvo, chief operating officer of The Stronach Group, the track’s parent company.

“I have ideas that I want to do,” Lym said. “I’d like to improve field size. How do we do that? I have to understand the culture. We’ll keep an eye on [horse] inventory.

“If we can get bigger fields and can increase income and revenue, it will be better for everyone.”

Through Sunday, the 13th day of the meeting, the track has averaged 8.02 runners per race and has run an additional race on several programs compared with the start of the 2017-18 season. Through the corresponding period at the start of the 2017-18 meeting, a span of 12 days of racing through the second Sunday of January, the track averaged 9.01 runners per race.

The stakes schedule through June 23 has been published. The first stakes schedule with Lym’s influence will be the track’s autumn meeting, which will include the Breeders’ Cup races on Nov. 1-2.

For 2020, Lym has preliminary thoughts on potential changes for the winter-spring meeting. This year, Santa Anita is offering 15 stakes in January at a time he notes many owners and trainers are more focused on the long-term plans for their runners than they are on starting horses.

Lym hinted the January stakes calendar could change, but did not mention specifics.

“Do we need that many stakes in January?” he said. “There are changes we can make there.”

For now, there is the task of settling into the winter and a four-day racing schedule for the next five months.

“I want to make racing better,” he said. “I don’t want to change what Santa Anita is and the prestige that it has.”

Amandine may go in Megahertz

Amandine could become the first horse to start in three stakes at the current Santa Anita winter-spring meeting in Monday’s Grade 3 Megahertz Stakes for fillies and mares at a mile on turf.

Amandine had a busy opening week of the meeting last month, winning the Lady of Shamrock Stakes at a mile on turf Dec. 26 and finishing third in the Grade 1 American Oaks at 1 1/4 miles on Dec. 29.

Owned by Red Baron’s Barn and Rancho Temescal and trained by Jeff Mullins, the 4-year-old Amandine would have her stakes debut against older fillies and mares in the $100,000 Megahertz Stakes. Mullins cautioned Sunday that Amandine’s participation hinges on how much training she will have this week when persistent rain is forecast.

“It depends on what happens this week,” Mullins said. “She needs to do something.”

The durable Amandine “had a week off” after her two stakes appearances in late December, Mullins said.

The list of candidates for the Megahertz Stakes is led by Vasilika, who won the Grade 1 Rodeo Drive Stakes here last September and the Grade 2 Goldikova Stakes in November. Vasilika was fourth in the Grade 1 Matriarch Stakes at a mile on turf Dec. 2 at Del Mar, a loss that ended an eight-race winning streak that stretched from April 1 to the Goldikova.

The weekend’s leading race is Saturday’s Grade 2 Palos Verdes Stakes at six furlongs. The list of probable runners is led by Roy H, the champion sprinter of 2017 who is a finalist for the same award for the 2018 season. Roy H won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Churchill Downs last November, for the second consecutive year.

Carryover reaches $883,200

The carryover in the 20-cent Rainbow 6 has reached $883,200 for Thursday’s program at Santa Anita. The jackpot pick six bet, which is paid out only if there is one winning ticket, has not been hit at the meeting, which began Dec. 26.

The Rainbow 6 is scheduled to have a mandatory payout day on Feb. 2, pending approval from the California Horse Racing Board later this month. A day with a mandatory payout is expected to result in a pool of new money of several million dollars.