Club Hípico de Santiago

This is the main track in Chile´s capital city, Santiago. It is a big turf track with 2 turf tracks and 2 inner dirt tracks as well. The wire is at the upper right corner of the picture.


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Here is the data (chutes ennumerated counter-clockwise):

Main Turf Track
Length: around 2430m
First chute: 1200m
Second chute: 1300m
Backstretch chute: 2200m
90º backstretch chute: 2400m

Inner Turf Track
Length: around 1960m
First chute: 1200m
Second Chute: 1000m (YES! That is correct, the second chute is shorter thatn the first one, I do not know if they even use it, I´ll try to find a video).

Dirt Track
Length: around 1830m
From the top of the backstretch: 1560m

And then the inner track, in which I didn´t see a finish line even though it does have a backstretch chute... maybe some Chilean friend can shed some light on this.

Ippodromo Capannelle

This is Rome´s main racetrack. Located south-east from Rome, it has a 2650m main turf track, with a 1200 straight course. The track has two different turns, the shortest one takes 500m from the overall length. It also has an opposite straight chute for 2300 m (1800 m. using the shortest turn). It also has a chute that opens up from the main track in the opposite straight (so horses have to turn left and then right) for 2400m races (using the longest turn). There is an inner All-Weather track and inside that one a steeplechase track (with an 8 configuration). Pretty interesting overall!

EDIT: Also, look to the south-east, that´s a BIG training track!


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Ippodromo San Siro (Milan)

This is a large turf oval in Milan, Italy. It has 2 turns at each end of the track, so in theory there are 4 different ovals in there. The big one measures 2800m and the small one just over 2000m. The stretch is on the lower side of the image, and the finish line is just where the first turn starts, in front of the grandstand. I found this video of a 2400m race. The chute that starts in the lower right side of the image measures just over 1000m. The strange thing is that there is also a chute on the other end of the stretch.. I wonder if they also run left-handed races there? Also, you can see that there is a steeplechase track on the inside.


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Just to the south there is a smaller oval used for trotters, and you can also see Stadio Giuseppe Meazza (formerly also known as San Siro) where both Milan football teams play.

Coffs Harbour Racecourse

It is curious how almost every city in Australia has its own racecourse. According to Wikipedia Coffs Harbour has less than 30,000 inhabitants, but that doesn´t stop it from having a very nice turf oval, with the far turn bigger than the near one, and four chutes, one measuring only 600 metres from the finish line (I guess it is used rather for 2300m races) another one for 4 furlong (800m) races in the middle of the turn, then a 5 furlong (1000m) chute and at the top of the backstretch a mile (1600m) chute. The racetrack measures around 1700m.


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Randwick Racecourse

I decided to take a trip (albeit a virtual one) to one of Australia´s racecourses. I noticed that these tend to be bigger than the ones in the Americas, and also that the shapes are not the classic oval. This one in Sydney, for example, is almost square-shaped right hand course, though the near turn is sharper near the finish line, so it is trapezoidal really. This track has a 2200 meter circumference, and has chutes for 1000m races (doubling as the 3200m chute), 1200m, 1400m and 1600m. The four chutes are located along the backstretch. 1800m and 2000m races start on the turn.


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