Los Alamitos Race Course is a horse racing track in Cypress, California. The track hosts both

thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

and quarter horse racing. The track has the distinction of holding four quarter horse stakes races with purses over $1 million, more than any other track in the United States. Although the track is geographically located in the city of Cypress, it has a Los Alamitos postal address ( ZIP Code 90720). Los Alamitos lies just across Katella Avenue to the south. Michael Wrona is the track announcer.

Early history

Arriving from Kentucky with only $19 to his name, Frank Vessels Sr. built a fortune in the construction industry and eventually purchased a ranch in Orange County. Racing at what is today Los Alamitos started off as match races contested on the Vessels Ranch in 1947. The first parimutuel meet at Los Alamitos was held in 1951. The meet lasted 11 days, closing on 15 December. It rained for ten of the eleven days of the inaugural meet. Frank Vessels and his family spent many hours during this first meet repairing rain-induced damage to the racecourse. The closing night festivities featured a world-record performance by the mare Bart B S in the Miss Princess Handicap. She covered the in a time of :20.3. Following the first meet, Mr. Vessels sank $100,000 of his personal funds into improvements at the track and lobbied the

California Horse Racing Board The California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) was established in 1933 as an independent agency of the State of California, United States. The CHRB has authority over the regulation of horse racing and parimutuel betting at licensed California race trac ...

for a total of 16 days of racing, which he was granted. The 1952 season saw financial success as business doubled over the initial meet. Los Alamitos hosted the $5,000 Clabbertown G. Stake at 350 yards.

Go Man Go

The 1955 season saw the first true superstar of Los Alamitos. A coon-tailed, roan quarter horse with a distinctive look and noticeable personality,

Go Man Go Go Man Go (1953–1983) was an American Quarter Horse stallion and race horse. He was named World Champion Quarter Running Horse three times in a row, one of only two horses to achieve that distinction. Go Man Go was considered to be of difficu ...

was so popular that huge crowds would pack the grandstands and chant his name as he notched victory after victory.

Ed Allred

Dr. Ed Allred's first appearance as a law student at Los Alamitos was an unheralded event. He was only at the track because he had read that the Allred Brothers (who were no relations) were racing a horse at Los Alamitos. This one day started a lifelong love affair that would eventually see Dr. Allred as the sole owner of Los Alamitos. Until the 1990s, the Vessels Family had always owned Los Alamitos. However, the 1980s proved a time of great change, as the track passed from one owner to another. Finally, when Los Alamitos was put up for sale in 1990, Allred, having made his fortune owning and operating the largest privately held chain of abortion clinics in the country, was able to acquire 50 per cent ownership, with help from R. D. Hubbard. 1995 saw the opening of the $5 million Vessels Club, the lavish turf club restaurant which has gained fame for the decor and food alike. The Vessels Club has even been named the top sports park restaurant in Southern California. In addition to the Vessels Club, the track has also opened such fan favorites as the Player's Club, Rodney's Bar (named after trainer Rodney Hart) and Schwanie's Grill (named for trainer Blane Schvaneveldt) under Dr. Allred's tenure. 1995 also saw the beginnings of the Los Alamitos $2 Million, a championship race for two-year-olds. The 2008 running was the richest non- Breeders' Cup race ever contested in California with a purse of $2,038,250. It is also the only quarter horse race in the country with a guaranteed $2,000,000 purse. Los Alamitos also offers the richest three-year-old quarter horse race in the country, the Los Alamitos Super Derby.

Thoroughbreds

In 2014, with the 2013 closure of Hollywood Park, the Los Alamitos track was expanded to and hosted two Thoroughbreds-only meets. The track got considerable publicity when

Art Sherman Art Sherman (born February 17, 1937) is a former American horse trainer and jockey. At the age of 77 he became the oldest trainer to win the Kentucky Derby. He began his career as a stable hand for Rex Ellsworth and Mesh Tenney. While working in ...

relocated his training stable's home base from HollyWood Park to Los Alamitos, and his trainee, the colt

California Chrome California Chrome (foaled February 18, 2011) is a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who won the 2014 Kentucky Derby, 2014 Preakness Stakes, Preakness Stakes, and 2016 Dubai World Cup. He was the 2014 and 2016 American Hor ...

won the 2014 Kentucky Derby and

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () o ...

, developing a large fan base and was dubbed "America's Horse". Sherman Racing Stables' lodgings at Los Alamitos, away from the better-known Santa Anita Park, contributed to the horse's populist appeal. The Los Alamitos winter 2014 meet featured the relocated

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Starlet Stakes, won by Take Charge Brandi, giving trainer D. Wayne Lukas his eighth win in the Starlet, and also making him one of the few trainers to win at Los Alamitos with both Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds. Michael Wrona is the track commentator during both the thoroughbred and quarter horse meets.

Graded events

The following Graded events were held at Los Alamitos in 2019. ;Grade I * Starlet Stakes ;Grade II *

Great Lady M. Stakes The Great Lady M Stakes is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for fillies and mares age three and older run over a distance of six and one half furlongs on the dirt held annually in July at Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, Californi ...

Los Alamitos Futurity The Los Alamitos Futurity is a Grade II American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-olds run over a distance distance of one and one sixteenth miles ( furlongs) on the dirt held annually in early December at Los Alamitos Race Course in Cypress, C ...

;Grade III *

Los Alamitos Derby The Los Alamitos Derby (formerly the Swaps Stakes) is a race for Thoroughbred horses run annually at Los Alamitos Race Course in Los Alamitos, California. The race is open to three-year-old horses and is contested at one and one-eighth miles on the ...

* Bayakoa Stakes

Quarter Horses

Notable Quarter Horses to have raced at Los Alamitos include Moonist, Sass Me Blue, and EC Jet One.

References

{{coord, 33, 48, 31, N, 118, 02, 37, W, scale:10000, display=title Horse racing venues in California Cypress, California Los Alamitos, California Buildings and structures in Orange County, California Tourist attractions in Orange County, California 1951 establishments in California Sports venues in Orange County, California