Durbanville will have a synthetic-surface track alongside the grass course within six months, the grass track at the Milnerton training centre will be more than doubled in length and land surplus to requirements at Kenilworth will be sold to fund the upgrading of facilities.

Hassen Adams revealed his ambitious plans at Saturday evening’s launch of the ‘Summer of Champions’ season. Perhaps the most remarkable aspect is that he and his fellow directors have managed to persuade the supposedly hidebound City Of Cape Town (CCT) authorities to agree to swap land at Durbanville that Kenilworth Racing doesn’t want for that at Milnerton which it does.

Durbanville race track

Adams said: “We are basically unlocking the three entities and we are trying to extract value from them without selling the silverware.”

The CCT owns the actual course at Durbanville but Kenilworth Racing will use part of its land on the outside of the stands area for the land swap while chutes/spurs will be added to the course to cut out some of the bends on the sprint course.

Adams said: “We will introduce the synthetic track so we can race there a lot more and we hope to have this and the spurs installed by the end of March. I am not calling it an equitrack at this stage – we have been having discussions with various suppliers – but it will be the best artificial-surface track in the country while the infield will be used as a park.”

Traditionalists will be relieved to hear that there are apparently no plans to install a polytrack or similar at Kenilworth, and not just traditionalists either. Justin Snaith recently voiced fears that this could happen, saying that soft ground horses wouldn’t get a chance because racing would be switched to the polytrack whenever rain threatened the grass.

It is at Milnerton where the most badly needed improvements will take place. For years trainers there have had to race horses to get them fit because the gallops at the training centre are not long enough.

Adams said: “The place looks like a dog’s breakfast but we will redevelop the middle part and we are going to have a 2 000m grass track going right round. We are looking to see if we can do the same with the cinder track and also have a synthetic track.”

The area where the old grooms quarters used to be will be sold, more stabling will be added and the front façade will smartened up.

Adams added: “At Kenilworth we have submitted rezoning applications that will bring us a huge amount of money. There is a big demand for upmarket residential and commercial plus an opportunity for a hotel.”

BLOB The two main supporting features on J & B Met day – the Investec Cape Derby and the Klawervlei Majorca – will be run a week earlier next year to be added to the card on the day of the CTS Million Dollar (Jan 23).

The Betting World Cape Flying Championship, originally scheduled for January 23, will replace those two Grade 1s on the Met day programme.

By Michael Clower