Epsom Downs Racecourse the turf. In the summer of 1779 Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby, organised a race for himself and his friends to race their three-year-old fillies. He named it the Oaks after his nearby estate. The race became so successful that in the following year 1780 a new race was added for three-year old colts and fillies—-the Derby. In 1784 the course was extended to its current distance of a mile and a half and Tattenham Corner was introduced. Henry Dorling, step-father to cookery writer Mrs Beeton, was a Clerk of the Course at Epsom, appointed in 1840. In 1913
Saratoga Race Course seating capacity. In 1999, Saratoga Race Course was rated as "Sports Illustrated's" #10 sports venue of the 20th Century. Saratoga Race Course has several nicknames: "The Spa" (for the nearby mineral springs), the "House of Upsets", and the "Graveyard of Champions". Famous race horses to lose at the track: As is the case with the other two tracks operated by the New York Racing Association – Aqueduct and Belmont Park – there are three separate tracks in the main course at Saratoga Race Course: Steeplechase races are also run at Saratoga Race Course and take place on the inner turf