I haven’t been to every racetrack in America, but I have been to enough to know the good ones from the great ones. Some tracks deliver a good experience for the money, but certain tracks cater to everyone from the fans to the horsemen, and by doing so truly become cathedrals of horse racing.

So, what are my criteria?

The most important factor in my book is the track’s main turf course. Any track that doesn’t have a great turf course has no respect for the history of the game and can still earn a spot on my list, but not a very high one.

The second most important factor is how knowledgeable the fan-base is. I have no problem with people who are learning the game, in fact one of my favorite things to do is introduce new people to the sport. What I do have a problem with are people who come to the track to make fun of the things that give our sport character; such as jockey silks. Yes certain owner’s such as Mary Lou Whitney, choose eccentric silks for her stable, you are not the first person to notice this and you will most certainly not be the last.

The third criteria is the quality of racing. There is nothing more exciting than graded stakes races.

My top ten are:

10.Canterbury Park: These fans do not have a lot of high-class horses to look forward to, but they don’t let that stop them from having fun. One guy I met wagered on a gray horse every single time and wound up losing $200 dollars, but still told me he had the time of his life. Our sport needs more people like the folks at Canterbury. The food is also pretty good, though I will say the turf course could use some work and the track lacks big sweeping turns, which can give it the feel of a bush track.

9.Colonial Downs: I would call Colonial Downs’ Secretariat Turf Course breathtaking but that might actually be selling it short. The nations widest turf course is host to some of the best turf races in the nation including the Colonial Turf Cup. The fanbase is incredibly knowledgable and friendly, so I was tempted to place this course higher, but I do believe that Colonial Downs needs to lure even more turf superstars in order to gain a higher spot in these rankings.

8.Gulfstream Park: I don’t think there is a better place to train an up and coming three-year old than this South Florida Track. The Florida Derby is easily the most influential prep race, and has produced more Derby winners than any other prep in the modern era. However, this track made the list because it’s a beautiful track that has enough history to feel important, but makes enough renovations so that it doesn’t feel outdated.

7. Keeneland: People in Kentucky like their horse racing and it shows. Keenland is one of the few places where you’ll find college kids who can actually read the program and understand exactly what it’s telling them. In addition to this, many of the greatest personalities in racing make this their home track, which only adds to the mystique. The only negative is that the overall architecture of the track can occasionally lead to extreme track biases thus making it a pain to handicap e races. Overall the atmosphere at this track is too strong to keep Keeneland off this list.

6. Santa Anita:You can’t argue the importance of a track that has produced Best Pal, John Henry and Sunday Silence. This is where great horses come to prove themselves. The horses race to the wire with the San Gabriel mountains in the backdrop which lends a sweeping feeling to the proceedings that few tracks can compete with. The turf course is cut to look like a putting green which only adds to the beauty of this southern Californian gem.

5. Arlington Park: John Henry, Star of Cozzene and Gio Ponti have all competed in and won the Arlington Million, so even though this track features more twenty thousand dollar claimers than I would care for, it also hosts one of the most important races all year. The turf course is arguably on the same level as Colonial Downs’, but the biggest thing this track has going for it is that they really cater to the casual fan during the summer meet. Young fans thirsty for knowledge talking to grizzled veterans eager to impart whatever knowledge they have: this is hopefully the future of horse racing.

4. Belmont Park: Lets get away from turf racing to talk about “Big Sandy” this mile and a half dirt course humbled Kent Desormeaux, Stewart Elliot and Gary Stevens in grand fashion. This is one of the toughest courses to ride and if you haven’t ridden it at least a hundred times you will be punished. To ride at Belmont is to go into the belly of the beast so to speak. The fans know they have something special, and they are truly proud. As far as the racing quality, it is probably the best in the nation. There is Super Saturday, the Mother Goose, the Met Mile and of course the Belmont Stakes. This is why putting Belmont in fourth was such a tough decision.

3. Del Mar: This is Disneyland for racing fans! From the time you enter the gates you know you are part of something special. I visited Del Mar last year for the Eddie Read and had the time of my life. Getting to see Jockey’s like “P-Val” Joel Rosario and Mike Smith was truly amazing. You can stay near the area where the horses are paddocked right before the race and watch Bob Baffert give Martin Garcia directions only to hear Martin go “I know, just win!” just priceless.

2. Churchill Downs: If you were to take a person of the street and show them pictures of various racetracks there is only one they would be able to recognize-Churchill Downs. The twin spires are iconic and for that reason alone deserve the runner up spot. Sure, the quality of racing other than the derby isn’t the best, and there are more visually impressive tracks, but do any of those tracks capture the imagination of the average sports fan? I’m afraid not.

1. Saratoga: The top spot has to go to the one track that has it all. A turf course that is managed with painstaking detail, unbelievably great racing day after day, and the most knowledgeable fans I have ever seen in my life. There may be more die-hard racing fans in Saratoga Springs than anywhere else in the country. This creates an atmosphere similar to Yankee stadium during the World Series or The Coliseum during a major bowl game. I never experienced what racing was like back when it was front page news, but Saratoga, with its old-school picturesque setting and its knowledgeable fan base, gives me a pretty good glimpse into what the glory days of racing must have felt like. If you want to show someone the best of what our sport has to offer, take them to Saratoga on Travers Day.