Synthetic Surfaces: More Fun Than a Barrel of Proprietary Eponyms

If you've ever caught yourself referring generically to facial tissue as Kleenex ... or wallboard as Sheetrock ... or instant adhesive as Super Glue, you can probably understand how difficult it is to write a story about synthetic racetrack surfaces without using the name Polytrack.  And I'm going to ask for extra credit, because recently I've done so twice.

Researching the "A Pair of Newcomers" article in this month's issue of MarketWatch gave me the opportunity to review several different all-weather statistics for North American sires. Two newcomers to the leading sires lists -- Tapit and Put It Back -- deserved special recognition.

I had  just done a less formal study of synthetic-surface stallion standouts a month earlier, focusing on what appears to be a Bold Ruler trend. If 4+ pages of data and commentary (All-Weather Sire Study: "A Pair of Newcomers" and charts in the March issue) aren't enough to satiate your thirst for all-weather sire information, be sure to check out Bold Over -- How Bold Ruler's Making a Comeback in the Age of All-Weather Tracks in The Five-Cross-Files blog.

Oh, and in case you're wondering: proprietary eponym is a fancy way of saying genericized trademark, or proper names that we use incorrectly in everyday speech. You know -- Chap Stick, Jello, Frisbee, Play Doh, Dumpster, and so on.