TGJB,

Thanks a lot.

I have no evidence at all that the phenomenon I am talking about exists. I've seen situations where at Belmont (and elswhere) for example the 6F, 7F, and 8F relationships seemed out of sync with the norms, but I always attributed that to wind and/or the lack of track uniformity. Sometimes it reveals itself in the fractions.

From a theoretical point of view I have just always been curious about that because I believe that tracks can vary once in awhile in their propensity to favor speed or closers. It's pure speculation on my part there might also be some impact on the time relationships.

One thing I am fairly sure of from studying pace and watching races is that if the jockeys sense a speed bias they tend to be much more aggressive early. That leads to faster than usual fractions relative to final times - which in effect I suppose could offset any speed bias. It's hard for me to pin these things down scientifically and in certain terms, but I remain confident in my observations. With your data it might be possible to prove it.