Meier hopes to avoid falling on Polytrack

Ribs, verterbrae, both legs, both arms -- one three times alone. By his own count, veteran jockey Randy Meier has broken 49 bones in his body during his illustrious career.

He's broken bones at tracks from the old Sportsman's Park to the rebuilt Arlington Park. He's gone down on the dirt and on the turf.

But Meier has never fallen on the new synthetic surfaces that have sprouted up across the country, including Arlington's new Polytrack.

And from the reports he has received from his fellow jockeys, he prays he never does.

"The guys said it's like hitting cement," said Meier, a winner of more than 4,000 races. "There's no give to it."

"Polytrack … no one's done any studies on it. Everyone who went down on it last year got hurt pretty bad."

Added jockey agent Jay Fedor: "It's better for the horses, but I don't think it's better for the jockeys."