HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – 1/ST Racing, the owner of Gulfstream Park, announced Friday a $3 million investment to address issues with track’s turf course and timing system. Renovations to the turf course will start June 13 and will take approximately 2 1/2 to three months to complete. In addition, a pop-up irrigation system will be installed to support the Tapeta track, and a zone system will be installed to support the turf course.  Gulfstream, which has had glitches in its timing system on all courses throughout the Championship meet, will return to the traditional beam system with a GPS tracking system for timing races. The new timing system should be in place by June.  Aidan Butler, 1/ST chief operating officer, said: “With year-round racing at one facility and no longer having a couple of months to give the turf a rest, the turf needs to be replaced.” Butler said nothing of the old turf course will remain when the project is completed.  “We’re going to completely remove all of the turf course, put in a brand new one that will also be widened another 14 feet on the inside,” Butler said. “It will have a new irrigation system, and we’ll also be tweaking the drainage as well. Our best-case scenario is to have this done within 2 1/2 to three months, although it’s Florida and we can’t control acts of God. We are committed to being as patient as we need. We’re not going to rush things, because if this kind of thing is not properly done now, you’re always going to pay for it later.” :: For the first time ever, our premium past performances are free! Get free Formulator now! As for the new timing system, Butler said Gulfstream will be replacing Trakus with the Gmax system supported by GPS.  Trakus has not held up as accurate on numerous occasions during the meet, he said. “If we can’t time horse races correctly, it’s a joke,” Butler noted. “We can’t continue going forward the way we have been.”  Joe Orseno, the newly elected president of the Florida Thoroughbred Horseman’s Association, said the horsemen are all in agreement that improving the turf course is a big step in the right direction, especially when used in combination with the Tapeta track, which went into use here last fall. “Obviously, the horsemen are really looking forward to having a state-of-the-art turf course to race over year round,” Orseno said. “And they are ready to make the sacrifices necessary this summer to help Gulfstream Park get the work done. Not being able to use the grass as much as we’d like during the winter obviously affected the Championship meet tremendously, having an effect on field sizes and handle, which in turn affects purses.  “Nobody was prepared for the Tapeta to be used as extensively as it was, although fortunately they had it. And once the new turf is in place, the Tapeta can go back to being used for what it was originally intended, to support turf racing, especially in the case of rainy weather.”