Hiatus
There'll be no posts to the site for a few days, as I'll be away in Saratoga this week. A full report upon my return next Monday....
Related: "Nothing Beats a Day at the Spa" (New York Daily News) and "How to $core at 'Toga Party" (New York Post)
Posted by JC at 10:40 AM on July 26, 2004
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2,000 Wins for Dettori
Italian jockey and Godolphin star rider Frankie Dettori scored his 2,000th win in Britain at Ascot, the same course at which he rode seven wins on seven mounts in September 1996, on Sunday. "When the redevelopment of Ascot Racecourse is finished, they might as well go ahead and rename it Dettori Downs." (International Herald Tribune)
Posted by JC at 07:30 PM on July 25, 2004
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Reality Racing
Reality television, perhaps having exhausted all possible who-wants-to-marry my-madeover-millionaire-dad angles, comes to horseracing: "American Dream Derby will cast a dozen contestants and purchase at least that many thoroughbred horses in this unprecedented series that will encompass the twists and turns of a reality show along with real-life occurrences surrounding race horse training and the relationship between owners, jockeys and trainers." Auditions will begin in September. (Yahoo Financial News)
Posted by JC at 03:30 PM on July 23, 2004
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Wary Reception for Smith
Paul Moran is a bit skeptical of Tim Smith becoming NYRA president: "Smith brought a background in sports marketing to NTRA, with credentials in professional tennis and golf. His expertise was more or less applicable to the racing business. Running racetracks is another matter entirely, particularly three of the nation's most important racetracks." (Newsday)
Posted by JC at 03:20 PM on July 23, 2004
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CA Jockey Weight May Increase
"The California Horse Racing Board could vote as soon as August on a proposal to raise the minimum for veteran riders in thoroughbred races to 118 pounds, and end the practice of including the saddle when a jockey is weighed. Those changes could allow a jockey to be four to eight pounds heavier, though there is disagreement about a precise figure." Jockeys and physicians support the measure, trainers and owners express concern about the effect of added weight on horses. (LA Times)
Related: "Proposal to raise weights debated" (Daily Racing Form)
Posted by JC at 03:15 PM on July 23, 2004
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Wagering Down, Purses Up
The NTRA's second quarter report on racing economic indicators released this week shows mixed numbers: "Total wagering declined marginally from $4,113,889,920 to $4,110,567,732 (-.08%).... Purses, which showed a one percent drop in first-quarter 2004 over the prior year, rebounded strongly, showing a 2.86 percent increase ($292,902,564 to $284,769,311) over the comparable quarter in 2003." (San Francisco Chronicle)
Posted by JC at 08:10 PM on July 22, 2004
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Gone too Soon
Free House died too soon, too suddenly, writes Jay Hovdey. "The death of Free House on Monday afternoon at Vessels Stallion Farm marked one of those unsettling moments when a seam rips loose in the fabric of the Thoroughbred universe, and for a second, nothing much makes sense." (Daily Racing Form)
Posted by JC at 08:00 PM on July 22, 2004
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Racing Industry Donations to Governor Questioned
"Representatives of the Texas Thoroughbred racing industry donated $232,800 to Governor Rick Perry’s campaign on February 11, two months before he called a special legislative session and proposed adding video lottery terminals at the state’s tracks." (Thoroughbred Times)
Posted by JC at 07:55 PM on July 22, 2004
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Rooting for the Home Team
Thursday, Belmont
Race 2: Carlow (10-1) [Results: Scratched]
Posted by JC at 05:30 PM on July 21, 2004
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One Trainer's Take on Slots
Trainer Tim Woolley has a few thoughts on the new Pennsylvania slots law: "Penn National, the home of cheap claimers, will soon be a mecca for small time trainers. Winning purses will be [worth] more than the claiming prices for which they are entered and the quality of horses will increase. If trainers and owners do not keep up with the new level of play they may sink into oblivion. Playing the game can be like playing the slots, if you don’t feed the machine you will not hit the jackpot."
Posted by JC at 05:25 PM on July 21, 2004
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Must See
Wednesday, Suffolk Downs
Race 8: Almost certainly this'll be one of the best races to watch this week. Gentleman Jerry (3-1) won his last race, a six-furlong affair on Saturday, wire-to-wire in a blazing 1:11+, Tejano Couture (2-1) is one of the classiest horses at the track, and these two aren't even the only standouts in the field. [Results: As expected, Gentleman Jerry took the early lead and Tejano Couture stalked. Then, the unexpected: 18-1 Boardroom Drama surged in the stretch to win as Gentleman Jerry hung on for second, while Tejano Couture faded to fifth and the longshot of the race, 52-1 Seemslikeyesterday, ran third. Exciting.]
Posted by JC at 05:30 PM on July 20, 2004
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Reunited
From today's New York Times, a story that'll make you say aah : "When Tyler looked at me there was that certain look in his eye, a gentle look," Wriston said. "I said, 'My God, that's him.' I knew by the way he looked at me. He had his head and his big long neck stuck out. I put my forehead against his neck and said, 'Tyler, Tyler, Tyler.' He curled around my shoulder as if to say, where have you been? When that happened, I wept tears of joy."
Posted by JC at 05:15 PM on July 20, 2004
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Del Mar Delights
Sure, the racing at Saratoga is superior, concedes Jay Privman in the Daily Racing Form, but of the two summer meets, it's Del Mar by far that's the more fun.
Related: "Del Mar kicks off its 43-day season" (ESPN), and "Racing now riding high" (San Diego Union-Tribune).
Posted by JC at 05:10 PM on July 20, 2004
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Wasn't It Just Yesterday ...
That NTRA Commissioner Tim Smith said he was only considering the position of NYRA president and that "any decision will take more time and consultation with the relevant groups and representatives over the next several weeks"? It appears as though he needed less time than he thought.
Posted by JC at 04:55 PM on July 20, 2004
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"One Thing After Another"
It's like the New York Times Magazine's Diagnosis column, only written by a veterinarian (Thoroughbred Times).
Posted by JC at 04:40 PM on July 19, 2004
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Del Mar, Secretariat, Delaware Park
Del Mar's summer racing season begins this Wednesday (North County Times); the unveiling of a Secretariat statue is the highlight of Kentucky Horse Park's SecretariatFest (AP); and Delaware Park officials say the Pennsylvania slots law is good for them (The News Journal).
Posted by JC at 05:10 PM on July 18, 2004
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A.I.R. Site Up
I haven't followed the brouhaha surrounding the movement for reforming Thoroughbred sales and Satish Sanan's boycott of this year's yearling market all that closely, but those who have may be interested in visiting the recently launched web site of Sanan's group, the Alliance for Industry Reform.
Posted by JC at 05:00 PM on July 18, 2004
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They Toll for Thee
Monday, Suffolk Downs
Race 8: Whispering Bells (4-1) [Results: Final odds 2.40, ran 6/8]
Posted by JC at 11:00 AM on July 18, 2004
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Happy Horse Stories
Calder's Summit of Speed Rocket Man stakes winner, Pembroke Hall, is a horse with one asset -- "raw, unadulterated speed, the reason why he's the king of the 440-yard dash" (ESPN).
The filly America America wins and wins -- with walks in the woods, no medication, and the care of a loving trainer and owner. "Mourier may be considered unconventional by other trainers, but he believes in racing a happy horse naturally, with grass and fresh air" (Daily Racing Form).
"Through his adventures as a handicapper and a horse owner, Dan Lynch learned that certain racehorses have a way of making people suspend their better judgment. Even so, he figured, no one would be foolish enough to claim Rough Draft when the horse returned to the track last year." Oh, but they did. And Mr. Lynch bought him right back for $7500 (Star Tribune).
Posted by JC at 02:40 PM on July 16, 2004
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Elliott, Dime Bets, Claiming Crown
From the NTRA Thoroughbred Notebook: Philadelphia Park jockey and Smarty Jones rider Stewart Elliott received a 2004 ESPY award for Best Jockey from ESPN, beating out Jerry Bailey, Edgar Prado, and Alex Solis for the honor.
The NTRA has teamed up with new association member Youbet.com to host a series of online handicapping contests, each of which will offer cash prizes along with spots in the DRF/NTRA National Handicapping Championship. The first contest will open on August 21.
Also in the news: The Cherokee Nation requested 12 racing dates from the Oklahoma Horse Racing Commission on Thursday. The tribe would like to offer racing at Will Rogers Downs, which last hosted events three years ago (Native American Times).
A really good idea from Steven Krist: Thrills for a dime. "Ten cents a bet? The idea here is not to permit 10-cent show bets, but to offer multi-horse boxes and part-wheels in extremely low denominations. This could open up the world of super-exotic betting to many ordinary players who currently can't afford to participate, or are forced into playing too small a number of combinations to collect more than once in a blue moon" (Daily Racing Form).
And Claiming Crown analysis from Jeremy Plonk: "Saturday's six-pack of stakes races from Canterbury Park in Minnesota is a handicapper's feast. Leave the wide-open clichés at the front door -- all of these races will take heavy doses of speculation and time-honored methods of handicapping starter allowance races" (NTRA).
Posted by JC at 02:30 PM on July 16, 2004
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A Sweet Longshot
Saturday, Suffolk Downs
Race 8: Caramel's Express (10-1) [Results: Final odds 8.30, ran 4/7]
Posted by JC at 02:20 PM on July 16, 2004
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