About 10 minutes before American Pharoah arrived at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, NJ on Wednesday afternoon, the track announced that the purse for Sunday’s William Hill Haskell Invitational would be increased from $1 million to $1.75 million. While it’s not unusual for purse incentives to be added to big races to attract top horses, those…
In the weeks leading up to the opening of this year’s Saratoga meeting, the New York Racing Association endured diatribes from all directions as the changes to this year’s season were gradually rolled out. Payment for picnic tables and the Carousel came in for particular criticism, along with new policies for paying admission prices and…
The first “week” of Saratoga Race Course ends today, but even on dark days, there’s plenty to do in Saratoga. Highlights this week include a focus on taking care of disabled jockeys; the return of WMHT’s terrific documentary on the history of Saratoga Race Course; and one of the few graded stakes races that will…
Saratoga Race Course opens on Friday for its 147th racing season. Arguably the finest meet in the country, attracting top horses, trainers, and jockeys from across the country, its location in a beautiful, vibrant upstate New York resort town draws not only horse racing hardcores, but also families and casual fans who come to Saratoga Springs…
Two days before the opening of a Saratoga Race Course meet that will see a number of changes from previous years, a near-capacity crowd at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame had plenty of questions for New York Racing Association president Christopher Kay. The Hall of Fame hosted its annual meet preview…
Tomorrow, the first races of Saratoga 2015 will be drawn, and on Friday, the gates will open for the 147th Thoroughbred meeting at Saratoga Race Course. By the time we get to Labor Day, we’ll have seen 40 days of racing, 36 graded stakes, dozens of 2-year-olds, and more opportunities to donate your winnings to…
In the 19th century in the southern United States, black jockeys ruled the horse racing world. The sport was centered mostly in the south, and white plantation owners entrusted their prized racehorses to the slaves who worked on their farms and in their stables. The skill of the riders, and thus the success of the…
On the Thursday after the Belmont Stakes, Belmont Park was nearly deserted. A sparse weekday crowd dotted the apron; upscale specialty cocktails were nowhere to be found; attire tended to denim rather than linen, and the hats adorning people’s heads bore not flowers and ribbons, but the insignias of sports teams. None of that mattered…
Brooklyn Backstretch 