In 2009, Rachel Alexandra became at least the fourth three-year-old filly to beat older males when she won the Woodward at Saratoga, an accomplishment that in the minds of many cemented her claim to Horse of the Year honors. That victory provided the opportunity to recall Twilight Tear and Busher, three-year-old fillies who also beat older…
On Saturday morning, the Belmont Child Care Association will host a Pumpkin Patch breakfast from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. We hope old and new friends will join us to see Anna House in action, busy with the activities of the children, who range from six weeks to 5 years old. In the afternoon, we’ll be…
Maybe it was the cross-country ship. Maybe it was the post position. Maybe it was the speed-favoring track. Maybe it was the three-month layoff. Or maybe Bayern is just a faster horse. Whatever the reason, Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner California Chrome lost his second consecutive race after winning six straight when he finished sixth…
On Saturday at the racetrack now called Parx (formerly Philadelphia Park), Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner California Chrome will make his first start since finishing fourth in the Belmont Stakes in June, becoming the 12th horse since 1978, the year of the last Triple Crown winner, to fail in a Triple Crown bid. Given a…
“When a guy says ‘You throw a ball like a girl’ or ‘You’re a sissy.’ It reflects an attitude that devalues women, and attitudes will eventually manifest in some fashion.” I wasn’t watching Thursday Night Football, but Matthew Henderson’s transcription of James Brown’s words last night hit my timeline more than once, most often accompanied…
It’s not easy to fly with me. I’ve never loved it, and often avoided it; I didn’t grow up in a family that flew frequently, and because we drove almost everywhere, that’s what I did, too, until I moved to London in the summer of 1995. There, I became a frequent, if not entirely comfortable,…
The distance from my home to the school where I work is seven-tenths of a mile. From my apartment over the Brooklyn Bridge and back? About three miles. This month, I’ve walked (officially, at least) 23.34 miles; since July, 141.05, which has meant $282.10 to two cat rescue organizations of my choice, thanks to ResQWalk.…
Way back in June, I had the good fortune to cover the NHL draft in Philadelphia (an unforeseen result of my having purchased an orange car last summer was frequently being mistaken for a Flyers fan–shudder) for the Canadian Press, thanks to hockey/racing writer Stephen Whyno, who in 2012, on the day that I’ll Have…
With less than two months to go before the Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita Park on October 31 and November 1, the $5 million Classic may well shape up to be a showdown between two California 3-year-olds, with an Eclipse Award at stake. Off since his fourth-place finish in the Belmont Stakes, California Chrome, winner…
The Grade 3 Saranac was Saratoga’s final 2014 stakes race, and Graham Motion won it. Ring Weekend’s triumph gave Motion two graded stakes wins on the meet; his first was Main Sequence’s Grade 1 Sword Dancer victory on August 17 — 10 years and three days after Better Talk Now provided Motion his first win in the race. The…
Brooklyn Backstretch 