In January of 1913, as New York waited to see whether racing would return after a 29-month absence due to anti-gambling laws, the sport lost one of its most successful human competitors when James R. Keene died in New York City on January 3, 2013. Born in Ireland in 1838, Keene moved with his family…
Not everyone was happy on January 2 when President Obama signed into law the American Taxpayer Relief Act, notably those whose first 2013 paychecks were smaller than the ones they’d received in 2012. But the law gave Thoroughbred horse owners a reason to raise a glass in a belated New Year’s toast, as it enacted…
Given the love that Evening Attire received during his racing career, it seems fitting that his birthday is Valentine’s Day. And this year, the folks at his Akindale Farm retirement home are throwing him a birthday party to which the public is invited. With a name invoking Evening Attire’s sire, the “Black Tie Affair” will be…
On the morning of January 11, Gina Rosenthal was in Florida with her children, celebrating her parents’ 50th wedding anniversary. She usually stays close to her Maryland home to monitor her horses, but on this morning, she was waiting for a call from her trainer, John Robb, for an update on a horse. Robb phoned…
Gulfstream Park: The GIII, $400,000 Holy Bull at 1 1/16 miles #1 Shanghai Bobby: Undefeated juvenile makes his 3yo debut after going 5-for-5 last year, which culminated in a win in the BC Juvenile at Santa Anita to cement his championship. Sure, he was a drunken soldier in the lane over a paved highway at…
President Ellen McClain’s resignation from the New York Racing Association, announced Friday during a meeting of the organization’s new transitional board of directors in New York City, isn’t the only change expected in the near future at New York tracks. Read more at the Saratogian…and click here for coverage of Ellen McClain’s resignation.
To America’s racing fans, Gary Stevens is a Hall of Fame jockey, the man who came within a tantalizing length of winning the Triple Crown in 1997 aboard Silver Charm, the man who rode the filly Winning Colors to Kentucky Derby victory in 1998, the man who ruined Real Quiet’s Triple Crown bid in 1988.…
It was a good weekend for brothers. The highest profile brother act took place on the gridiron, when siblings Jim and John Harbaugh coached their respective terms to Super Bowl berths. Jim’s San Francisco 49ers overcame a halftime deficit to beat the Atlanta Falcons 28-24, while John’s Baltimore Ravens beat the New England Patriots, 28-13. The February 3 showdown will be…
With great pleasure, I welcome handicapper Brian Nadeau back to Brooklyn Backstretch. As he has since 2009, he’ll guide us along the road to the Kentucky Derby, offering insights and selections for the major Derby preps. You can read more from Brian at Horseplayer Now. And with that…we’re off! Fair Grounds: The GIII Lecomte at…
The name “Sagamore Farm” recalls racing royalty, both human and equine. Given to Alfred G. Vanderbilt, Jr. in 1933 by his mother, Sagamore bred and raced such equine luminaries as Native Dancer, Bed o’Roses, and Discovery; Vanderbilt himself served as president of Pimlico and chairman of the board of the New York Racing Association. The…
Brooklyn Backstretch 