When I woke up this morning and saw the messy weather (which wasn’t supposed to happen until this afternoon—way to go, weather people), I was a little worried that the B.E.S.T. program on Women in Racing would be cancelled. Not only was it not cancelled, but the turnout was pretty impressive for a snowy Sunday…
A few quick philanthropic reminders/thoughts about Sunday: If you’re in the New York area and not deterred by Sunday’s weather forecast, considering hopping the A train to the Big A to attend a fundraiser for Backstretch Employees Service Team; the theme is Women in Racing and the host is Jan Rushton. Heading to the races…
On Sunday, August 5th, I wrote the following in my Saratoga blog at Tim Woolley or Alex Brown Racing (I can’t remember which it was at this point): There was a wonderful “only at Saratoga” moment as I walked to the car; a horse was coming out of the paddock on its way back to…
Shameless plug alert! But please, please keep reading… Following my Monday post about the Women in Racing event, benefiting B.E.S.T. (Backstretch Employees Service Team), at Aqueduct this Sunday, I received a very nice e-mail from Cate Dolan, president of B.E.S.T. (Isn’t technology great? I post, she gets a Google alert, and presto! We’re in contact.)…
I was glad to see Mike Luzzi get the Grade I win on Daaher in the Cigar Mile; for some reason, I have this image of Luzzi as some kind of underdog, trying to scratch out a living on the tough New York circuit. This impression was sustained at least in part by his riding…
Many of my fellow bloggers are bemoaning the lack of interesting racing news out there as we head towards the inner track season…but I guess I am more easily engaged than they (and I mean that as a compliment to them), as I am having a hard time writing posts short enough to publish. A…
After I wrote this morning’s post, I had the chance to go back and watch the replays of yesterday’s races, and I didn’t quite realize that in the Remsen, Atoned pulled an Afleet Alex out there on the backstretch: clipped heels, stumbled, nose in the dirt…oops, there we go, off and running! Says much about…
Saturday was one of those days that make me feel slightly sad for all the people who don’t know what fun horseracing can be—my father, brother, and I sat in the simulcast area of the harness track for three and a half or so hours, bet a little, drank a little, talked a lot…won a…
Horsemen in New York had little to be thankful for this year; in Thursday’s Saratogian, Paul Post reported that with the future of NY racing up in the air–STILL!—trainers are looking for stalls elsewhere. Trainer Rick Violette, president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association, is quoted extensively, saying, “Getting the Legislature back, even for…
On the subway to Aqueduct on Saturday morning, I brought along Dickens’ The Old Curiosity Shop, a Christmas gift from my mother several years ago. Each winter I read at least one big old Victorian novel (Trollope is a favorite), and this year I pulled the Dickens off the shelf, a little earlier in the…
Brooklyn Backstretch 