Spent a relatively festive afternoon at Aqueduct on Saturday; the Toys for Tots bins that greeted me as I walked into the clubhouse were abundantly full, as was the container for the checks and cash that Big A patrons donated to help make Christmas a little more special for some needy children. On the day…
The last of the straw was still being swept from the stalls that Breeders’ Cup starters had recently inhabited. The buzz from that Classic finish had barely subsided. The 2010 racing calendar listed a number of stakes races that had yet to be run. But it had started. It had started on blogs, in columns,…
First of all, I have to note a couple of egregious oversights in my “giving thanks” post from last week. The Rail at the New York Times should have been there, for providing racing coverage during the Triple Crown season and the Breeders’ Cup and for offering me the opportunity to post there. Also inadvertently…
On Saturday afternoon at Aqueduct, Haynesfield got within a head of becoming the first horse to win the Suburban, the Jockey Club Gold Cup, and the NYRA/Cigar Mile. Longshot Jersey Town denied him that honor. Following Haynesfield’s defeat, Cigar remains the only horse to win the Jockey Club Gold Cup and the NYRA Mile. The…
I’m sitting in Saratoga. My parents are upstairs sleeping; my brother and his family will arrive later today. Four cats are running around in various stages of fun and fighting. Tomorrow, we’ll give thanks over a meal at the Wishing Well (all except the cats), owned by a family we’ve known for decades. It rather…
I would like to meet the person who had the good sense, in 1945, to name a New York race after Comely. I recognize that that’s probably not possible, but in this season of talking about racing history, that man (and yeah, had to be a man, right?) truly did preserve this filly’s place in…
This Thursday, while many of us are enjoying a day off, eating well and spending time with friends and family, the good folks at the Belmont Child Care Association will be at work as usual. Because even though it’s perhaps this country’s most significant holiday, the horses don’t much care, and they need to be…
Got a beautiful afternoon to make my first trip out to Aqueduct since the fall meeting opening. What a pleasure to jump on an express A train and cruise out on the subway instead of wondering how much traffic I’d hit on dreaded BQE/LIE combination; what a pleasure to happily grade papers as I made…
The championship lists are how people learn about horses from the past, even prior to the Eclipses. Championships offer limited perspective on racing history . The HOY debate is just further evidence that 98% of the population is clearly insane. It’s not enough, apparently, that the question of who should receive the Horse of the…
Made a quick trip out to Belmont this morning, to take advantage of the gorgeous weather and say good-bye to some of the folks who will be shortly heading south. My Saturday morning at Belmont generally come to an end when Aqueduct opens; the opportunity to take the A train to the races, after two…
Brooklyn Backstretch 