Whenever I go to Aqueduct, I assume that it’s going to be cold. A pleasant surprise, then, that yesterday was sunny and warm, and most of us at the Big A were overdressed, especially when we stood in the sun. In fact, the weather was far nicer today than it was on most Saturdays at…
The opening of Aqueduct in 1894 attracted surprisingly little coverage in local newspapers, perhaps because at that time, it wasn’t the only game in town; even as Aqueduct opened, racing was being conducted at Jerome Park in the Bronx. The Brooklyn Eagle carried several brief stories about its planning and opening, while the New York…
Happy Halloween! I’m pretty sure that my local card store has already put out their Christmas cards, and while overall I am about as near to thinking about Christmas as I am to thinking about retirement (and that would be not nearly near enough), I was glad to hear from the Belmont Child Care Association…
In the aftermath of the first ever Breeders’ Cup on a synthetic surface, we’ve heard about equal calls and predictions from both sides: “Get used to it; in ten years, every track in North America will be synthetic.” “Don’t worry, folks; within five years, synthetic tracks will go the way of Astroturf.” Fans and bettors…
Shakespeare, Keats, and Wordsworth are turning in their graves… October brings the autumn cold and drear;The Spa, bereft, begins its winter nap,Awaits July and the return of cheer,Of those who come to wager, watch, and ‘cap. And Belmont, home of champs, its storied groundThe host of Grade I winners, bids farewellWith state-bred runners; others, sunshine-bound,For…
After thirty-eight racing days, twenty-three stakes races, ten Grade I’s, and a repeat winner in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, on Sunday Belmont closed its doors, as New York racing shifts to Aqueduct for six months. I’m looking forward to the opening of the Big A—no more LIE for me, back to the A train—but…
I’m not sure what it would have taken over this past weekend to change my opinion of this year’s Breeders’ Cup, not sure what would have made me think that having all of the distaff races on Friday was a good idea, not sure what would have made me support the decision to hold these…
Tomorrow will be too late to enjoy what you can today.At the Belmont Breeders’ Cup party yesterday, I was given a fortune cookie, assured that it was meant just for me, and this was my fortune. Though not much given to aphorisms or any sort of truth that can be summed up in one pithy…
I still haven’t watched yesterday’s races. And I can’t decide when I’m going to be able to. Years of Catholicism have taught me that whatever is the hardest, most sacrificial thing to do is the right thing to do, even when–especially when?–it defies sensibility. So even though I was in a bar on Friday afternoon…
(This post is also up at the Thoroughbred Bloggers Alliance page at The Blood-Horse.) What agony to be a fan of the distaff side in November of 1988. Root for the undefeated Personal Ensign, who had beaten colts in the Whitney two months earlier? Or root for the Kentucky Derby winner Winning Colors? How to…
Brooklyn Backstretch 