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…
Nearly every day at Saratoga, I’d stop somewhere—in the backyard, walking down the clubhouse steps, standing on the second level and looking back out over the trees and the old saddling shed—and I’d marvel. I’d marvel at the beauty of the place, and I’d marvel that day after day, thousands of people came: to watch…
If you can play, you can play. Those seven words sum up the message of the You Can Play Project, founded two years ago by Patrick Burke, Brian Kitts, and Glenn Witman. “Dedicated to ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, without regard to sexual orientation,” You Can Play began with one video, in which Burke…
On day 33 of the 2014 Saratoga meeting, Jonathan Sheppard was ready to go home. “I’ve been ready,” he said frankly, standing outside his barn in the Oklahoma annex, a short walk from the training track. “It’s too stressful up here. I love it here, but I am a bit of a homebody, to be…
If you look at the numbers, it’s a very good time to be a breeder in New York. Yesterday the New York Racing Association held its first Saratoga Showcase Day of New York-breds, building on the success of the original day in October at the Belmont fall meet and last year’s addition of the Big…
Just because it’s almost over doesn’t mean that there’s nothing to do! Sure, the pace has slowed, but one of the best times to be in Saratoga is the post-Travers week. The mornings are crisp, the town is a little quieter, but there are still stakes races, sunrises, and sunsets to enjoy. Enjoy it while…
Brooklyn Backstretch 