Here at the Brooklyn Backstretch, we are grateful that we weathered Sandy with only minor inconvenience: our power stayed on, and there was no flooding in this neighborhood. We feel very, very fortunate. Those nearby were not nearly so lucky. Power is still out in many areas, and homes were devastated by water. According to…
What do Himalayan art, supporting backstretch workers, and research to improve horse health have in common? All are a part of this year’s Belmont Stakes Charity Celebration, taking place Thursday night, June 7, at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan. The New York Racing Association Inc. and The Jockey Club will host this year’s…
It’s Belmont week! As usual, Belmont is dark today and tomorrow, but the mornings on the backstretch will be busy, as shippers arrive and those horses on the ground continue to work towards this weekend’s races. In addition to the racing action, several racing organizations are taking advantage of the focus on Belmont to raise…
“Saratoga is a healing community,” said Paul Ruchames recently, “and you can accomplish a lot with a healing community.” Ruchames is the recently appointed executive director of Backstretch Employees Service Team (BEST); he comes to the position from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University in the Bronx, where he served as director…
So it’s official: It’s holiday shopping season. Black Friday has come and gone; today is Cyber Monday, when, according to people who pay attention to such things, many, many work hours are lost by those taking advantage of their office computers to do a little online shopping. You likely have plenty of gift options for…
It is now post time. My Saratoga training began well: like many summer runners, I made the transition from Belmont to Saratoga well, with a series of works showing steady improvement. I familiarized myself with the course, adjusting to the different upstate running route, learning the configuration, the potential challenges, benefitting from the cool Saratoga…
Last summer, I wrote about a filly who went through the ring during the New York bred sales in Saratoga; she sold for $200,000 and is a half-sister to New York favorite Naughty New Yorker. By Songandaprayer out of Naughty Natisha, the filly makes her racing début on Wednesday in the second race at Belmont.…
The attention paid here over the weekend to Rachel and Russell might have led readers to believe that little else was happening in the racing world, so we’re taking a minute to recap other points of interest: Ventured out for my second visit to twilight racing on Friday afternoon; the Festival Tent had been taken…
It’s hard not to consider New York’s premier day of racing an unqualified success. Handle was unimaginably impressive; the place was packed with happy people enjoying a day at the races; Summer Bird, Tim Ice, and Kent Desormeaux provide terrific storylines and a satisfying ending to the Triple Crown season; and all the horses and…
From the New York Thoroughbred Breeders comes news of the inaugural running of a new race at Saratoga this year. It’s scheduled for Saturday, August 15th (the same day as the Sword Dancer); it’s open to entrants of all ages and both sexes; and at three miles, it’s longer than most races you’ll see at…
Brooklyn Backstretch 