Approaching Ocala from the north on 301, the signs, both literal and figurative, let you know that you’re coming into horse country. North of town, a big billboard points you towards a restaurant called The Yearling, named for the eponymous Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings book (which is actually about a fawn and not a horse, but…

As expected, there was a lot of movement in our Brooklyn Backstretch Road to the Roses League yesterday. I’ve begun my descent to the bottom, and Superfecta’s Sleipnir Stables has vaulted to the top. Thanks to Brian’s previews and recaps, I probably know more about Derby hopefuls this year than I have any other year—but…

The big news this week is that last year’s winner and the leader so far this year, Triple Crown73 Stable, has been knocked from the top spot. She’s far too scary, though, to be counted out at this point—those in the #1 spot, keep your eyes out for her! The current donation is $130, with…

Having been homebound with the flu this week, I unfortunately caught the dreadful spill in Wednesday’s second race at Aqueduct. Though the fallen horses and jockeys were visible on the screen for only a moment, John Imbriale’s voice, halting as he called the two horses of seven starters who crossed the finish line, told us…

Sundays are pretty good these days for Joe Parker. Last week, he took the Busher with his talented filly What A Pear, and yesterday, Gold Close to Him won the fourth race at Aqueduct. The chestnut gelding had raced seven times for Gary Contessa before coming to Parker in a claim a week ago. He’d…

The wonderfully whimsical world of racing language offers a seemingly unending array of linguistic puzzles. We’ve got “breezed” and “placed,” previously discussed here, and lately, I’ve been thinking about “bounce.” One need not consult a dictionary to determine the word’s literal and figurative meanings, which in most cases are positive when the word is used…

After watching the first week of Jockeys and reading regular updates on subsequent episodes, I haven’t seen/read much that would inspire me to devote much of my viewing time to it. Trust the Quinella Queen to find the little bit of literary wheat among all the chaff! The Internet’s best turf-loving librarian takes us behind…

The first person I spoke to at Aqueduct on Sunday told me that he’d come out to the track to cheer on Joe Parker’s filly in the Busher. That person must have been very, very happy at about 3:51 pm. Channing Hill sat the rail aboard What A Pear, stalking comfortably in third until they…

So the first week of Road to the Roses is in the books, and I’m still in the realm of respectable. The standings: Tied for first: Triple Crown73 Stable, The Aspiring Horseplayer Redux, Grevelis Racing Stable, Big Dreams Stable 5th: Blake Griffin For President Tied for 6th: Vision Stable and Tripledeadheat Tied for 8th: Brooklyn…

Monday at Aqueduct, before the fifth race: A journalism student, covering the Big A for a school assignment, looking bored and utterly uninterested in the goings-on below, asks a veteran turf writer: “So what are you writing about today?” Turf Writer explains that he’s likely going to be focusing on out-of-town racing, given the stakes…