…the silence was most striking moments later, when track announcer John Imbriale let us know that the stewards were taking a look at the stretch run and that Midnight Bisou’s rider, Ricardo Santana Jr., had lodged an objection against the winner. Ordinarily, we’d have heard cries of disgust from the people holding tickets on,…
For years, when I would come to Saratoga Springs, New York, a week or two before the summer meeting began, I would wander around the racecourse, marveling at its beauty, soaking in its silence. Saratoga is my hometown, and, for those few days, I felt like the track was all mine. Selfishly, I wondered what…
The CEO of the New York Racing Association, O’Rourke hadn’t yet marked his first anniversary in the position when he was thrust into a maelstrom of a public health emergency, a financial crisis, and zero certainty about the future, both immediate and long-term. On March 7, Aqueduct Racetrack hosted the G3 Gotham Stakes, a…
For some Midlantic trainers who are Saratoga stalwarts, the summer of 2020 may well look similar to their operations in years past. But that doesn’t mean it will feel the same. For the last several years, Graham Motion has rotated horses between his Fair Hill base and his 10 stalls on Saratoga backstretch, leaving the…
Shortly after implementing new restrictions on the Saratoga Race Course jockey colony to address concerns about the spread of COVID-19, the New York Racing Association and officials from the City of Saratoga Springs announced July 14 additional safety measures that will be in place during this summer’s race meeting. The much-anticipated annual meet usually attracts tens of…
Brooklyn Backstretch 