I love the word “vagary.” It comes from the Latin vagari, “to wander”; one definition is “an erratic, unpredictable, or extravagant manifestation, action, or notion.” I also rather like alliteration. Horse of the Year. Hart Trophy. Halls of Fame. Hockey. Horse racing. Hmm…surely something there to wander through? And maybe a great excuse to finally figure…
On Saturday night, after spending the day at Aqueduct, I stumbled across The Rocket, a 2007 Canadian movie about Maurice Richard, who played for the Canadiens from 1942 to 1950 1960. Richard was the first player both to score 500 goals in a career and to score 50 goals in 50 games. One of the…
A quick check-in before heading upstate to see the family, catch the last of the fall foliage along the Taconic, and squeeze in one more visit to the Oklahoma before training there comes to an end next month. Bennett Liebman has provided some further information and stories on the Saratoga saddling area, this one from…
For most people in the world, today is just another Monday, just another June 14th. But for New York Rangers’ fans, it’s the anniversary of the day that “will last a lifetime,” in the unfortunately likely prophetic words of Sam Rosen, the day that the New York Rangers, after 54 years of futility, finally, finally…
Given that I generally still refer to the Patrick Division and the Campbell Conference, one would correctly surmise that I’m not a big fan of eviscerating history in the name of modernization. It seems silly to me that a huge banner in the clubhouse at Saratoga reads “The Go For Wand Est. 1954” when the…
In some ways, my weekend trip to Woodbine was ill-timed: the opening of Saratoga in two days leaves too little time to discuss Woodbine in the detail it deserves; I couldn’t stay for Sunday’s Nijinsky, featuring local favorite Rahy’s Attorney; and it poured nearly constantly on Saturday afternoon, confining us to the indoors for most…
Brooklyn Backstretch 