I remember the first time I saw Shakespeare. It was the day of the Jockey Club Gold Cup in 2005, and I’d headed out to Belmont with a couple of fellow English teacher friends, and he, along with English Channel, was running in the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic Invitational. We bet to win, we bet…
Though the last major points-earning preps took place on Saturday, April 12, the Kentucky Derby field continued to take shape through last week, with the inevitable defections due to injury. Significant withdrawals include Constitution, the Florida Derby winner trained by the multiple Eclipse Award winning Todd Pletcher, and Cairo Prince, owned in part by Dubai’s…
At dawn yesterday, Kiaran McLaughlin might have been a pretty happy man. He and his staff were trying to get their Grade 1-winning filly It’s Tricky ready to run in the Coaching Club American Oaks, trying to get her out of her stall and stalk her, but the notoriously difficult filly was having none of…
It was standing room only in the Hall of Fame at the National Museum of Racing last night; I arrived about ten minutes before the 7:00 start time, and Museum staff were scurrying to find extra chairs to bring in. Last evening’s guests at the annual Saratoga meeting preview were NYRA president Charlie Hayward; racing…
The last few weeks have been pretty good ones for Anna House, with a steady stream of visitors stopping by to visit the children and to see in action the good work of the Belmont Child Care Association. A few weeks ago, Kiaran McLaughlin stopped by to have lunch with the children. McLaughlin and Edgar…
Nice day for Kiaran McLaughlin at the Big A on Friday: he had three winners and swept the early double with Labadeel and Cadet Blue. He also took the finale with Hatta Diamond. Three owners, three jocks (Garcia, Maragh, Dominguez). Anyone paying attention to racing knows that today’s feature at Aqueduct is the eponymously named…
Brooklyn Backstretch 