By the time the Gotham was run last Saturday afternoon, Aqueduct might have been at its raw, freezing, wintry worst, but that didn’t seem to matter to the people who braved the elements and were rewarded with a heck of a horse race for their efforts. It was nice to see the old track—which saw…
Late Sunday night, the New York Racing Association announced what appears to be a hastily called board meeting for this Wednesday afternoon at 2 pm. Originally planned for March, the meeting will take place at a new venue—the law offices of Weil Gotshal and Magnes, not the Empire State Development Corporation, where all previous New…
“The second richest day in North American racing” will come to Belmont Park on June 7. That’s what the New York Racing Association (NYRA, and an occasional freelance client of mine) announced last week, in a reconfiguration of its springs/summer stakes schedule designed to create a blockbuster race card on the day of the Belmont…
Frisky Cat’s mother wasn’t much of a racehorse, but his sire, Tale of the Cat, was a multiple graded stakes winner, as was his damsire, Dynaformer. It seemed reasonable to expect that Frisky Cat, foaled in 2009, might be a moderate success on the racetrack. But, not infrequently, even horses with good bloodlines don’t find…
As the inner track opens for the 2013 winter meet, a look back into the archives, for how this unique racing surface came to be: It was nearly 70 degrees in New York yesterday; warmer temperatures and delayed darkness have many of us thinking spring. And for New York racing fans, there is no surer…
Last Wednesday, the Reorganization Board of the New York Racing Association approved a 2014 budget that included hikes in admission fees at Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course, from $3 to $5 for the grandstand, and from $5 to $8 for the clubhouse. The increase is designed to offset an expected $1.8 million deficit caused…
Public outcry against the proposed and approved increased admission prices at Belmont and Saratoga has been loud and sustained since the budget for the New York Racing Association was made public this week. Having attended this week’s board meeting, this long-time English teacher is now (perhaps dangerously) armed with all kinds of new financial expertise…
The reorganization board of the New York Racing Association met for the first time a year ago, but it wasn’t until its eighth meeting Dec. 4 that its members offered any significant disagreement to a proposal made by board chairman David Skorton. On the agenda was NYRA’s 2014 budget, one of the most contentious elements…
Saturday’s meeting was scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. EDT, the time the gates open at Belmont. But with few people in attendance, the forum was delayed until nearly 11:30 a.m., which put it up against a jockey autograph signing scheduled by the New York Racing Association. NYRA’s only role in the fan council forum…
On Saturday at Belmont Park, the New York Racing Association will run its annual autumn showcase for New York-bred horses. Re-named this year, Empire Showcase Day will feature 11 races exclusively for horses that were foaled in this state. More than 100 horses will compete for purse money totaling more than $1.6 million. Showcase Day…
Brooklyn Backstretch 