On an afternoon that saw the thermometer hit 93 degrees to kick off the 2013 Spa meet, the hottest moment of the afternoon came when two speedy fillies hit the wire together in the Grade 3 Schuylerville. Recalling the 2012 Travers, when Alpha and Golden Ticket dead-heated, Brazen Persuasion and Bahnah finished too close to…
By the time the gates fly open for the first race today at 1 p.m., tens of thousands of words will have been written about this summer’s Saratoga meeting. They will have appeared in turf publications, in newspapers, and in magazines. Races will have been handicapped, predictions will have been made, visitors’ guides will have…
After meeting with the media earlier in the day July 17, New York Racing Association president and chief executive officer Christopher Kay made his first public appearance at the annual Saratoga Race Course meet preview at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Kay was one of five panelists who took questions from moderator Brien…
“Skip the horse races in Saratoga Springs.” So advised New York Magazine in May, suggesting instead that visitors take advantage of the myriad other delights of the small city in upstate New York: the restaurants, the hotels, the parks. A former and erstwhile Saratoga resident, I heartily endorse all of those things, along with many…
Despite a press conference that was at times contentious, New York Racing Association president and CEO Chris Kay said that he hopes to be at the helm of NYRA for a long time. Kay met with members of the Saratoga Race Course press corps Jul 17, taking questions for approximately 30 minutes on topics ranging…
Last March, I was standing at Gulfstream Park watching morning workouts when I got a phone call from a woman named Patricia Lane. She was, she said, producing a documentary on Saratoga for the racing sesquicentennial, and she wondered whether I might be interested in being interviewed for it. Thrilled and nervous, I sat with…
As Saratoga Race Course celebrates its 150th anniversary, racing figures look back on their favorite memories and share what the track and city mean to them. Julie Krone, Hall of Fame jockey Saratoga is not just a race meet, it’s such a mix of people really honoring summertime. You acknowledge that the days are long,…
“Mr. Morrissey deserves great credit for the excellent manner in which the whole detail of his attractive entertainment is managed.” So wrote an approving reporter in the Aug. 4, 1863, edition of the Daily Saratogian, following the first day of the inaugural racing meet in the village of Saratoga Springs. Visitors to the little track…
On Saturday at 1 p.m., the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame and handicapper Tom Amello are teaming up to help Saratoga-area racing fans brush up on their handicapping skills before the meet opens on Friday, July 19. A former host of Capital OTB’s “Trackfacts” (unfortunately cancelled in the last year by the…
High quality racing, customer service, and history were the subjects of a New York Racing Association media event June 24 in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., at which the organization’s executives detailed plans for this summer’s race meet. While this summer’s meet will be the 145th in Saratoga, both the town and the track are celebrating the…
Brooklyn Backstretch 