So I arrive at downtown law firm to take care of a little business; I’ve never been there, I don’t know this firm, and I figure that I’ll be waiting a while, so I’ve brought a book, The Buccaneers, an unfinished novel by Edith Wharton. I open the novel in the waiting room, and read…
Not that one needs an excuse to head to Saratoga, even briefly, but a bit of business called me there this week, and I used it as an opportunity to mix business with all kinds of Saratoga pleasure. Mama Backstretch had not yet made the acquaintance of Furlong and Ruffian, so they made the trip…
The attention paid here over the weekend to Rachel and Russell might have led readers to believe that little else was happening in the racing world, so we’re taking a minute to recap other points of interest: Ventured out for my second visit to twilight racing on Friday afternoon; the Festival Tent had been taken…
For better or worse (and it appears mostly better), New York racing has been in the news a lot over the last week or so. In no particular order: –Charles Hayward appeared in Saratoga last week to discuss various elements of the upcoming racing season. In what will be welcome news to many, there will…
April is the cruellest month, breedingLilacs out of the dead land, mixingMemory and desire, stirringDull roots with spring rain.–“The Wasteland,” T.S. Eliot Adding myself to the legions who have quoted Eliot’s words out of context, I drove onto the barren grounds of the Oklahoma on Saturday morning. Early balminess had given way to gray chill;…
Saturday morning was the coldest so far of this early fall; I’d remembered to bring a winter coat and scarf to Saratoga, but neglected gloves, and leaving the house at 7:45 am, I regretted the oversight. The morning was gorgeous: crisp and incredibly blue, throwing the colors in the trees into brighter relief. I couldn’t…
This may be the longest good-bye in the history of Saratoga. I know, I know, it ended three days ago, and I’ve already posted twice about it, but there are so many notes and overheards and photos and images that I kept meaning to write about and didn’t quite get to…so I swear, this is…
What a good idea to have the Spinaway and the Hopeful on closing weekend; as we resist acknowledging that our days at the Spa are coming to end, we are given something to look forward to, the promise of two-year-olds of whom we hope we will see much more in the coming months. In week…
The far turn, 7 pm, closing day. A full Week 6 re-cap to follow on Wednesday morning…
On Saturday at Saratoga, the main event, the Grade I Woodward, will be preceded by the Grade I Forego, named for the horse who won the Woodward for four consecutive years (1974 – 1977) and who was named Horse of the Year in the first three of those years. That the Forego and the Woodward…
Brooklyn Backstretch 