Checking In …
– Happy holidays, everyone, and best wishes for the new year. Railbird is on semi-hiatus through January 2.
– Santa Anita opened on Monday with a crowd of nearly 35,000. “It’s wonderful,” said Rick Hammerle, Santa Anita’s racing secretary. “It’s almost like the old days when we didn’t have the Hollywood fall meet, and we went straight [from the Oak Tree meet] to here. People are just glad to be back.” Cal-bred longshot Proud Tower Too won the Malibu over favorite Attila’s Storm. Thor’s Echo was third; Wilko finished a distant eleventh, bringing his losing streak to seven since his upset win in the 2004 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.
– Michael Blowen, founder of racehorse retirement haven Old Friends Farm, “is a real, legitimate do-gooder.”
– Trainer Tim Ritchey gears up for winter with 35 horses at Oaklawn and another 15 at Gulfstream, including four promising juveniles.
– “A year ago, Greater Good was billed as one of Oaklawn Park’s ‘Big Three’ Kentucky Derby hopefuls. Today, Greater Good is simply trying to rebuild his once promising career.”
– It’s Eclipse balloting time: Dave Litfin, Ed McNamara, and Paul Daley reveal their votes.
