JC / Railbird

News Archive

Noted: January 20

– Sunshine Millions draws 140 pre-entries. The Classic drew 26 pre-entries, including Malibu winner Proud Tower Too, Lava Man, and Buzzards Bay.
– French apprentice Julien Leparoux leads Turfway standings. The protegé of trainer Patrick Biancone has won 23 of 78 races so far this meet.
– Officials meet on possible plan to save Atlantic City Race Course. The talks are centered around a plan to renovate the 1940s era facility and add racing days.
– Equine herpes outbreak might force Pimlico closure.

Posted in News on January 20, 2006

Noted: January 17

– Andrew Beyer is no fan of the new Gulfstream: “[Stronach] has destroyed the old Gulfstream — not only its infrastructure but its atmosphere. He has replaced it with what is being described as an entertainment center with overtones of Las Vegas. I’d call it bizarre and perverse.”
– Motivator is named British Horse of the Year. The Epsom Derby winner was retired to stud last October due to injury after finishing fifth in the Arc de Triomphe.
– Blue bridles are crashing the Eclipse awards once more. This year’s ceremony “is poised to honor another bunch of relative bargains.”

Posted in News on January 17, 2006

Noted: January 15

– Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Folklore makes her three-year-old debut in the Santa Ynez at Santa Anita on Monday. “It’s a coming out party and she’s had a lengthy break. I think she’ll do fine,” said trainer D. Wayne Lukas.
– Louise Gans, who attended the Kentucky Derby 85 times, died at the age of 102 on Thursday.
– The National Handicapping Championship begins in two weeks, and contestants are preparing for the trip to Las Vegas, where they’ll compete against hundreds of other horseplayers for half a million dollars. Bill Finley is rooting for Hurricane Katrina survivor William Gonsoulin Jr.; the Happy Handicapper hopes to debunk Damon Runyon’s adage that “all horseplayers die broke.”

Posted in News on January 15, 2006

Noted: January 13

– Retired jockey Gary Stevens makes his debut as a TVG analyst on Saturday. “Gary offers a unique perspective that viewers will really want to hear,” said Tony Allevato, TVG senior vice president and executive producer. “We think he is going to be a superstar on television.”
– Nick Kling has a few suggestions for New York’s Ad Hoc Committee on the Future of Racing. Here’s a good one: “Why shouldn’t the panel of Stewards at every New York racetrack have a fourth member, one chosen by bettors?”
– “Like a centenarian who still dances on Saturday night, Cormorant hasn’t lost his spirit. His reddish-brown eyes, unusually bright, watch the world with weary curiosity rather than the explosive aggression that defined his youth.”
– Interesting: This article about Massachusetts politicians-turned-lobbyists glancingly mentions that Raynham dog track owner George Carney has applied for 20 live thoroughbred racing days at the Brockton Fair on days Suffolk Downs isn’t racing.

Posted in News on January 13, 2006