JC / Railbird

Racing Archive

For the Last Time

Andrew Beyer, writing today:

When the Blue Grass Stakes is run at Keeneland on Saturday, it is unlikely to produce the next Kentucky Derby winner. Though it was once the most important 3-year-old prep race, it became irrelevant after Keeneland replaced its dirt track with a synthetic surface. None of the seven horses who captured the Blue Grass on Polytrack proceeded to win on Churchill Downs’s dirt; most ran dismally.

Jeff Scott, writing on Monday:

Some people think this race has lost relevance since it started being run on Polytrack in 2007. The fact is, though, that the Blue Grass has produced by far the most Kentucky Derby starters (26) of the five Grade 1 Derby preps since Polytrack has been in place. The Arkansas Derby is next with 20, followed by the Santa Anita Derby (17), Florida Derby (16) and Wood Memorial (14). Only the Arkansas Derby has had more Derby starters hit the board (four) than the Blue Grass (three).

Posted in Racing on April 9, 2014 / Tagged Blue Grass Stakes

Arty Aqueduct

Last weekend, I visited Aqueduct for the first time since leaving New York City back in 2010, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. Jerry Bossert reported abysmal conditions at the track earlier this year. NYRA board members complained about grime and birds in the Equestris buffet. Even though Left at the Gate defended the place, with photos that made it look pretty good, I still wondered if I might find a crumbling, neglected clubhouse filled with flocks of pigeon toughs menacing degenerates for their hot dogs, the decay and disorder made all the more pronounced by the gleaming casino floor a short walk away.

But the track was actually in much better shape than I remembered or anticipated, a happy surprise, and mostly clean.* The new Longshots bar and simulcasting center was open and bustling on Saturday, the fresh paint throughout was nice, and the Aqueduct Murals were a real delight:

*The exception was the unrenovated second floor outdoor seating, where fans were crammed into the last section past the finish line. Trash strewn, unpleasant, and with poor sightlines to the paddock and track, it was just a downer spending any time out there. I was disappointed to realize it and the apron are now the only accessible outdoor space. (So, views like this from my old favorite spot in the third floor box seat area are no more.)

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With Wicked Strong’s Wood win, Boston gets a Kentucky Derby connection. The colt, named in honor of the community spirit that pervaded the city after the 2013 Boston Marathon attack, runs for Massachusetts-based Centennial Farms, and a portion of his earnings go to The One Fund. He earned a Beyer speed figure of 104 for the Wood, a new career high by 17 points. TimeformUS also gave him a new career topper of 117, 25 points above his previous best on their scale, and four points higher than what they gave California Chrome for winning the Santa Anita Derby. He was given a Beyer of 107 for his victory in that race. Charts and replays for both, and the updated Kentucky Derby leaderboard, are available via the 2014 prep schedule spreadsheet.

Posted in Racing on April 8, 2014 / Tagged Aqueduct

Coming Clean

You’ve probably read Andrew Cohen’s “The Ugly Truth About Horse Racing” by now. As I said on Twitter, it’s a call to conscience for all of us in racing to acknowledge the dark side of our game. “Must admit my first reaction was to get defensive,” @loomsboldy replied, “but the more I thought about it …”

This is what I thought about it:

It made me feel real shame for being silent. I saw a horse get milkshaked, and win. I didn’t tell anyone.

I saw a vet inject a horse a few hours before a race with a substance that was not an allowed raceday drug.

I saw a horse so hobbled by joint deterioration it hurt to watch it walk, but with bute, it could pass a raceday vet check.

In each instance, I believed that it was not my business or my place to say something. I was wrong.

The excuses I made then and after? Cohen stripped them away.

There’s much more I’d like to say about the recent New York Times-PETA exposé, but for now, I’ll start by admitting my complicity as a “good” racing person who didn’t speak up when I saw things that were not right.

Posted in Racing on March 25, 2014 / Tagged #fullstoryracing