JC / Railbird

Suffolk Downs Archive

One Race

Call Me Mr. Vain was the winningest horse in North America in 2003 with 11 wins; he spent most of 2004 in his stall, recovering from a tendon injury. His owner/trainer called me this afternoon to let me know that Mr. Vain was running in the third at Charles Town tonight and that he was going to “run big.” I was skeptical — it’s a rare trainer who doesn’t think his horse will win every time it goes out — but a look at the third race, which was one of those messy cheap claiming affairs in which a lot of horses don’t make much sense, showed that Mr. Vain was easily one of the contenders, and so my racing companion and I ventured out to East Boston, arriving in time for the second race at Charles Town.

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Posted in Suffolk Downs on January 13, 2005

Struggling Suffolk

May “be forced” to develop more land. This is just the sort of article that stirs up a New England racing fan’s anxiety, even if it’s no more than a reminder of Suffolk Downs’ precarious situation and reports little new information. (Boston Globe)

Posted in Suffolk Downs on January 4, 2005

Suffolk Handle, Attendance Up

“Suffolk Downs posted increases in daily average handles and attendance in 2004, the first season the track operated as the lone Thoroughbred track in New England,” reports the Daily Racing Form. The average daily handle was more than $1.1 million from all sources, an increase of 5.3% over 2003, while average daily attendance rose 5.5% to 3421.

Posted in Suffolk Downs on December 4, 2004

‘Til Next Spring

That’s all for Ascot Doll and Suffolk Downs until 2005
The season ended at Suffolk Downs today, and my racing companion and I snuck away from work to catch a little action. We arrived barely in time for the third race; the horses were being loaded in the gate as we entered the grandstand. No matter, the race we really wanted to see was the fourth, in which our mutual favorite, Ascot Doll, was running. This afternoon was the first time Ascot Doll had raced since late June owing to an ankle injury, and he didn’t run as well as his trainer would have liked (he was, alas, last by several lengths), but he returned to the barn sound and peppy and all was forgiven. The Doll is going to a farm for the winter and will be back at Suffolk next spring, just as I’m sure I will.

Posted in Suffolk Downs on November 29, 2004