JC / Railbird

The Sport Archive

The Dog Days of Racing

“There’s another feeling of nothingness in the air as racing trudges its way through this summer…. Few know and few care who wins races like the Suburban Handicap, the Hollywood Gold Cup, the United Nations, the Arlington Million or any of the Grade I events that dot the summer schedule.” A few owners and breeders are working to change that, Bill Finley reports (ESPN).

Posted in The Sport on July 7, 2004

So That Was Smarty’s Problem

It was the lack of distance races that cost Smarty Jones the Triple Crown, writes Earl Ola in the Blood-Horse. What the sport needs are more races 1 1/2 to 2 miles long, not fewer. What’s all this emphasis on speed, anyway?

Posted in The Sport on July 7, 2004

Out of Sight …

“Racing’s desperate mission this summer is keeping Smarty Jones alive,” writes Stan Bergstein in today’s Daily Racing Form. Not alive, of course — Smarty’s doing just fine, but alive in the public mind. It’s racing’s perpetual challenge. Too bad for trainers and tracks and fans alike — unlike human stars, horses don’t have wardrobe malfunctions, knock down paparazzi, or check themselves into rehab. If only! Think of the headlines.

Tangentially: “The good sports behind Azeri’s return” (ESPN).

Posted in The Sport on June 30, 2004