Forecast and warnings for NY’s Capital Region (including Saratoga Springs) today:
WRGB: “Intense heat and humidity is ahead for today with temperatures in the mid to upper 90s and heat indices in the triple digits.”
WNYT: “Much of the region is under a heat advisory from 11:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m. Temperatures will be close to the record high of 98 degrees.”
National Weather Service: “Stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. When possible, reschedule strenuous activities.” And the Times Union: “Hot temperatures and high humidity may cause heat illnesses to occur.”
With that as backdrop, from 1:05 to 6:13 today – i.e., the very worst part of the weather day – the New York Racing Association plans to conduct 10 races at Saratoga – with, as of this writing, zero intention of canceling. In defense, NYRA promises “cooling stations” and hyper-vigilant vets, with spokesman Patrick McKenna telling BloodHorse: “NYRA, the NYSGC, and horsemen are deeply experienced in dealing with hot conditions at Saratoga.” Well, that’s a relief. On the lighter side, Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas says: “My doctor told me that when it’s close to 90 I should not be out and stay in air conditioning. So, I had to change doctors.” Funny, huh?
By the way, total purse money for today’s races: $904,000. Enough said.
I was very concerned until I read the NYRA, NYSGC and horsemen are DEEPLY experienced in dealing with hot conditions at Saratoga.
I just hope they can stay out of the cooling stations long enough to put their deep experience to work for the horses they are putting at outrageous risk!
Is this worth the life of the animal? The owners and trainer Im sure are in ac and drinks provided
Really Rose Smith????? They care nothing about those horses. Open your eye and actually LOOK INTO the racing industry!
Teresa, Rose Smith was being sarcastic about pretending to believe that filthy, disgusting and FALSE suggestion that because the racing folks are “deeply experienced in dealing with hot conditions at Saratoga” that we should not be worried or concerned about the fact that they are going to force the horses into the starting gates come hell or high water. Of course, we well know that high temperatures and/or triple-digit heat is going to cause unnecessary suffering and death to racehorses more so than the usual suffering and death to racehorses.
It’s PURE EVIL greed Rotten to the core and YOU know it. Just because a minuscule number of horses get saved …. what about the MAJORITY who don’t teresa????????????
And, another thing …the hard knockin low level claimers,are the ones who should be saved FIRST!!!!!
Pampered high level horses hardly ever race …. Flightline for example. He’s had a very easy life,compared to the other 99%. This WHOLE industry is wrong on every level. When something has been started on an evil amoral premise from the inception …you can’t put “lipstick on a pig” …so they say. There is NO fixing this bs. It cannot be fixed because it’s rotted from the head down.
Can`t stand either D.W.Lucas or his retired jockey buddy Gary Stevens! Used to care for Stevens horses here in the NW when 1`st starting out as a groom in the 1980`s. Stevens never would allow us proper time to prepare the horse to be galloped on the track in the am.He was always in a hurry. 1 can read an article of his start and rise of his career from the NW tracks to the California circuit.Believe its an article in the Times around 1985. Interesting how D.W. Lucas from what other racing people have told us that he is against medications in racing & yet if you look up his entries all his horses run on all med.s legal for the track he is racing at.If he was truly anti-med then he would run with no Bute or Lasix!
Besides horses suffering from heat exhaustion and heat stroke in addition to the usual symptoms of RACING ABUSE, there could be some people that leave their children and/or their dogs in their cars so they can go inside and gamble.
The jockeys may or may not be fined by HISA for excessive use of the riding crops. It’s a legal question since the Jockeys’ Guild has challenged the court ruling; it’s in the wording of the court document naming the PLAINTIFFS & the DEFENDANTS. The Jockeys’ Guild thinks that excessive whipping should be something that they should NOT be fined for by HISA. It’s very clear that the Jockeys’ Guild doesn’t care about the horses.
#EndHorseracingNOW
#HorseracingisAnimalCruelty
Record temperatures and humidity, but the show must go on! Why don’t people have the sense to boycott the tracks? Addicted to gambling? Shut it down!
The weather report for Saratoga Springs, N.Y. at 11:29 A.M. was 89%, and high humidity feels like 100% so racing officials really need to review the dangers of allowing 10 races, starting at 1:00 P.M., the hottest part of the day, to take place? Apologies, I always forget that it is about the $2 bets and the hoopla of the track, not about the horses. The jockeys have a choice whether to ride or not, the horses do not have a choice whether to run or not/ chattel!
Look at this horse’s face. A truly torturous dexter ring bit and…..his tongue is tied horribly tight to his jaw. Let’s see how can we ramp up the discomfort to this pitiful creature? How about duck-taping his mouth shut! Yeah, that’ll do it! Horse-racing is just as brutal and horrifically cruel as bull-fighting. Only the horse is not stabbed to death! What is wrong with so many human minds?
Kudos!!! WELL said, and dead on true.
It doesn’t look like they are canceling at Saratoga.
I suppose the management figures they might deprive some horse-abusing human beings of the chance to “put food on the table” — that was the sickening excuse given for “knocking away” on a harness horse in a previous post.
Saratoga Race Track has much more concerning things to address than their racehorses’ welfare!
Posted a few hours ago before the start of racing there today…😳
https://www.facebook.com/182781271836057/posts/pfbid03tr8nRkU5d6g7mVnSRFLh5hiEs5JdK7Xq1nxNKBQMj4J8JA4vcU1yK6tYDhv256dl/?d=n
They are deeply experienced at killing horses, deeply experienced at refusing to take any responsibility whatsoever for their own actions and deeply experienced at blaming horse fatalities on bad luck.
I’ve made this snarky remark before ….but, it bears repeating,Saratoga,is a very old people town …mainly. So don’t be hard on them Joy,they need ‘assistance’ 🤣
Age has nothing to do with it.
Animal abusers come in all ages and all colors as do gambling addicts!!
Most attendees are from elsewhere, I would guess.
It’s a very “staid” town, that attracts an older crowd, that’s not to say some younger people don’t travel there.
Too late, Bonnie – I’m already blocked or the old geezer deleted his comment after I replied to it. 🥴
😱Whaaaaat.
money mad profiteers at saratoga race track and ny city horse carriages – digsuting idiots
I’m so sick of seeing this death of these beautiful beloved athletes on a regular basis the racing industry is all about the money they don’t give a damn about these any of these beloved horses That run for their life literally for these idiots money with no care because they end up in the kill pen if they’re not making money for them anymore it’s despicable I hate them and I pray God‘s vengeance and anybody that would treat an animal with such Conscious disregard and disrespect!!!!!!!!! Pure evil!!!!!!!!!!🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️
Carin, you are so correct. This is the REALITY for horses ….if they don’t win on a regular basis … it’s torturous tractor trailer ride for them to slaughter house.
Since they love their horses like family, let’s see the owners and the trainers go for a jog around the track in the vicious heat.
I am sad to read about all the abuses afflicted on horses through the cruel sport of horseracing which must end!