In his latest column on ESPN, Steve Davidowitz frets over the atypically (for racing as a whole) large field size (20) for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby. More specifically, with so many horses jostling for position, Davidowitz imagines a nightmarish pileup and…
From Wayne County, NY comes word of an animal cruelty seizure involving, among others, 16 horses in various debased conditions. Wayne County Investigator Tom Littlefield (WHAM): “Faced with that [bad hay and moldy corn] the horses have nothing left to…
In an article posted on ESPN (“Of Diamonds and Ovals,” 2/15/14), professional handicapper Steve Davidowitz attempts, odiously, to bond his two favorite pastimes – baseball and horseracing. He can do this, apparently, because one, these sports began around the same…
3-year-old Chriselliam, winner of the BC Juvenile Fillies Turf in November, was euthanized Friday in England, unable to overcome a foot infection. With wisdom, owner Chris Wright reminds us that “only the good die young.” Pathetic. The racing people are…
Sunday’s Akron Beacon Journal tells an all-too-familiar tale (New York, West Virginia, Indiana, etc.) of a “drying up” racing industry being propped by the corporate welfare that is euphemistically referred to as a “state-business partnership.” It goes something like this:…
St Nicholas Abbey, a much-celebrated former champion, has died from colic. As previously covered, the 6-year-old Irish Thoroughbred underwent several procedures – which included 20 screws, 2 plates, a steel pin, and a bone graft – after breaking his pastern…
Racing’s biggest problem, according to the racers themselves, is the perception of a pervasive drug culture. They fret on this for good reason: The New York Times says (10/31/13), “Nearly four in five bettors — 79 percent — factored in…
I confess to not being interested in the perils of jockeyhood. It’s not that I don’t care about injured riders, just that what they do is entirely voluntary. Jockeys choose to risk life and limb for a paycheck; the horse,…
David Willmot, former CEO of Woodbine Entertainment Group (owner of the prestigious Woodbine Racetrack), gave a 2001 speech on the then-state of Ontario Horseracing (which has since taken a significant turn for the worse). With uncommon candor, at least for…
3-year-old Sonic Dancer died yesterday afternoon at Keeneland. In race 6, the colt snapped his right leg and threw jockey Calvin Borel in the process. Because the stricken Borel was in harm’s way, the race was stopped, declared a no-contest.…
As you’ve probably noticed, I am now regularly reporting all Thoroughbreds and Quarter Horses vanned off American tracks after actual races (training accidents are closely guarded secrets). One pro-racing reader took umbrage at the implication, arguing that not every horse…
Oscar Pistorius, the “Blade Runner” sprinter who became a media darling at the London Olympics for competing without legs, ran a race last December against an Arabian horse in Qatar, ostensibly to raise disabilities awareness. A sorry spectacle, sure, but…
