The Paulick Report (11/7) says that Oaklawn Park has received a record number of stall applications for the upcoming meet (Jan 9th). The reason: a record amount of available purse money ($23 million). On the surface, all seems rosy in…
“The only reason it’s [Aqueduct Racetrack] in business is because of the casino.” (horseplayer “Harry the Horse,” Gothamist) Writer Max Rivlin-Nadler sets the scene on Aqueduct’s Opening Day (Oct 29th): “Aqueduct, with its wooden seats, tobacco-stained walls, and cavernous feel,…
“We have come a very long way at The Big A. Investing $14 million in capital funds over the course of the past 16 months, we have transformed the very look and feel of Aqueduct Racetrack, and tried to further…
An unnamed 2-year-old filly “collapsed and died” while training at Belmont Saturday morning. 2-year-old horses – the rough equivalent of 2nd-grade children – should not, of course, just collapse and die, but fret not – the Gaming Commission assures that…
Two more horses have perished at Belmont Park, bringing that track’s 2014 Kill Total to 36: 4-year-old Zaikov, who hadn’t been raced since last December, went down – fractured humerus – while training yesterday morning. For trainer Todd Pletcher, that’s…
After 62 races – all but two, claiming – over five years, 8-year-old Funky Country was scheduled to be retired. Problem was, he had one more race left on his sentence – a cheap run on Suffolk Downs’ final day.…
Yet another horse who was merely reported as vanned off has turned up dead. Yesterday, 3-year-old Stenson fractured sesamoids in the 1st race at Belmont. Today, he is gone. As a young, promising colt, he no doubt received a little…
For some who’ve long been immersed in the horseracing culture, objectivity has all but vanished. As the Suffolk Downs era draws to an end, Ray Paulick offers this: “It took the sweat and hard work of more than 4,000 workers…
A day after learning that the new Boston-area casino will not go to Suffolk Downs, that track’s COO, Chip Tuttle, announced September 29th as the final day of live racing. Suffolk, a losing proposition since 2006, will close for good…
6-year-old (44 races) Tale of Lucknfame – trained and owned by Rebecca Johnston – broke down Friday at Belterra, bringing that track’s two-day fallen-horse total to three (Funnysman Dream, Kingliest). What’s more, Penn National also lost three horses in a…
In a recent U-T San Diego article, the president of the Thoroughbred Owners of California called the Del Mar summer a “Murphy’s Law meet.” And Joe Harper of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club described it as “a strange thing, weird.”…
In promoting its product – exploiting horses for gambling – Saratoga Race Course cynically targets young families, hoping, of course, to lure and condition the next generation of “fans” (bettors). Toward that end, the New York Racing Association (NYRA) offered…
