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July 2008 - Posts
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If you claim enough horses — and in this case, “enough” is probably equivalent to, say, three — you’ll have good ones and bad. There’s no way to control for all the variables in the claiming business.
It’s safe...
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Our fellow blogger Teresa, over at Brooklyn Backstretch, suggested (here) a few weeks ago that she and I are, as she put it, “separated-at-birth siblings.”
At the time, I poopooed the idea as a suggestion that would come as news to our mothers...
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The idea of a commissioner (or, in some circles, czar) of racing has gained major traction in recent months among many who bemoan racing’s myriad problems.Indeed, it’s become somewhat of a holy grail, a catch-all solution for everything that...
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One of the best steps that racing could take to improve the health and well-being of the largest number of horses is to raise purses, not for better horses but for worse ones: claiming horses, particularly bottom-level claimers. If need be — and...
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A thoroughbred barn just before the races begin is like a locker room before game time.
The rituals of preparation are in full swing. One horse is walking the shedrow, getting the blood flowing, the legs stretched. Others are pawing at the ground, stamping...
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Tomorrow begins what is my favorite part of the national racing calendar. Del Mar opens, Saratoga can’t be far off, and that means that summer is upon us at last.
Last year marked my first-ever trip to Del Mar, and time and distance will conspire...
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Jess Jackson has a bit of a conundrum on his hands. It’s a good problem to have, but a challenging one nonetheless.
Curlin’s second-place finish in yesterday’s G1 Man O’ War at Belmont Park left Jackson with plenty of arguments...
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It’s somehow typical of horse racing — the sport characterized by decentralization, not to say disarray — that, after years of fans suffering in silence, there are suddenly not one but two groups aiming to give voice to the long-suffering...
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In recent months, much has been made about the cruelty — or at least, callousness — of horse racing.
The court of public opinion, seemingly, has decided: horsemen, trainers in particular, are bad guys. They drug their horses. They drive them...
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I don’t blog much about betting, and there’s a simple reason for that: I don’t bet very often, or very much.
It’s certainly not a moral stance; indeed, I got into racing as an owner specifically through my love of handicapping...
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At the sales, flashy good looks and a good family background are what matter most. Thoroughbred sales are all about people, and the auction ring is ultimately that most human of endeavors: the popularity contest.
Which is interesting, since once the horses...
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On Saturday, July 5, Monmouth Park will host the United Nations Stakes, a Grade I turf test for horses three years and older contested at 1 3/8 miles.
On Saturday, July 12, Belmont Park will host the Man O’ War Stakes, a Grade I turf test for horses...
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