Jim Williams, who is retiring as Keeneland's director of communications, looks back at 38 years on the job. ...
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Bobby Frankel was not for everybody. I was crazy about him....
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Santa Anita, with its Pro-Ride synthetic surface, may have evened things up between the Europeans and North Americans. But reverting to dirt in 2010 at Churchill Downs and the likelihood of the same at Belmont Park in 2011 is a distinct turn-off....
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The two best anti-aging remedies I've been fortunate enough to find are running and breeding Thoroughbreds on our small upstate New York farm....
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The unselfish, hard-working human and equine stars of the Sport of Kings still treat fans like kings....
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Looking back at Windfields Farm's 1982 Keeneland July Sale consignment which included Devil's Bag, Secreto, and a small, backward, and timid filly that needed a good friend and lots of time....
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I was training a weanling filly the other day and was struck by how she had shaped herself into a metaphor for racing. She will go sideways and backward, but, stubbornly to the point of frustration, never forward....
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A few months ago the Thoroughbred world lost a champion. Rare Menace was euthanized due to infirmities of old age. He raced six times at ages 2 and 3 at Suffolk Downs and Meadowlands, in six-furlong maiden-claiming races, never finishing better than eighth....
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Aug. 4 started out innocently enough, as my two daughters and I planned to drive to Churchill Downs to see the Kentucky Derby Museum. It turned out to be an adventure that will no doubt be vividly remembered by all three of us for years to come.
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The scope of the problem of unwanted horses is hotly debated. Some declare there are no unwanted horses. Others retort the problem is growing dramatically. ...
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I would argue that in any business dealing with the care of live animals, efficiency is not the paramount concern. ...
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Formed in 1943, The Jockey Club Foundation is a charitable trust that provides financial relief and assistance to needy members of the Thoroughbred industry and their families....
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Many times I have asked myself whether the goal of breeders shouldn't be to produce horses with good conformation, good speed, and good sense....
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In 48 hours, Nick Ben-Meir experienced the highest of highs and the lowest of lows with Poker Handicap (gr. IIIT) winner Sailor's Cap....
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In almost every publication pertaining to our industry, the number-one concern is what to do with the dying fan base at our racetracks. My suggestion is not a new one, just another look at the problem. It certainly won't fix all of the internal problems, but it might help the industry have a better chance at survival.
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The Thoroughbred community, like the country, is enduring a string of bad years. I often wonder what it will take for our sport to survive....
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Calvin Borel, Bennie "Chip" Woolley Jr., and Mine That Bird stole the show in the 135th running of the Kentucky Derby. The upset victory was a Cinderella story if there ever was one....
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One of Louisville's favorite sons, the legendary (and late) Hunter S. Thompson, added his own flair to the art of news reporting and journalism in the 1970s with his "Gonzo" brand of writing....
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Shortly after my 18th birthday I sat down with my dad for one of those father-son conversations. I had approached him for his advice on what to do with my life. ...
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Not too many years ago racing had one less fan. She was a "sometimer," one of the many who watch the Derby, the Preakness, maybe the Belmont Stakes (all gr. I) if it appears a horse might duplicate the feat of Secretariat, Seattle Slew, and Affirmed. This casual observer loved the beauty and grace of the horse but knew nothing of stakes, furlongs, stud farms, or Bluegrass....
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If it wasn't for a bum knee, April 2 wouldn't have been retirement day for 48-year-old Billy Troilo....
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Even though the Kentucky Derby is a month away, the spotlight is shining brightly on safety issues relating to Thoroughbred racing. Recent media accounts provide ample evidence that over the next two months, and perhaps for a much longer period, we are going to be under the microscope like in no other time as we near the one-year anniversary of Eight Belles' tragic accident....
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Picking up a newspaper or turning on the television to learn today's bad economic news has become part of our daily lives. It is not exclusively a Kentucky problem by any stretch of the imagination. In Kentucky, as in other states, government officials are forced to make difficult decisions....
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The American Association of Equine Practitioners recently released its White Paper containing veterinary recommendations for improving the safety and welfare of the Thoroughbred racehorse. It is an admirable effort and contains many constructive suggestions for the racing industry to consider....
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"Nobody's getting thrown in the tank anymore," said Marion Gross one afternoon in late May 1986. "By the way, who are y'all throwing in?"...
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