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The text message from Josh Pons arrived Nov. 14 at 5:15 p.m. Hmm…knowing he wasn’t in town for the Keeneland November sale, we wondered what he was up to. The message read: “E: In a 1932 storage box, unopened since packed in NY in 1933 for shipment to his new farm in Md, is a file penciled on cover as ‘Unfinished.’ Inside, Saratoga sales memo to ...

Family holiday trips can take some horsepeople to a “no-man’s land” where racing and the Thoroughbred industry are off the grid. Case in point: a Thanksgiving spent in Chester, Vt. As quaint as New England quaint can be, with temperatures the lowest in generations (1 degree Thanksgiving morning) to add to the flavor, Southern Vermont is an ...

In addition to the glamour of the Triple Crown season and the summer joys of Saratoga and Del Mar, there is plenty of horse business to be had in late November, both on the track and in the sale ring. Veteran Turf writer Bob Ehalt takes us back to the glory days of late-autumn racing at Meadowlands. Living in New York and New Jersey in the 1980s ...

The late John Gaines was a master of many phases of the Thoroughbred industry: breeding, racing, and selling. Part of his marketing genius in the 1980s was to invest in older mares that had produced several stakes performers and breed them to one of the many stallions he had at his Gainesway Farm, so when the foals hit the yearling sales the ...

Most owners, trainers, and racing fans were tricked by the Halloween deluge in Louisville, Ky., that dumped several inches of rain on the main track and turf course at Churchill Downs. However, the sport sure got a treat once the horses hit the track for the Nov. 2-3 Breeders’ Cup. The main track dried out under a wind-whipped autumn day, and the ...

Included are all races except for the Classic, which will have a column of its own. Also check the final column for any changes and updates based on late defections and final observations from the morning’s activities. FILLY AND MARE SPRINT – This race promises to have an early cavalry charge, with so much speed. One of the fastest fillies, ...

The Thoroughbred industry is full of good stories, and few told better ones than Cot Campbell. The man who pioneered racing partnerships through the development of Dogwood Stable passed Oct. 27 at 91. Campbell brought hundreds of people to racing ownership through Dogwood and entertained thousands with his narratives, yarns, and anecdotes. He ...

The analysis of Friday’s and Saturday’s races will touch on favorites and longshots, but the emphasis is on value, so I’ll be looking mainly for price horses who could be worth a straight win bet. I will have an analysis of Friday’s card on today, followed by Saturday’s card excluding the Classic, and then the Classic. Any updates in the first ...

All it takes is a look at the list of Breeders’ Cup Juvenile winners to know that the Juvenile and the Kentucky Derby are worlds apart. Not only does winning the biggest race for 2-year-olds have no bearing on what a horse does on the first Saturday in May, history tells us you’re better off eliminating the Juvenile winner from Derby ...