BloodHorse.com

by Vic ZastThe annual one-day fly hatching season came to an end with nightfall on Saturday.  Leaving the track was like battling locust.  The critters were pesky as mosquitoes in the Yukon as they flew into your hair and your mouth.  They disoriented you. High clouds through which you could see the sun if you really tried was the ...

Before we get to the Darley duo, we have to begin with a nursery story.Once upon a time, there was a boy (well, a boy in a man’s body) named Ken who had a kitten. As hard as Ken would try to find the kitten a home, no one was willing to take it in. So, Ken decided to keep the kitten and give it a good home. But the kitten grew into a big ferocious ...

by Vic ZastThe thought that horse racing needs to be dragged through the coals again following Saturday’s first race must be rattling about in some people’s minds. Just when New York Racing Association officials must have been feeling pretty good about how things were going with attendance increases, close finishes and weather forecasts, Saratoga ...

The Grade 2 Woodford Reserve Lake Placid Stakes, Saratoga, Inner Turf, Three-Year Old Fillies, One Mile and One Eighth Caroline Thomas (12-1) is a deep closer who has been subjected to one extremely slow pace after another.  (Note that fractions rated to be particularly slow are shown in blue.)  She also had some trouble at the ...

At first glance, the Friday card appeared to be loaded with NY-Bred races.  But that was the early part – three of the first three races including one of two stakes, a total of four in all. It seems as if Leo O’Brien hasn’t trained a horse into the winner’s circle in decades.  Yet, Slimshady, a NY-Bred chestnut gelding by ...

Arlington Million Contender The Apache in the Arlington Paddock on Aug. 16 ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL (Aug. 15, 2013) -- Arlington Park, a pristine mothership of a racetrack planted firmly in the middle of Northwest Chicagoland, is host once each year to the grand and glorious sort of event the place was made for. During the International Festival of ...

While there is no doubt that nicks tend to run in sire lines, we've also often found it profitable to consider the dam of a stallion when attempting to predict potential crosses. For example, when Smart Strike (TrueNicks) retired to stud, we noted that he was a half brother to champion Dance Smartly, a daughter of Danzig. Since Smart Strike was a ...

At least four Saratoga-based jockeys will be bypassing the Alabama Stakes (gr. I) and Sword Dancer Invitational (gr. I) on Saturday to run in the Arlington Million (gr. I). Leading rider Joel Rosario will ride Little Mike, the winner of the Million last summer. Spa Course fans are beginning to see Rosario atop Todd Pletcher horses, all due it’s ...

The four or five races worth walking over to the track to see live began shortly after 3:00 PM.  You wore a sweater if you wanted to be comfortable.  There was an autumn-like chill in the air – another not-so-subtle signal that horseplayers, who consider The Spa Nirvana, have little more than a dozen days left.  One week from ...

There is no use commenting on Wise Dan and the Breeders’ Cup Classic any longer, although there is one final thought mentioned farther down, merely for the sake of history. But although that door has been closed, let’s not forget the Dan No. 2 waiting to charge through Door No. 2. Although Wise Dan’s big brother Successful Dan has barely had his ...