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(Originally published in the July 21, 2012 issue of The Blood-Horse magazine. Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions at the bottom of the column.)  By Claire NovakIt is not unusual for a jockey’s name to be linked with one horse. Mention Jeremy Rose and Afleet Alex comes to mind. Bring up Stewart Elliott and you think of ...

Yes, ‘tiz the season to be jolly. Saratoga is here again, and it seems to be getting earlier and earlier. The first half of the year has been a series of emotional ups and downs with issues so hot they burned up the pages of newspapers and network air waves, in good part to the detriment of the sport.If there was a face of horse racing it would be ...

It's early—make that very early—to starting reviewing the progress of the 2012 freshman sires, but remarkably at least 40 of them have already been represented by a winner. The surprise leader is Magna Graduate (TrueNicks,SRO), who has two winners from seven starters, including Blueeyesintherein, winner of the Debutante Stakes (gr. III). Out of a ...

The July 12 congressional hearing on racehorse medication in Washington, D.C., didn't determine any equine drug policy, but it did show why the industry struggles to get things right and how lawmakers and others have little grasp on how the industry works. Here are some of things that were said: Sen. Tom Udall: ''Chronic doping ...

One day last month, I had the privilege of visiting New Vocations’ Lexington facility at West Wind Farm. Located in the heart of the rolling, Bluegrass hills, it’s a beautiful operation and is currently home to 15 horses. Some of its residents have already been adopted and are waiting to transition out of the farm, while others receive daily, ...

With the recent announcement that Holy Bull has been retired from stud duty, I thought this would be a good time to recycle and update a column written four years ago, recalling the remarkable story of the The Bull and his owner/trainer Jimmy Croll. I’m sure many people are familiar with the story of Holy Bull and Jimmy Croll, but in keeping with ...

Maiden claiming races are the lowest races on the class scale and arguably the least entertaining to watch. None of the entrants have won a single race, and all are for sale. But are maiden claimers the worst betting proposition in racing? Personal handicapping style dictates your answer to that question. I find plays in maiden ...

(By Avalyn Hunter) The impressive Suburban Handicap (gr. II) victory of Mucho Macho Man on July 7 is in interesting juxtaposition to the pensioning of his grandsire, Holy Bull, which was announced one day later. Though far from a failure, Holy Bull has not been a great sire. But he has been a link back to the past in American breeding, ...

  ORDER THIS PHOTO   Dappled out and looking good, 1985 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies winner Twilight Ridge still commands respect from the other horses at Manchester Farm near Lexington, Ky. Mares and yearlings in nearby paddocks raced to the fence as Twilight Ridge walked by.   ORDER THIS PHOTO ORDER THIS ...

(Originally published in the July 14, 2012 issue of The Blood-Horse magazine. Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions at the bottom of the column.)  By Eric Mitchell - @BH_EMitchell on Twitter Before the end of 2012, Thoroughbred racing jurisdictions across the U.S. could dramatically change the regulatory landscape ...