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Courtesy of Becky Johnston Saratoga will run the 81st edition of the Whitney Handicap on Saturday, a race named for a family that has meant much to the sport of Thoroughbred horseracing.  The Whitney name has been a fabric of this country for over 300 years through service, philanthropic acts and their sportsmanship. William Collins Whitney ...

It was just about this time 36 years ago that I was sitting on the porch at Saratoga having breakfast with a Daily Racing Form co-worker who also happened to be one of my best friends. There was the usual amount of activity on the track, with horses working and galloping past us in a steady procession.At one point, I heard a noise behind me that ...

Something important must happen before a problem can be solved. It must be acknowledged that a problem exists. After analyzing the data in a study released this week by The Blood-Horse, and listening to a discussion of the information by six industry participants, it is clear that a problem exists. It is far from clear what must be done to ...

Although there were only a couple of so-called glamour races this past weekend, there were enough heroes that emerged to make me start having second thoughts about certain subjects I’ve been commenting on. So, in the spirit of the current presidential race I’m going to do some flip-flopping and go from cynical to optimistic regarding these ...

I’m cramming one more blog in this week, as I’ll be taking a Saratoga break over the next week and a half. So, enough about Big Brown and Curlin for now. It’s time to delve into something much lighter.Every so often starting now, just to break up the monotony of my often long-winded comments, I will toss in 10 trivia questions. As soon as you know ...

I am sticking both my blogs together this week in order to report and comment on something that I find rather bizarre. It concerns Big Brown. Remember when he was the talk of all racing from March to June, the sport’s next superstar who had performed deeds never before seen? Remember the hordes of media that congregated outside his barn the week ...

A small group of trainers standing in the shedrow of the stakes barn at Pimlico the morning prior to Preakness day were discussing a myriad of problems facing the industry. It didn’t take long for the conversation to shift to medication, a topic on which every trainer has an opinion.“There is a group that has the power to influence change on this ...

Yes, we’re back to Curlin again. Having watched grass racing and European racing for the past 40 years, here are my observations and conclusions, for whatever they’re worth, regarding Curlin’s Man o’War and his still-possible trip to Europe.Curlin’s stride is not suited to the type of grass race we saw Saturday in the the Man o’War. His stride ...

Calder Race Course and Ellis Park have little in common…until you look beneath the surface.Located in South Florida on the Miami-Dade/Broward County line, Calder is part of the sprawling metropolitan area known as Miami, Fla. Driving east takes one to the Atlantic Ocean, the drive time for the short distance determined only by the congestion and ...

Jess Jackson is to be commended for his pioneer spirit by venturing into uncharted lands in order to expand the horizons of his superstar Curlin, as well as the sport.His trainer, Steve Asmussen, has mapped out an early course for Curlin’s assault on the history books. With his first workout over the turf a success, he now turns his attention to ...