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Moments after watching Rachel Alexandra hold off Mine That Bird to become the first filly to win the Preakness in 85 years, the first thing that came to my mind was, ''What a great day for horse racing. Boy, did we need a day like this.'' Over the past year this sport has taken a lot of hits. We were due for a day like this. And what a day it ...

And they haven't even opened the infield yet.  If you are perceived as (insert your word here), it is best not to open your mouth and remove all doubt. First off, of course, Rachel Alexandra has a right to run in the traditional male classic.  On the other hand, I can understand that some of the folks feel that Jess ...

Courtesy of Becky Johnston  Now on to better memories  May 21, 1989 was the date and the best Preakness many of us have ever seen.  Easy Goer, the darling of the east, the reigning two-year-old champion had won the Swale Stakes, Gotham Stakes and the Wood Memorial with ease on his way to Churchill Downs.  1989 Wood ...

Courtesy of Rob Fundter, The Amateur CapperRACHEL ALEXANDRA has been the best horse on the track in each of her four starts this year.  The compelling question in the 134th Preakness Stakes is whether the filly is more horse than her male counterparts.  Pimlico morning line maker FRANK CARULLI believes she is, installing her as the ...

I stayed up to watch The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and was glad to see Leno interview Borel. The interview touched on Borels days at the bush tracks and has some fun insight into how Borel got started in racing. In addition to this being found on Hulu. NBC has an entire Hulu.com channel devoted to the derby, and hopefully they will change it to a ...

From the sale of Rachel Alexandra, to Calvin Borel opting off the Derby winner in favor of the Oaks winner, to the firestorm caused by a pair of owners threatening to block the filly from the Preakness, the past week has certainly sparked a lot of debate. No matter what you opinions are on all of the above, one thing is for sure - this is ...

Part of equine welfare is quality of life.  News stories on the subject tend to focus on the welfare of racehorses at the track, and it's no surprise:  these are the horses in the public eye. The welfare of Thoroughbreds in training is much more visible than it is for horses boarded at private farms, including broodmare farms. But less ...

Between classics, it was a relatively quiet weekend in the U.S. One race that might have Triple Crown implications, however, was contested: the Peter Pan Stakes (gr. II) went to Belmont Stakes (gr. I) hopeful Charitable Man (TrueNicks A). The victory of Charitable Man continues an outstanding season for his sire, Lemon Drop Kid ...

Last weekend saw the first two French classics of the season - the Poule d'Essai des Poulains and Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (both Fr-I) -- in the books. The result was a great one for the Irish National Stud with the filly's event going to Elusive Wave, from the second crop of Elusive City, and the colt's classic falling to Silver Frost ...