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Whoever is scheduling the races is obviously not impressed with the North American tradition of placing the stakes race near the end of the card.  On Sunday, the Yaddo Handicap was run as the fourth race and the West Point Handicap as the seventh.  There were 11 races in all.On Monday, the $80,000 Troy Stakes for 4-year-olds and upward ...

It wouldn't be November at the sales without at least a couple of true blue-blooded mares walking through the ring. This year, we have the opportunity to see some real standouts in the wake of the Southern Equine - Hill 'n' Dale dispersal (full story here) at Fasig-Tipton.  Of special note are the Deputy Minister mare Better Than ...

Sgt. Jeff Cohen, a retired New York City police officer who recently began a second career as a postal delivery employee, is able to come to Saratoga Race Course only once or twice a week.  Often, he brings his young son Artie along, and Artie, an admirably polite red-haired lad, spends the day eating popcorn and ice cream while his father ...

Stella Thayer didn’t make it to the post-race dancefest at Siro’s beer tent.  She probably had to rush home to squeeze into her blue jeans for the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame’s “Ride the (mechanical) Bull” party. Nevertheless, the gathering at Siro’s was wall-to-wall.  The three-day fly-mating season was over, and the ...

Carol Homersham and Joan Proctor of Barrie, Ontario were the most stunning women at breakfast in their custom-made hats.  It was Homersham’s first visit to a racetrack, but she looked like a Kentucky Oaks fashionista in her black mesh chapeau with a big bow.  Homersham’s hat went in different directions; its flat oval top slanted left ...

  With all the Big Brown and Curlin hoopla over the past week or so, we've gotten away from the Breeders' Cup Challenge. Let's get back into now, and what better time to do it then on one of my favorite days - the International Festival of Racing. The Beverly D. and the Arlington Million are ''Win and You're In'' events, and both look like ...

Arlington MillionGrade: I Purse: $1 million Distance: 10 Furlongs (T)  Age: 3-Year-Olds & Up  Track: Arlington Park TV: Saturday, August 9, 2008 @ 4:30 PM ETThis race is just bursting at the seams with talent. This race is going to be amazing to watch and YOU MUST watch this race. Two foreign trained horses are going to be running in ...

New York-based sire Western Expression was represented by his first stakes winner when his daughter, I Lost My Choo, took the Virginia Oaks (gr. III) at Colonial Downs. Rated A++ by TrueNicks, I Lost My Choo has a very unusual pedigree pattern. Firstly, she is inbred to Majestic Prince, and in both instances combined with Buckpasser (Western ...

[image url=''http://cdn.bloodhorse.com/images/content/jharper_large.jpg'']Joe Harper[/image] Joe Harper took over the management of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in 1978. During this period Harper has overseen Del Mar's emergence as one of the nation's top racetracks for daily average handle and attendance. He was also instrumental in overseeing ...

Give Sonny Taylor a minute to say something, and an afternoon will pass by before he comes up for air.  Yesterday, the 71-year-old African-American placing judge, who is a friend to just about everyone, came down from the track’s upper echelons to mingle with the minions on the Turf Terrace. Among the luncheon munchers, Taylor told endless ...