Monthly Archives: May 2010

Point Given & Sky Beauty: Assessing the Quality of the 2010 Hall of Fame Class

Nearly every day, I evaluate quality.  As a high school English teacher, I collect work from my students, I decide how good it is, and I grade it.  The worthiness of the work is, unfortunately and too often, inextricably linked … Continue reading

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Met Mile snapshots, 1910

If you were paying attention to racing a hundred years ago this month, some things would look familiar:  racing in New York shifted from Aqueduct to Belmont; the Metropolitan Handicap was run at Belmont Park; a former racehorse met a … Continue reading

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Wednesday morning quick picks

Checking in here with our regular look at charities and other public services/events. First up, the Northeast Equine Expo, taking place this Saturday and Sunday at Belmont Park.  The equine stars of the movies Hidalgo and soon-to-be released Secretariat will perform.  Harbor Mist, … Continue reading

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Hoping to be wrong

I headed out to Belmont early on Saturday morning, to visit the children at Anna House before watching workouts and visiting the backstretch.  As always, Belmont felt like a little city:  at Anna House, a half dozen or more teachers … Continue reading

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Turf racing at Sheepshead Bay

Today at Belmont, eight fillies and mares will take to the turf for the 57th renewal of the Sheepshead Bay (GII). Sheepshead Bay is a small body of water in the southernmost part of Brooklyn, between the “mainland” and the … Continue reading

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Another Kind of Lucky

Last Saturday, the eyes of the racing world were turned towards Baltimore, where Bob Baffert’s Lookin at Lucky reversed his racing fortunes with a Preakness win. About 600 miles to the west, another Lucky was hanging out in a paddock, … Continue reading

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Preakness pics

I approached my first Preakness with trepidation:  I’m not a Big Event kind of person (with the exception of this kind of Big Event) and I hate crowds.  But this year’s Preakness presented some opportunities too good to pass up, … Continue reading

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The Dude

We’d waited two weeks to see what would happen next.  We wondered whether, after waiting so long for his first Kentucky Derby win, Todd Pletcher would find himself in the enviable position of bringing a Triple Crown candidate to his … Continue reading

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Brian’s Preakness preview

One down, two to go. Super Saver relished the slop and the rail-and Calvin Borel-and dominated what was thought to be a wide-open Kentucky Derby. Can he do it again two weeks later in Baltimore, under what figure to be … Continue reading

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Allen Jerkens’ Shuvee winners

Over the last couple of years, the Shuvee Handicap at Belmont has offered the occasion to consider the magnificent horse who, en route to winning handicap mare honors in 1970 and 1971, twice won the Jockey Club Gold Cup, back … Continue reading

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