Recent publications
- Miles to go before I sleep: from Keeneland to Charles Town (The Racing Biz)
- Claim to Fame: The Story of Saginaw (NY Breeder)
- NYRA Not Close to Naming McClain's Successor (The Blood-Horse)
- The Ethics of Horsemeat (Forbes.com)
- First Frost: Frost Giant's first crop sets records (New York Breeder)
- Prom Dresses to Derby Hats: Vyjack Owner David Wilkenfeld (Forbes.com)
- Gyarmati takes academic approach to training (DRF)
Handicatting with Floyd…
…and with Imp and Furlong
Madison’s fund for feline welfare
The cat horse winners during the Belmont spring meet added up to about $250, which was donated to All About Spay Neuter, the organization that helps take care of the Belmont cat colonies.
$155, representing the money made by cat horse winners at Saratoga, was donated to New York City Animal Care & Control
Racing-related charities
Recommended Reading
- Colin's Ghost
- Crist Blog
- Fillies First
- Foolish Pleasure
- Green but Game
- Hello Race Fans!
- Left At The Gate
- New York Daily News racing coverage
- New York Post racing coverage
- Old Friends Blog
- Owning Racehorses
- Post Parade
- Raceday 360
- Railbird
- ReRider Who's Lucky To Cope
- Riding Rough Shod
- Superfecta
- That's Amore Stable
- The Rail at the New York Times
- The Turk: Horses, Handicapping and Hijinks
- TURF
Racing sites
Racing books I like
A Year at the Races, by Jane Smiley
And They're Off! by Edward Hotaling
Native Dancer: The Grey Ghost, Hero of a Golden Age, by John Eisenberg
Not by a Long Shot, by T.D. Thornton
Saratoga Days, by Sean Clancy
Seabiscuit, by Laura Hillenbrand
The Great Match Race, by John Eisenberg
The Noble Animals, by Landon Manning
Tag Archives: Saratoga 09
Holy Egregious Oversights, Batman!
Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. And profuse thanks to reader BrooklynSaint, who pointed out two unforgivable omissions in my wrap-up post from yesterday. Brian Nadeau: thank you! Brian started writing Derby preps last winter, and he continued handicapping … Continue reading
Saratoga wrap-up
On Friday, August 14th, steeplechase trainer Janet Elliott became the first woman trainer elected to the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame. On Saturday, September 5th, Rachel Alexandra became the first filly or mare to win the Woodward. And … Continue reading
Closing Day
Labor Day is Backstretch family day at Saratoga; members of the extended clan head to the track, armed with coolers and sandwiches and cans of beer, to spend closing day at the races, unencumbered by any obligations other than those … Continue reading
For the early birds
Seth Merrow of Capitol OTB’s Call to the Post and the website Equidaily has invited me to join him and co-host Jeff Carle on their final show of the Saratoga ’09 racing season. Broadcasting from the backstretch, the show starts … Continue reading
Rachel Alexandra, at the Spa, making history
Sunday morning on the Saratoga backstretch was quiet. Yesterday’s heroics in the books, the feeling of the end of the meet is undeniable, and many, it seems have packed up and left: the sparse crowd at the backstretch coffee stand … Continue reading
The Big Day
It is the morning of which Saratoga dreams are made, and the racing gods ensure that everything’s perfect.At 6:30 am, the sun is peeking over the trees, but bathing the track and the horses working out over it in golden … Continue reading
Brian’s Pick 4 preview, September 5
Race 9: The Grade I, $300,000 Forego for 3&up at 7 furlongs.1. Pyro: Made a nice return earlier in the meet when his patented late rally fell just short in a minor stakes. Eligible to be much tighter today as … Continue reading
Week 5: Sights, sounds, musings
And so it begins: the final week. 30 days of racing done, 6 to go. A look back at week 5… On Friday, Naughty New Yorker made his second start of the meet in the Funny Cide Stakes for New … Continue reading
Raising money for Anna House
On Wednesday, August 26th, the Belmont Child Care Association held its annual benefit in Saratoga at the Gideon Putnam, and as usual, the racing community turned out in full force to support the work of Anna House. The event was … Continue reading
Travers Day, Part II
As good as Sara Louise and Music Note were in the Victory Ride and the Ballerina respectively, they might have been overshadowed by Vineyard Haven in the King’s Bishop even if he hadn’t been disqualified from first to second. Vineyard … Continue reading




