Mike Welsch

Champion sprinter Big Drama turned in perhaps his best work yet in preparation for next Saturday's Grade 1 Vosburgh when cruising an easy half mile in :48.18 seconds under jockey Daniel Centeno this morning at Calder. Big Drama was in hand throughout while posting splits of :12.59, :24.57 and :36.30.

Assuming it doesn't rain between now and post time, the turf course will be open today for the first time in over a week and for one of the race occasions since Aug. 1 as there have been only eight grass events decided here since that date. Here's hoping the rain will hold off long enough today to add to that number. 

The skies are clear but the weather delay has put things about an hour behind schedule with the horses for the tenth race just now leaving the paddock and post time for the finale likely to come around 6:15. The main track took the storm well and seems to be playing fair despite all the water, yielding two wire to wire winners and two last to first winners over the past four races. Measure Up at 15-1, an unlikely winner of the ninth considering he had never hit the board in eight previous wet track starts.  

A tropical like storm with heavy rains, winds up to 50 miles an hour and dangerous lightning pummeled the area for over a half hour as the horses were in the paddock for the eighth race and we are still in a weather delay that is now approaching one hour. Workers are out on the track removing debris that blew on the course around the clubhouse turn during the storm which temporarily knocked out power, phone service and the internet to the press box.  Right now no word on when racing will resume and at what point the card will be picked up although the horses for the eigh

For seemingly the umpteenth day in a row it's started to rain during a racing card at Calder. A sudden downpour struck after the running of the fourth race and there's a good chance the track will be downgraded if the showers keep up much longer.  The racetrack was listed as "good" by track officials prior to the first race but was definitely fast and rated as such by the official Equibase chartcallers through theopening four events.