LEXINGTON, Ky. - With his victory in the Hollywood Gold Cup, Congaree has stretched his sphere of influence among older Grade 1 performers from seven to 10 furlongs. John Adger, the racing and bloodstock manager for the Stonerside Stable of Robert and Janice McNair, said that "he's got to be considered the most versatile horse in training, with Grade 1 victories at seven, eight, nine, and 10 furlongs."

Indeed, at a time when many breeders and writers are commenting on the lack of versatility in the breed, Congaree is an example of what the Thoroughbred can do.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - launched the summer yearling auction season with financial returns that suggested little has changed in the market since last year.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Fasig-Tipton Kentucky's two-day July yearling sale, which posted losses in its opening session Wednesday, continued Thursday with highly selective buyers spending their money conservatively.

By 5:30 p.m., leader was a $500,000 Mr. Greeley filly that Robert Courtney, representing Jaime Carrion, bought from Mulholland Springs. The daughter of stakes winner Good for Her (by Topsider) is a half-sister to stakes winner Chris's Bad Boy.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Skipping its traditional opening at the now-canceled Keeneland July select sale, the summer's major yearling sales got under way 's Newtown Paddocks facility. The two-day auction's first day yielded a session-topping $800,000 Fusaichi Pegasus filly bought by Sunland Park owner Stanley Fulton. The absence of Keeneland's often spectacular two-night auction doused some of the summer fireworks, but Fasig-Tipton's opening day got some of the sport's big buyers warmed up with some competitive bidding and plenty of six-figure prices.

Aloma's Ruler, winner of the 1982 Preakness Stakes, has died at the Illinois farm where he was pensioned, according to a report in the Baltimore Sun. He was 24 and was found dead in his field on June 21, apparently of a heart attack, the newspaper reported.

Aloma's Ruler was the oldest living winner of the Preakness, following the death last month of the 1979 winner, Spectacular Bid. With Aloma's Ruler gone, the distinction now falls to the 1983 Preakness winner, Deputed Testamony, who stands at Bonita Stud in Maryland.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Fasig-Tipton Kentucky's summer yearling sale, the only summer yearling sale in the state after cancellation of this year's Keeneland July sale, begins Wednesday at Newtown Paddocks in Lexington.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Wayward Lass, North America's champion

3-year-old filly of 1981, died in late June at Contemporary Stallions in Coxsackie, N.Y., farm owner Gus Schoenborn Jr. confirmed.

The mare was 25 and was carrying a City Zip foal. Farm staff found her dead in her stall in June, and Schoenborn said the cause of death appeared to be a heart attack.

"She died in her sleep," Schoenborn said. "There was no struggle. Before her death, she had looked the best she ever did."

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Fasig-Tipton Kentucky's July yearling sale has gone from strength to strength in the last decade, even producing gains in recent years when tonier marketplaces like Keeneland's July sale have suffered declines. This year, with the Keeneland July sale canceled, Fasig-Tipton has Kentucky's summer yearling market all to itself, and the July 16-17 auction looks like it has some ammunition on hand to post more gains.

There is a new sensation in the Ontario stallion ranks these days and his name is Compadre. In a span of one week at the end of June, the 13-year-old sire had two debut-winning 2-year-olds at Woodbine, bringing his total to four in less than a year from just 33 runners.

In addition to those winners, Compadre is the sire of the graded-stakes-placed gelding No Comprende, stakes-placed El Gran Maestro, and allowance runner Kabul.

Floridians for a Level Playing Field is a consortium of Dade and Broward County parimutuel entities. The goal of the group is to place an amendment to Florida's constitution on the November 2004 statewide election ballot. The amendment would allow voters in Dade and Broward counties to determine by referendum if they want slot machines in their existing parimutuel facilities.