Meier rides 4,000th winner

The popular Chicago jockey Randy Meier notched his 4,000th career victory on Sunday - closing day - at Arlington.

Meier won Sunday's second race in his signature style: hustling out of the gate, making the lead, and nursing his mount - a well-bet first-time starter named Officer Frank - to the wire.

Meier turned 53 over the summer and has been riding professionally since 1972. He has won four riding titles in Chicago, two each at Hawthorne and Sportsman's Park, and battled through numerous serious injuries. Ten years ago, not long after notching his 3,000th career win, he broke both legs and a wrist in a December spill at Hawthorne. But Meier, typically, was back in the saddle the next spring.