Surely some Kentucky horseplayers wanting to decompress from all the frantic action at Keeneland and Churchill Downs the last couple of months will pay less attention as racing shifts to Turfway Park. That’s okay. Nobody ever said Turfway is Keeneland or Churchill, but the Florence, Ky., track still has its own niche and its own group of devotees, both local and in the simulcast market.

Four months of winter racing begin Thursday evening at Turfway, with a nine-race card and a 5:30 p.m. post time.

When was the last time that a jockey decided to make Northern California his riding home the same year he won the Belmont Stakes?

The answer is last week, and the rider is Jose Valdivia Jr., who rode in Northern California in 1996, finishing second in the Bay Meadows winter meet.

That Valdivia, who was riding in Southern Califorinia after a stint back east, has opted to settle in Northern California tells a lot about the state of horse racing today.

“Every track struggles for horses,” said Valdivia.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Though La Sombre has finished second far more often than she has won, the consistency of her performances, and an advantageous inside draw, make her the one to beat in Thursday’s featured seventh race at Hollywood Park, a six-furlong turf sprint for California-bred females.

The $48,000 race is an optional claimer, for first-level allowance horses as well as runners entered for a $25,000 claiming price. Only the longshot Kahlua Mist is entered for a tag.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – The wonderful career of the venerable 10-year-old Salty Langfuhn appears to be winding down, and he should be favored in Thursday’s seventh race, a $16,000 claimer for 3-year-olds and up.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Northern Causeway was named British Columbia’s Horse of the Year at the annual Thoroughbred Awards Dinner held at Hastings on Saturday evening.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – As the 2011 racing season comes to a close, it became abundantly clear Saturday that owner Charlotte Weber has a lot to look forward to in 2012.

Weber is the head of Live Oak Plantation, which on Saturday at Aqueduct sent out To Honor and Serve to victory in the Grade 1 Cigar Mile and Souper Speedy to a runner-up finish in the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes, in just the 2-year-old colt’s second race.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – At this late stage of the Woodbine meet, the older Ontario-sired ranks have become depleted, which has given J J for Dave the opportunity to land his first stakes in Wednesday’s $125,000 Sir Barton.

J J for Dave nearly captured the June 19 Steady Growth, a stakes for Ontario-sired stock that was run at the Sir Barton distance of 1 1/16 miles. He set a moderate pace then before losing by just a neck to the heavily favored Sand Cove, a Canadian champion.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – In the immediate wake of Maritimer’s win in the 1 1/8-mile Coronation Futurity here Nov. 6, his connections had stated that the colt was through for the season.

But circumstances alter cases, and in the days immediately following the Coronation Futurity, Maritimer’s connections changed course.

“At first we’d said we’d put him away, but he came back so good,” said Sid Attard, who trains Maritimer for owner/breeder Howard Walton. “You’ve got to run them when they’re good.”

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Churchill Downs ended its 21-day fall meet Sunday with a tie for leading trainer between Steve Asmussen and Mike Maker.

Maker led Asmussen by a 15-14 count going into the 11-race finale. Asmussen won the eighth race with a 5-1 shot, and either man could have won the title outright when each had his final starter of the meet in the 10th race. But Twinspired finished a distant second for Maker and Joes Blazing Aaron was a tired fourth for Asmussen, leaving them deadlocked.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – After an admittedly brutal 2010-11 winter meet in terms of quality and quantity, New York Racing Association officials are cautiously optimistic that the lure of increased purse money will bring a more appealing product to this winter’s Aqueduct inner track season, which gets under way Wednesday.

Beginning Wednesday, there will be 84 scheduled days of racing over the inner track through March 31. Aqueduct’s main track will open April 4 for a brief 14-day stint before racing shifts to Belmont Park on April 27.