Oaklawn Park's business during its 53-day meet that closed last Saturday was on a par with the corresponding 52-day season a year ago. The track reported a 1.2 percent increase in average daily handle on its races from all sources, and slight declines in average daily attendance and ontrack handle during a winter in which storms plagued much of Arkansas.

Famous Gal may have flopped as the 8-5 favorite in last month's Princess of Palms, but the 4-year-old bounced back Monday at Turf Paradise, capturing the $30,600 Cactus Flower Handicap.

Owned by John Pendergast and trained by Joe Johnson, Famous Gal prevailed by three-quarters of a length in the six-furlong race for fillies and mares. Rita Katrina rallied from well back for second, 2 3/4 lengths ahead of Glorificamus. Wings of Justice, the 2-5 favorite, stumbled at the start and was never a factor, finishing another 5 1/4 lengths back in fourth in the field of six.

Undefeated New Mexico-bred Peppers Pride, on the verge of tying the record of 16 consecutive victories held jointly by Citation, Cigar, Mister Frisky, and Hallowed Dreams, is scheduled to make her next start April 26 at SunRay Park.

Trainer Joel Marr said the 5-year-old Peppers Pride, owned and bred by Joseph Allen, is expected to run in the $75,000 Russell and Helen Foutz Distaff Handicap at 6 1/2 furlongs. Peppers Pride won her 15th successive race at Sunland Park on March 23, capturing the Sydney Valentini Handicap. The undefeated mare boasts career earnings of $816,665.

Apprentice jockeys have seldom been a very hot commodity in Nebraska, but the state has been producing its share of successful riders in recent years with Channing Hill, Tanner Riggs, and Dylan Williams all getting their starts on the Nebraska circuit.

The latest promising apprentice, 17-year-old Chris Fackler, enjoyed his best weekend of the Fonner Park meet with a riding triple last Saturday and two more wins on Sunday to move into the top 10 in the standings with 15 wins.

The new Evangeline Downs turf course, expected to be in use by late summer, will be named for David Yount, the former vice president and director of racing who died of cancer on April 2.

Yount, 56, was instrumental in overseeing the construction and move from the old Evangeline Downs to the current facility for its first season in 2005.

"David was the primary reason I am here today," said John McGary, Evangeline's track announcer and media relations director. "He worked tirelessly both at the old facility and the new one. He will be missed greatly."

AUBURN, Wash. - Pirates Deputy and Wild Cycle, who were stablemates and fierce rivals as 2-year-olds in 2006 at Emerald Downs, will resume those roles this season as older horses.

"We're planning on running both of them in the first stakes here on May 4," said trainer Aubrey Villyard, referring to the six-furlong Seattle Handicap. "I hate to run them against each other, but it worked out pretty well when they were 2-year-olds."

Fairmount Park outside St. Louis in Collinsville, Ill., opens for a 60-day meet Friday night, but no one is dancing in the streets over the upcoming season.

Fairmount Park has been struggling for years, and the landscape in 2008 looks more daunting than ever. The 60-day meet is all Fairmount thought racing in downstate Illinois could support, but that is a paltry number of dates for Fairmount, which raced 89 days in 2007, 90 days in 2006, and 110 days as recently as 2002.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - As the second half of the 16-day Keeneland spring meet got under way Wednesday, officials were hoping to reverse an unsettling business trend established during the first eight days of the meet.

Despite a marginal rise in ontrack attendance, the average ontrack handle was down 12 percent, while all-sources handle was down 17 percent.

STICKNEY, Ill. - Call him the Manitoba Marauder, or maybe the Winnipeg Whiz. Okay - pro wrestling nicknames might not be working, but it is not every day that a horse with racing experience at Assiniboia Downs has a good chance to win a graded stakes in the United States.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Trainer Danny Vella's barn was the hottest on the grounds here last weekend.

Vella, 52, won Saturday with first-time starter Daring Attraction and duplicated that feat Sunday with Bonded Messenger.

But the icing on the cake was Verdana Bold, a Kentucky-bred 3-year-old owned by Ed Seltzer who became a stakes winner in the $150,000 Star Shoot.

Verdana Bold had made her first four starts in Maryland before being shipped here to Vella less than a month ago.