Woodbine has become the first Thoroughbred track in North America to use automated charting information supplied by Trakus, the wireless tracking system that involves a radio transponder in each horse's saddlecloth.
The system, which has been used to provide charting information for Standardbred races at Woodbine and nearby Mohawk Raceway since the fall of 2006, has been in use for the Woodbine Thoroughbred meeting that opened April 5.
STICKNEY, Ill. - Lyndie Wade got shut out on Thursday's card at Hawthorne. The day still rated as a rousing success.
When Wade rode a horse named Saville Hotel to a fifth-place finish in the first race here on Thursday, it marked his first start since he went down in a terrifying spill last Nov. 30 at Hawthorne. Wade was knocked unconscious, and after being put into an induced coma, he didn't wake up for several days. But Wade's recovery came about amazingly fast, and after galloping horses for several weeks at Oaklawn Park, he got back to business at Hawthorne.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Churchill Downs racing officials are listing 10 fillies as confirmed candidates for the May 2 Kentucky Oaks, while also keeping tabs on at least a dozen more.
At this early juncture, the likely favorites for the Grade 1 Oaks appear to be the Larry Jones duo of Proud Spell and Eight Belles, while other major contenders include Little Belle, Bsharpsonata, Country Star, and Ariege.
Other known Oaks candidates are Pure Clan, Awesome Chic, Kadira, and Alina, who would have to be made eligible by a $25,000 supplementary fee.
HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trainer Bennie Stutts Jr. has mapped out his training schedule to get the Florida Derby runner-up Smooth Air to the Kentucky Derby. The schedule begins with a one-mile work over his home base at Calder on Sunday morning.
"I prefer to work on Sunday rather than Saturday because the track is less crowded," said Stutts who will be participating in his first Kentucky Derby. "I've been doing that ever since I worked this horse one Saturday and he got carried to the outside fence by another worker."
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Jambalaya and Sky Conqueror, the top two turf horses stabled on the grounds last season and Grade 1 winners on the road, both are back at Woodbine gearing up for their 2008 campaigns.
Sky Conqueror, winner of the Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic at Churchill Downs, had the edge on Jambalaya in two meetings here last year, winning the Northern Dancer after finishing second to Eccentric in the King Edward.
Presque Isle Downs in Erie, Pa., which ran an inaugural 28-day meet last September with purses averaging approximately $325,000 per day, will run 100 days this year. The meet opens May 9, runs through Sept. 27, and is expected to have a daily purse distribution of $200,000. Purses at Presque Isle are supplemented by revenue from the racino's 2,000 slot machines.
Presque Isle Downs will run 25 stakes this year worth more than $2.5 million. Six open and six Pennsylvania-bred stakes have been added to last year's slate of 13 stakes.
ARCADIA, Calif. - David Flores will ride Santa Anita Derby runner-up Bob Black Jack in the Kentucky Derby, if the speed colt gains a berth in the classic race at Churchill Downs on May 3.
Flores said he agreed to ride the colt earlier this week to ensure he had a mount in the Kentucky Derby.
"It's getting closer," he said. "We had to make a decision."
HOT SPRINGS, Ark. - Trainer Kelly Von Hemel said earlier this week that Semaphore Man was on top of his game coming into the Grade 3, $150,000 Count Fleet Sprint Handicap at Oaklawn Park on Thursday, and the horse delivered one of the best performances of his career. He dueled on the lead with three rivals and went on to win by a length and a quarter over multiple stakes winner Junior College. It was another neck back in third to Lovango.
LEXINGTON, Ky. - An upset by Halo Najib in the Blue Grass Stakes wouldn't necessarily translate into the colt being regarded as a legitimate threat to win the Kentucky Derby. After all, the colt has tended to get his best results racing on Polytrack, his pedigree suggests he may have distance limitations, and by getting the hottest jockey in North America, Garrett Gomez, he is catching quite a break Saturday.
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - After beginning the year in a 1-for-49 funk, trainer John Kimmel has shown signs of life recently, winning with 3 of his last 9 starters.
Kimmel hopes his good fortune continues Saturday when he runs Elusive Lady in the Grade 2, $150,000 Comely Stakes at Aqueduct. Elusive Lady will be Kimmel's first starter of the year in New York.
Contested as a one-turn mile on the main track, the Comely is run under the same conditions as last October's Grade 3 Tempted Stakes, won by Elusive Lady.