LOUISVILLE, Ky. - With none of the top three finishers in the recent Maker's Mark Mile wheeling back on three weeks' rest, the Grade 1 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic is shaping up as a wide-open race, according to Churchill Downs racing officials.

INGLEWOOD, Calif.-The first Friday night of the Hollywood Park spring-summer meeting features a two-day pick six carryover of $452,038 after no one hit the bet on Thursday.

But bettors nationwide will need to stay up late to follow their selections. The pick six on Friday does not begin until 8:35 p.m. Pacific, or 11:35 p.m. Eastern.

The pick six has yet to be hit at the Hollywood Park meeting, which opened Wednesday. There was a carryover of more than $101,000 after Wednesday's opening day and that grew after a few upsets on Thursday's program.

Don't bother bringing your binoculars to Delaware Park this season. You won't need them.

A giant video screen with a diagonal span of nearly 49 feet has been installed just to the right of the infield tote board as part of $6.1 million in capital improvements the track has made for the opening of the 2007 season on Saturday.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Two years after Churchill Downs unveiled a $121 million renovation that provided the most sweeping physical changes in track history, major changes are still occurring. And as the 52-day spring meet gets under way Saturday with an 11-race program, the most notable change is one that will affect many people who don't even have to set foot in the sparkling new facility.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Joe Talamo's introduction to Hollywood Park came in the form of a three-win day on Wednesday and at least a temporary place at the top of the jockey standings after the first day of the spring-summer meeting.

While Talamo, a 17-year-old apprentice, will be hard-pressed to hold that position through the end of the meeting, July 15, against riders such as Victor Espinoza, David Flores, and Richard Migliore, he was enjoying the milestone on the backstretch on Thursday morning.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Hastings opens its 2007 live meet on Saturday and it figures to be a tough year for local horsemen. There will be only 68 days of racing, 10 fewer than last year, and the 20 percent purse reduction that was instituted last fall is still in effect.

Purses are down because the slots that were approved by the Vancouver City Council in August 2004 still haven't arrived. Purses for the past few years were based on potential slot revenue.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Stradivinsky was looming as the horse to beat in Saturday's seven-furlong Vigil after romping by 7 3/4 lengths and earning a 110 Beyer Speed Figure in the April 14 Jacques Cartier here, his first start in more than five months.

But when push came to shove, trainer Malcolm Pierce elected to keep Stradivinsky in the barn rather than bring him back to the races on two weeks' notice.

OZONE PARK, N.Y. - Trainer Nick Zito may not have a horse in the Kentucky Derby, but that doesn't mean his 3-year-old class won't be heard from this year.

Zito is hopeful that C P West, one of his talented juvenile colts from 2006, can be a factor in the second half of the season. After finishing a solid second in his 3-year-old debut last month at Gulfstream, C P West will be one of the choices in Saturday's Grade 3, $150,000 Withers Stakes at Aqueduct.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Trainer Wayne Catalano said Wednesday morning from Keeneland that he and owner Frank Calabrese are seriously considering running Dreaming of Anna next Friday in the Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs, contrary to what they had been planning for weeks.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Greg's Gold, the runner-up in the Grade 2 Potrero Grande Breeders' Cup Handicap at Santa Anita earlier this month, will make a surprise appearance in Sunday's $150,000 Tiznow Stakes at Hollywood Park.

Trainer David Hofmans said Wednesday that he is taking advantage of Greg's Gold's status as a California-bred to start him in the Tiznow Stakes, which is part of the California Gold Rush program, a 10-race card for statebreds.