Champion 2-year-old Ocean Runaway returns to the site of his greatest victories when he starts in the trials to the Grade 1, $125,000-estimated PCQHRA Breeders Derby on Friday night at Los Alamitos.

Ocean Runaway, winner of three Grade 1 stakes and holder of a six-race winning streak at Los Alamitos, summered at Ruidoso Downs and finished second to the sensational DM Shicago in the Grade 1 Rainbow Derby. DM Shicago also won the Ruidoso Derby and All American Derby to become only the third horse to win all three derbies at the New Mexico track.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Soaring Free used last year's Play the King Handicap as a stepping-stone to victory in the Grade 1 Atto Mile here at Woodbine.

On Sunday, Vanderlin will be attempting to follow that same blueprint when he goes postward in the $1 million Atto Mile over the E.P. Taylor turf course.

But the similarity between the two Play the King winners ends right there.

Soaring Free won the Play the King as the 3-5 favorite for the highly successful local team of Sam-Son Farm, trainer Mark Frostad, and jockey Todd Kabel.

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan - An increase in purses, including moving the purse for bottom claimers from $2,500 to $3,000, helped fuel fuller fields and higher handle at the 2005 Marquis Downs meet, which ended Saturday.

With purses up, more horsemen were here this summer and the average number of horses running per race increased from 6.5 in 2004 to 8 in 2005.

This, in turn, stimulated the mutuels, and track management saw the live handle increase by about 22 percent to about $27,200 per day, up from $22,300 in 2004.

MIAMI - The summer meet at Calder is generally known for developing promising 2-year-old talent. But one of the up-and-coming stars of the current session is a 4-year-old Argentine-bred colt named Anjiz Crypto, who registered his second consecutive one-sided victory here Sunday when he easily defeated a good group of third-level optional claiming and allowance horses, including the multiple stakes winner Cin Cin.

BOSSIER CITY, La. - With over a million dollars at stake, interest in Saturday's Louisiana Breeders' Festival continues to run high. A total of 124 were entered Wednesday morning for the 13-race, all-stakes program that will represent all divisions of Louisiana-breds. Eight Thoroughbred and five Quarter Horse events are on the program, which begins 1:10 p.m.

The two stakes for 2-year-olds generated the most attention, with 10 colts and geldings entered in the Stardust and 11 fillies entered in the Laurel Lane.

AUBURN, Wash. - Chestnut Lady came into last Saturday's $89,290 Barbara Shinpoch Stakes for 2-year-old fillies with just one race under her girth, a six-furlong maiden win Aug. 6. Owner Mike Feuerborn said he realized it was asking a lot of his filly to take on more seasoned rivals at a mile, but figured he had an ace in the hole.

"If anybody can do it, it's the Penneys," he said a few moments before the field of 10 left the gate.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - It has been a long time since trainer Bob Meeking has won a major race at Hastings. In the 1970's, Meeking won two British Columbia Derbies: the 1970 derby with Mincemeat and, in a thriller, the 1977 running with Bucksaw, who got up in the last few jumps to nail Skovinsky at the wire.

Meeking is hoping for a strong performance from Karis Makaw in the $40,000 Delta Colleen Stakes on Saturday. If she runs well, Karis Makaw figures to be one of the favorites in the $150,000 Ballerina Breeders' Cup Oct. 15.

EDMONTON, Alberta - Sparhawk will be in quest of his third straight victory, and fifth in his last seven outings, when he heads a field of nine 3-year-olds sprinting 6 1/2 furlongs in an optional claimer here Friday at Northlands Park

Since being claimed by trainer Monica Russell from a second-place finish against $12,000 claimers, Sparhawk has handily won two in a row for a $17,500 claiming price for owner Mickey Demers.

SOUTH SIOUX CITY, Neb. - As the live racing season in Nebraska draws to a close, Horsemen's Atokad Downs will roar back to life this weekend for a three-day mini-meet of six-race cards on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Sam Houston closed out its Quarter Horse meet Sunday with average daily attendance of 4,853, and an average daily handle on its live races of $406,798. The meet ran 38 nights in a much shorter session than last year's 95-date meet, which was designed to help Lone Star Park accommodate the Breeders' Cup.

Purses for the Quarter Horse meet this year averaged $87,874 a day.

James Brooks, 54, won his first riding title since 1973 at Les Bois Park, and he did it in dominating fashion. He won 51 races at Sam Houston, which was 25 more than runner-up Mark Page.