SAN MATEO, Calif. - El Don ($4.80) took back at the break and unleashed a four-wide rally approaching the quarter pole, pulling away to an easy three-length victory over pacesetting Shadow Raider in the $100,000 at Bay Meadows on Monday.

The 4-year-old gelding, making only his second start on turf, remained undefeated on the grass after a win at Del Mar in his previous start.

First Rate Event hopped at the start and came in, but El Don was not seriously bothered as jockey Russell Baze was already taking him back.

DEL MAR, Calif. - As good as the Del Mar Futurity is, the traditional closing-day feature here at Del Mar can't help but leave one feeling melancholy. There is no What a Song, the ill-fated colt who was the undisputed leader of the West Coast's 2-year-olds. In turn, there is no Bob Baffert, What a Song's trainer, who has won this race a record seven times.

DEL MAR, Calif. - On the final day of the 2003 Del Mar meeting, Siphonizer scored his biggest - and only - stakes win in the Grade 2 Del Mar Futurity.

Two years later, Siphonizer starts on Wednesday's closing day at Del Mar as a contender in the $80,000 Pirate's Bounty Handicap over six furlongs.

"I hope he realizes the significance" of the anniversary, trainer Richard Mandella said.

DEL MAR, Calif. - The first race at Del Mar on Sunday was declared no contest after Thatcher, a 3-year-old filly, broke down on the backstretch and bothered four of the other six runners in the one-mile turf race.

According to California Horse Racing Board rules, the stewards reserve the right to cancel a race if interference occurs that affects the majority of the horses. The stewards reached the decision to declare a no-contest after a lengthy inquiry.

DEL MAR, Calif. - The chances Bashert has of winning the on Wednesday increased when his nemesis, What a Song, suffered fatal injuries last month. Bashert's trainer, Bill Currin, said he felt nothing but sadness when What a Song was put down. It wasn't merely sportsmanship. It was deep-felt empathy.

FLORENCE, Ky. - It was supposed to be a joyous occasion, this opening of the fall meet at Turfway Park. After years of decline in the face of wicked competition from nearby riverboat casinos, Turfway finally had a genuine reason to celebrate with the unveiling of its new Polytrack surface.

FLORENCE, Ky. - A new era in North American racing will begin Wednesday night at Turfway Park when Polytrack, the revolutionary racing surface, makes its long-awaited debut.

Polytrack is a wax-coated synthetic surface made up of recycled rubber, polypropylene fibers, and silica sand. Polytrack has played to the rave reviews of horsemen since it was first introduced in the late 1980's in England by its inventor, Martin Collins. When several exhibition races were run over it at Turfway on Aug. 24, horsemen were unanimous in their praise of the new surface.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Monashee, under a brilliant ride by apprentice Justin Stein, scored a mild upset in the Grade 3, $178,137 British Columbia Breeders' Cup Oaks at Hastings on Sunday.

SAN MATEO, Calif. - Trainer Greg Gilchrist confirmed Monday that Lost in the Fog will run in the Breeders' Cup Sprint at Belmont on Oct. 29.

"I think the Breeders' Cup is definite for us, unless we hit a bump in the road," Gilchrist said.

Gilchrist said Lost in the Fog would run in either the Grade 1, $500,000 Vosburgh at Belmont on Oct. 1, which would be Lost in the Fog's first meeting against older horses, or just train up to the Sprint. If Gilchrist opts to run in the Vosburgh, he said he will keep Lost in the Fog at Belmont until the Breeders' Cup.

Saratoga Race Course concluded its 36-day meeting on Monday with its total handle down more than 5 percent from the track's 2004 meet. Although attendance fell more than 3 percent, ontrack handle rose, though less than a quarter of 1 percent from last year's 36-day meet.

The ontrack handle increase this year, by 0.23 percent, saw a daily average of $3,250,009, up from 3,242,486 in 2004. The total daily average handle was $14,946,720, down 5.47 percent from $15,810,918 in 2004.

Average attendance declined 3.17 percent to 25,914 daily, from 26,762 last year