ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Come on Jazz had developed a couple of pernicious habits during his two-plus seasons of racing. Sometimes, he would make the lead and wait for other horses to catch up to him. Sometimes, he would dawdle too far behind the leaders, his stretch run coming too late to win.

But that all changed here June 23, when Come on Jazz walloped a group of third-level turf allowance horses, scoring a 5 1/2-length win. This time, Come on Jazz, ridden by Shaun Bridgmohan, stayed in touch with the leaders and finished them off with a powerful sustained run.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - With trainer Terry Jordan changing his mind at the last minute and entering La Pistola in the Liberation Stakes at Hastings Saturday, the feature race on Friday, a $50,000 optional sprint for 3-year-old fillies, appears to be a wide-open race. After the withdrawal of La Pistola, five horses will start in the 6 1/2-furlong race.

EDMONTON, Alberta - Wild Bender has drawn the rail in a bid to win her second straight stakes here in Friday's $50,000 Northlands Oaks for 3-year-old fillies at a mile.

A daughter of Alberta champion 3-year-old filly Wild Creek, Wild Bender is coming off a victory in the 1 1/16-mile Penny Ridge, which was moved to Northlands after the final day of the Calgary meet was flooded out. She will seek her third win of the season here with Rickey Walcott aboard.

AUBURN, Wash. - The Harley H. Hoppe and Associates Marathon Championship Series will begin Friday at Emerald Downs with the first of four races for $10,000 starter allowance company.

The first leg of the series has drawn a field of seven to run at 1 1/8 miles. The rest of the series includes a 1 1/4-mile leg to be run July 15, a 1 1/2-mile leg on Aug. 27, and a 1 3/4-mile leg on Sept. 18.

FORT ERIE, Ontario - Wild Desert, who shipped to Saratoga after winning the Queen's Plate on June 26 at Woodbine, will be looking to add the second jewel in Canada's Triple Crown to his collection when he returns for the Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie on Sunday.

A field of six was announced for the $500,000 Prince of Wales, a 1 3/16-mile race for Canadian-bred 3-year-olds, at a special draw here Wednesday afternoon.

Wild Desert drew post 3 in a race where starting position shouldn't be much of a factor.

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - The field for Saturday's Round Table Stakes grew steadily this week, and when entries were taken Wednesday, nine were in Arlington's biggest dirt race for 3-year-olds.

While no top-shelf 3-year-old is going to ship in for a $100,000 purse, the Round Table will showcase plenty of horses with upside, horses such as Apache Point, Bob O's Boy, and Thunder Mission. None of these horses have more than six starts.

Laurel Park plans to showcase its new turf course during its 78-day fall meet that begins Sept. 7. Overall, there will be 39 stakes worth nearly $3.8 million during the meet.

According to Lou Raffetto, the Maryland Jockey Club's chief operating officer, Laurel expects to schedule four turf races a day through November, taking advantage of the widened turf course that permits the rails to have six different settings.

FORT ERIE, Ontario - Wild Desert, who shipped to Saratoga after winning the Queen's Plate on June 26 at Woodbine, will be looking to add the second jewel in Canada's Triple Crown to his collection when he returns for the Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie on Sunday.

A field of six was announced for the $500,000 Prince of Wales, a 1 3/16-mile race for Canadian-bred 3-year-olds, at a special draw here Wednesday afternoon.

Wild Desert drew post 3 in a race where starting position shouldn't be much of a factor.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - As expected, Bound to Be M V P was put on a van and shipped out of Hastings following his easy win in the Ladnesian Stakes on Sunday. The good news is that he was moved to trainer Brian Giesbrecht's farm in Aldergrove, a suburb of Vancouver, and he will return to run in the New Westminster Stakes on Aug. 28.

Before the Ladnesian, Giesbrecht, who trains Bound to Be M V P, said there was a good chance that the talented 2-year-old colt was heading to California after the race.

The field for the $1 million Haskell Invitational, Monmouth Park's premier event, will come into sharper focus following the Grade 3, $150,000 Long Branch Breeders' Cup Stakes on Saturday.

The Long Branch is the traditional prep for 3-year-olds hoping to step up to the Haskell on Aug. 7.

In order to step up, Chekhov must first grow up.