SHAKOPEE, Minn. - One of the traits the shares with the Triple Crown and Breeders' Cup is that horses and their connections travel from all over North America to participate.

Officials at Canterbury Park would never dare to put the Claiming Crown on a par with racing's glamour events, but they still take great pride in having molded the Claiming Crown into a destination event for horses and horsemen. The 62 horses scheduled to run Saturday in the seven-race series made their respective last starts at 15 different racetracks.

ELMONT, N.Y. - Big Apple Daddy, a very consistent New York-bred, steps into open company Friday at Belmont Park in the $65,000 Smoke Glacken Stakes for 3-year-olds.

He comes out of the Mike Lee Stakes for statebreds on June 26, a race that trainer Bruce Levine said was "like an open race. Some of the horses in there have been running Beyer Figures of 90 to 100."

battled three wide for the lead in the seven-furlong stakes and held a narrow advantage in the lane. He finished fourth, beaten only 2 3/4 lengths by Naughty New Yorker.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - The published time for Bashert's three-furlong workout at Hollywood Park on Wednesday was more than a second different from what trainer Bill Currin recorded on his stopwatch.

For Currin, this was rather unsettling.

Officially, Bashert breezed from the gate in 36.80 seconds. "He really went in 35.40," Currin said.

By Saturday, when Bashert runs in the $100,000 Hollywood Juvenile Championship, that discrepancy is unlikely to be a big factor in the public's perception of the colt. They already know he is one to follow.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Tricky Day, claimed for $16,000 at Gulfstream Park in April, has already turned out to be a bargain for the G Racing syndicate, Carl Van Burger, and their partners.

A winner of 3 of 5 starts and $62,100, will try for his third consecutive win in a $51,000 optional claimer over six furlongs at Hollywood Park on Friday evening. And, no, he is not eligible to be claimed.

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.