VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Ross McLeod has had tremendous success in the gaming business in Canada. He's also off to a pretty good start in horse racing.

AUBURN, Wash. - Trainer Frank Lucarelli spent much of last year teaching Marva Jean to come from off the pace, and his efforts were by no means in vain.

Marva Jean came within a head of winning last season's Washington State Legislators Handicap at 6 1/2 furlongs, and she ran third in two other stakes. In the final analysis, however, Marva Jean was winless in nine starts during her 4-year-old campaign, and Lucarelli was not satisfied with that result.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - It has been a week for milestones at Woodbine, where jockeys Steven Bahen and Martin Ramirez both notched their 1,000th career victory.

Bahen, who entered the 2005 meeting with 998 winners, scored his 1,000th win aboard Dave the Knave ($2.80) in Friday's second race.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Silver Impulse and Dancehall Deelites are among the eight Ontario-foaled 3-year-old fillies who will prep for the June 12 Labatt Woodbine Oaks in Sunday's $165,450 Fury Stakes.

Silver Impulse was one of the best claims at Woodbine last year. Taken from her debut for $62,500 by trainer Stanley Baresich, she went on to win a stakes and finish second and third in two others, earning about $200,000.

FORT ERIE, Ontario - Apprentice Chad Beckon surprised everyone, including himself, when he emerged from the opening weekend at Fort Erie atop the rider standings.

Beckon, with five wins, was fast out of the gate, capturing the first three races of the 108-day meet on Sunday. He added two more Monday.

Next in line was Francine Villeneuve, who is Canada's all-time winningest woman jockey. Her three victories brought her to 835 lifetime wins.

No other rider scored more than once.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Just like last year, Nicole's Dream used her exceptional speed to gain the upper hand in the .

Only this time, there was no late fight developing. Nicole's Dream, the prototype of a filly-mare turf sprinter, led from the very first step under Eddie Martin Jr. when prevailing by a relatively comfortable 1 1/4 lengths in the $112,100 Mamzelle on the Thursday before the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - When a race is so competitive that the morning-line favorite is 4-1, handicappers know they're probably in for a good time. A struggle, maybe, but a good time nonetheless, since nice payoffs are virtually assured.

And when that race happens to be the Grade 2 Churchill Downs Handicap, and the day happens to be Kentucky Derby Day, and the field happens to include 12 of the best sprinters that American racing can offer, well, making a beeline to the mutuel windows has seldom been so much fun.

Ticker Tape, a finalist for the Eclipse Award in the filly and mare turf division as a 3-year-old, begins her 4-year-old campaign Saturday in a competitive running of the $100,000 Comp USA Turf Mile.

, a British-bred daughter of Royal Applause, won 5 of 10 starts last year, including the American Oaks at Hollywood Park and the Queen Elizabeth II Cup at Keeneland. In her lone start against older mares, she was beaten two lengths by Intercontinental in the Grade 1 Matriarch last Nov. 28, her last start.

Four of the most impressive 2-year-old winners of last month's Keeneland meeting square off at Churchill Downs in Saturday's $100,000 Three Chimneys Juvenile, a five-furlong dash that in recent years has surprisingly produced such future Kentucky Derby runners as Limehouse and More Than Ready.

Todd Pletcher, who trained More Than Ready, sends out , an Unbridled's Song colt who blitzed his rivals by nearly 11 lengths, zipping 4 1/2 furlongs in 51.61 seconds.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - On three different occasions on the first Saturday in May, trainer Bob Baffert has made a jubilant jaunt to the winner's circle at Churchill Downs.

All of those trips, of course, came in the aftermath of Baffert's three Kentucky Derby wins. This year, Baffert's lone Derby runner, Sort It Out, is a huge longshot, but Baffert still has a solid chance to get his picture taken as the afternoon sun begins its slow fade.