VANCOUVER, British Columbia - J V Bennett won't be the betting choice, but the fan favorite will get his usual warm reception when he goes on post parade for his 100th career start in the feature race at Hastings Saturday.

An 11-year-old gelding, J V Bennett was no secret when made his debut, winning as the odds-on favorite in a maiden special weight race at Turf Paradise in 1995. He won the Tempe Handicap the following April, but for the most part J V Bennett has been a consistent allowance and mid-priced claiming horse.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - This one could be tight.

The 31st Cardinal Handicap might have the consistent Canadian filly Classic Stamp as a lukewarm favorite, but Churchill Downs horseplayers will have all sorts of wagering alternatives when the Grade 3 turf race is renewed Saturday.

Leaving on My Mind will attempt to win his fifth straight stakes race Saturday night in the $150,000 Sam Houston Texan Juvenile, but his streak is not the only element of suspense surrounding Texas Champions Day at Sam Houston Race Park.

Trainer Steve Asmussen has been working toward breaking a 28-year-old record for victories in a year in North America, and there is a chance he could set the record on this card, in which he will start 14 horses, 12 in stakes.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Blackdoun's three-race unbeaten streak in the United States ended with a troubled seventh-place finish in the Breeders' Cup Mile at Lone Star Park on Oct. 30.

Trainer Julio Canani has shrugged off the loss, blaming the defeat on traffic problems.

Now, Blackdoun has a new challenge. When he starts in the $500,000 Hollywood Derby at Hollywood Park on Nov. 28, Blackdoun will be trying 1 1/4 miles on turf for the first time, and against a top-class field.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Donnie Meche, who returned from a one-year suspension in July, was at Churchill Downs on Wednesday to see whether he could obtain a Kentucky jockey license. The initial answer from chief steward Mickey Sample was "no," although Meche, if he wishes, could submit to an interview with the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority's five-person licensing committee to determine his eligibility.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - The 1 1/16-mile Ascot Graduation closed the books on stakes races at Hastings last Saturday, and what a way it was to go out. Alabama Rain and Notis Otis, two talented 2-year-olds, put on quite a show in one of the most exciting races of the year. Hooking up on the backstretch, they battled head and head all the way to the wire, with Alabama Rain bobbing his head at exactly the right time. If the photo had been taken a jump before or immediately after the finish line, Notis Otis would have gotten the nod and remained undefeated.

PORTLAND, Ore. - The Oregon-bred 2-year-old fillies in the field will be tested for class in Saturday's six-furlong Lassie Stakes, the first open stakes for juvenile fillies at the Portland Meadows meeting, and Scatin Satin figures to administer the most demanding exam.

CHICAGO - Trainer Wayne Catalano has yet to make his move to Fair Grounds for the winter, and at Hawthorne he is battling for leading trainer, but down in New Orleans, Catalano's star filly Tamweel has begun her winter regimen.

MIAMI - Be it quantity or quality, trainer Todd Pletcher appears to have most of the bases covered for Saturday's $40,000 Princess Mora Stakes at Calder.

Pletcher has four of the 12 fillies and mares entered in the body of the 1 1/8-mile overnight turf stakes, including Beebe Lake and Krasnaya, the two likely favorites. The four Pletcher runners will all go off as separate betting interests.

Not factoring in Breeders' Cup Day figures, Lone Star Park handled an average of of more than $1.95 million a day on its races and drew an average of 7,827 patrons per card during its fall meet that ended Oct. 31, according to figures provided by the Texas Racing Commission. The track hosted the Breeders' Cup on Oct. 30.