ELMONT, N.Y. - The anxiety Neil Howard felt before last year's Woodward was self-induced. He was running the best horse, and Mineshaft ran like the best horse, winning by 4 1/4 lengths in a very fast time of 1:46.21. Mineshaft won the Jockey Club Gold Cup here three weeks later en route to Horse of the Year honors.
POMONA, Calif. - There is no lack of wagering opportunities at the Los Angeles County Fair race meet, which begins its 17-day run Friday on the five-furlong track at Fairplex Park. Here, the focus is on old-fashioned gambling and hard-earned purse money. No doubt, it is a unique place to race.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - You start doing the math, and you find yourself shaking your head. Shiloh Bound was 43-1 in his career debut, 22-1 in his second start, and almost 16-1 the third time he raced. The horse won all three times, and a win parlay would have landed you in a new tax bracket.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - The promising Hoper will make her much-anticipated second start in Woodbine's eighth race Friday, a six-furlong allowance for 2-year-old fillies.
Hoper faced males over a sloppy track in her only outing, on July 31, and scored by three-quarters of a length over the Seattle Slew colt Slew's Saga. Her five-furlong time of 59.20 seconds translated into a Beyer Speed Figure of 66.
Trainer Dave Dwyer said Hoper threatened to buck shins leading up to her debut.
EDMONTON, Alberta - Friday night's program at Northlands Park features the second running of the $50,000 3-year-old Filly Sales Stakes, with a field of nine going a mile.
Alta Aire, who won the Bird of Pay a year ago, could be the filly to beat, with Shannon Beauregard getting the return call from trainer Joan Petrowski. Runner-up in the Mount Royal this spring, Alta Aire finished a strong second to Classa Red Wine in an allowance race in her last start, beaten a head.
DEL MAR, Calif. - Our New Recruit, who ran the fastest six furlongs of the meet winning the Pirate's Bounty Handicap on Monday, will head straight to the Breeders' Cup Sprint on Oct. 30 at Lone Star Park.
Running fresh is ideal for Our New Recruit. He had been off for more than five months before sizzling six furlongs in 1:08.25 on Monday, and earlier this year he came off a seven-week layoff to capture the Dubai Golden Shaheen. Because of that, trainer John Sadler is inclined to skip the Oct. 10 Ancient Title Breeders' Cup Handicap at Santa Anita's Oak Tree meeting.
POMONA, Calif. - The first day of the Los Angeles County Fair meet marks a new beginning for jockey Garrett Gomez. Port Isle in race 4 will be the first mount for Gomez since Dec. 14, 2002 at Sunland Park. Since then, Gomez fought substance abuse, received treatment, and got his life in order. Port Isle and Artabegood in race 8 are trained by Gomez's longtime friend Leonard Duncan. Gomez also rides two for trainer Pete Eurton - Fabulous Ruler in race 5, and Trish's Diamond in race 11, the $60,000 Foothill Stakes.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Eurosilver, the standout colt sidelined since March, could show up in the entries within the next few weeks after having a half-mile workout Sunday at Churchill Downs.
Eurosilver breezed a half-mile in 48.40 seconds, a move trainer Carl Nafzger said was his first workout at Churchill but "about his fourth" since returning to serious training this summer from a lingering illness. Eurosilver had been based at the Skylight Training Center, located about 25 miles east of Churchill, until last week, said Nafzger.
The 54-day meet that ended Monday at Ellis Park showed sizable across-the-board decreases in business, declines attributable to running a six-day race week rather than the usual five-day week.
Gross handle and attendance were up over 2003, but only because there were 13 fewer racing dates last year. The average daily handle from all sources was $3,053,213, down nearly 18 percent from last year, while the average ontrack handle was $273,545, down 22 percent. Average attendance was 2,540, down nearly 16 percent.
