Brazilian import High Court and Boozin' Susan both are proven performers in turf stakes.

There are questions about distance that both have yet to answer, however.

High Court, winner of four in a row, has never raced beyond one mile. Boozin' Susan has been strictly a turf sprint specialist, competing almost exclusively at five and 5 1/2 furlongs.

What will happen when High Court and Boozin' Susan are asked to go 1 1/16 miles in Saturday's $100,000 Dr. James Penny Memorial Handicap at Philadelphia Park?

Early speed is a rare commodity in the $50,000 Buckland, a 5 1/2-furlong turf stakes for fillies and mares at Colonial Downs. Most of the contenders prefer to either stalk or come from far off the pace.

The prime candidates to steal the Buckland on the front end are Oh Say Vicki and Bright Gold.

When Charles J. Hadry was 10, he began hanging around the barn of his father, Charles H. Hadry. He had the opportunity to get close to some nice horses, including Private Terms, winner of the Wood Memorial and Gotham Stakes in 1988; Blue Ensign, a two-time stakes winner in Maryland; and Assault Landing, winner of the 1983 Gotham.

Since becoming a trainer himself, the younger Hadry has tasted success with the older mare Shiny Sheet, who won the $100,000 John Rooney Memorial Handicap at Delaware Park last month and finished third at 62-1 in last year's Grade 2 Delaware Handicap.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - The Labatt Bison City Stakes will be run at Fort Erie Sunday, but Woodbine will be supplying almost all of the raw material for the $250,000 feature.

Five of the six entrants in the 1 1/16-mile Bison City, which is the second leg of Canada's triple tiara, are based at Woodbine, as are all six riders.

That sextet includes Todd Kabel, Jono Jones, and Jim McAleney, who ranked one-two-three in the standings here heading into Thursday's program. Patrick Husbands, Gerry Olguin, and Richard Dos Ramos will also ride in the race.

WINNIPEG, Manitoba - Beauty and Glory, the only multiple winner in the field, will likely be favored Saturday at Assiniboia Downs in the $40,000 R.C. Anderson at a mile. Of the eight Manitoba-bred 3-year-old fillies in the race, only one other has even won a race.

Beauty and Glory has won two of four starts. Owned by K-5 Stable, Beauty and Glory won a maiden special weight race on May 2 to begin her season. She then was fourth behind the highly regarded Lt. Regent in her first start against winners before winning a first-level allowance in her most recent start.

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan - A pair of 2003 stakes winners and a well-bred maiden winner should vie for favoritism in Saturday's $5,000 Saskatoon Handicap for 3-year olds at Marquis Downs.

The Saskatoon Handicap will be contested over six furlongs and is the first local step toward the $15,000 Saskatchewan Derby, a 1 1/16-mile race here Sept. 11.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - It took only two runnings for the American Oaks to curry enough favor and respect that it was rewarded with a Grade 1 ranking. How this year's race will compare to previous runnings, which were won by subsequent stars Megahertz and Dimitrova, probably will not be known for several months. Yet this year's race already has reached a new high in at least one category, that of international representation.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Pohave has inherited the role of starting highweight in Saturday's $300,000 Triple Bend Breeders' Cup Handicap, and the absence of the five horses that were listed above him on the original invitation list has not exactly left Pohave's trainer, Doug O'Neill, brokenhearted.

The Grade 1 Triple Bend, run over seven furlongs, drew 14 entries on Wednesday. The race lacks a nationally prominent sprinter such as Alke, Ghostzapper, Lion Tamer, Speightstown, or Strong Hope, who were listed above Pohave in the weights.

California trainers began paying dramatically lower premiums for workers' compensation insurance this week as part of legislation approved in May that raised the takeout on exotic wagers placed on California races.

Beginning with the start of the fiscal year on Thursday, a subsidy derived from the raise in takeout is being paid directly into policies held by trainers. The subsidy has cut in half the workers' compensation costs for many trainers, according to Ed Halpern, the executive director of the California Thoroughbred Trainers.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Pellegrino and Murano form a formidable entry in a $54,000 optional claimer on turf at Hollywood Park on Friday evening.

For Pellegrino, trained by Don Burke, the 1 1/2-mile race could serve as a prep for the Escondido Handicap at Del Mar on Aug. 4.

A winner of 2 of 11 starts, Pellegrino placed in three Group 1 races in Argentina in late 2002, including the Argentine Derby. He was sent to Dubai in early 2003 but did not start there because of illness, Burke said.

"He got sick and almost died," Burke said. "It was dicey there for a little while."