LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Senor Swinger, whose mild upset over Hard Buck three weeks ago in the inaugural Opening Verse Handicap punctuated his affinity for the Churchill Downs turf course, will return to his favorite surface Saturday as part of a sizable field of older horses in the $250,000 Firecracker Breeders' Cup Handicap.

With its focus on 2-year-old racing, Lone Star Park unveils a lot of new talent each year. It's also a meet that spotlights young trainers, and one of the brightest to come along this season has been 24-year-old Cody Autrey.

Autrey has won with 10 of 25 starters at the meet, and ranks 12th in the standings at the Dallas-area track behind leader Steve Asmussen.

"We've had a great meet," Autrey said. "It's been super."

Happy Ticket looks like a runner with a future. She will move from open company into the Louisiana-bred ranks in the ninth race on Friday at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City. The six-furlong entry-level allowance is worth $31,000.

Happy Ticket made an impression in her debut last out, when she won at six furlongs and earned an 87 Beyer Speed Figure. A 3-year-old, she is by Anet and is a half-sister to Clever Seven, winner of the Mississippi Futurity.

Andrew Leggio Jr. trains Happy Ticket for Stewart Madison. She will be ridden by Lonnie Meche.

OCEANPORT, N.J. - The unflappable Meteor Storm took everything in stride Wednesday in his first tour of Monmouth Park.

The likely favorite for the Grade 1, $750,000 United Nations on Saturday, Meteor Storm had an easy jog around the main track on a clear morning with low humidity.

The ideal weather alleviated a major concern of assistant trainer Aimee Dollase, who accompanied Meteor Storm on a Tuesday flight from California.

OCEANPORT, N.J. - Playing the races in these parts means handicapping turf sprint races. A lot of them. More, in fact, than in any other part of the country. Usually, it's best to concentrate on horses who have established themselves as specialists in such races, but it also pays to simply follow trainers who win a high percentage of turf sprints. If you listen to some of them, however, their secret is no secret at all.

For some, a big part of their success can be summed up in a word - luck.

The Turf Club portion of the River Downs meet concluded June 26 with a new face atop the jockey standings. Dean Sarvis, a 36-year-old native of Baltimore competing at his first River Downs meet, won a record 84 races, surpassing the mark of 80 wins set by Steve Neff in 1987.

Perennial riding champion Perry Ouzts finished second with 67 winners, well ahead of Hector Rosario Jr., who had 29.

SHAKOPEE, Minn. - Canterbury Park regulars and a host of extras were on hand Monday when film crews visited the Minnesota track to shoot for the upcoming movie "Factotum." On a shoot that required nearly 100 crew members, more than 400 extras answered a casting call to appear in scenes with actors Matt Dillon and Fisher Stevens in the Canterbury Park clubhouse.

The movie is based on a book by Charles Bukowski that mirrors the author's struggles with drinking, gambling, and writing while working as a jack-of-all-trades. Dillon and Marisa Tomei will star in "Factotum."

CARENCRO, La. - Officials at Evangeline Downs have announced plans to honor the armed services on Saturday, one of the biggest days of the season.

Eleven of the 12 races on Saturday's card will recognize branches of the armed services that have ties to the local community. The expanded program will also feature the 39th running of the $100,000-guaranteed D.S. "Shine" Young Memorial Futurity.

Assistant racing secretary Charles L. Moreau, an eight-year veteran of military service, approached management with the idea and has been the catalyst behind its implementation.

MUSKEGON, Mich. - Cats Copy, winner of the Regret Stakes here in May, is back in town looking for her third Great Lakes Downs stakes victory in Friday's $40,000 Plymouth Stakes. The Plymouth, in its 20th edition, is for 3-year-old Michigan-bred fillies at seven furlongs. It will be the fifth race on the eight-race card, which gets under way at 6:30 p.m.

LINCOLN, Neb. - Leading rider R.D. Williams put an exclamation point on his lead in the standings last Sunday when he won the opening five races on the nine-race card.

It was Williams's fifth day of the meet with four or more wins on a card, and he has opened a 53-33 edge over Dennis Collins with two weekends remaining in the season.

Armando Martinez picked up a four-bagger on June 25 and has moved into third in the standings with 25 wins.