COLUMBUS, Neb. - Agricultural Park in Columbus opens its 25-day meet Friday night with eight weekends of racing to be presented on the five-eighths mile oval.
The barn area has filled up nicely through the week and stall applications exceeded the nearly 800 stalls available on the grounds. A majority of the leaders from last year's jockey and trainer standings have returned.
LAFAYETTE, La. - Trials for the Bayouland Sales Futurity, the second leg of the Evangeline Triple Crown for Juveniles, were held last Friday with the top six finishers from each of the two qualifying races set to go in the finals Aug. 3. The Bayouland is restricted to yearlings purchased in one of Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders' Sales in the past year.
COLLINSVILLE, Ill. - An unusual aspect of this year's Fairmount meet is the number of apprentice riders enjoying success. Fairmount is not known for regularly producing young riding talent or even as a friendly place for "bug" riders, but currently there are three apprentices in the standings.
MUSKEGON, Mich. - Leading rider Terry Houghton capped off his week with a five-bagger Tuesday evening at Great Lakes Downs, which in some circles jokingly has become known as "Houghton Downs."
Houghton, the runaway leader at this meet, rode 10 winners here on the week, despite being absent Saturday, when he traveled to Thistledown to capture the Isi Newborn Memorial Stakes aboard local champion Secret Romeo. Houghton and trainer Gerald Bennett also teamed up to score with Rhythmair earlier on the Ohio Derby card.
Distance mare Samee Brass and jockey Damon Leeds have been an unbeatable combination at Mountaineer Park.
The pair made it 6 for 6 since last November when Samee Brass ($5.80) won Monday night's feature, a starter allowance at one mile, by two lengths. It was the first time Samee Brass, a 6-year-old trained by Thomas Gumble, has been favored during her streak with Leeds. Three other jockeys have ridden Samee Brass since Leeds first won with her last fall, but each time she finished out of the money.
MIAMI - The opening legs of this year's Florida Stallion Series, the Dr. Fager and Desert Vixen Stakes, are still more than two weeks away, but already it looks like both races will offer full and talented fields. Both races carry $75,000 purses, are at six furlongs, and go on Aug. 10 at Calder.
A number of prospects turned in solid preps here last weekend. The most notable were Trust N Luck and Ivanavinalot, who both will enter their races with unblemished records.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Just a few weeks ago they couldn't get enough horses to run at Arlington. Now, there are too many.
An overflow field of 14 was entered Wednesday for Friday's featured eighth race, a high-end allowance designed for horses not quite good enough to run Saturday in the Arlington Handicap. The 12 that made it in are good enough, however, both in terms of quality and bettability.
Everywhere you turn in this race there's a viable contender.
SANTA ROSA, Calif. - Over the years C.C. Perkinson has had a variety of jobs, but the ones she has liked best have involved horses.
Riding was her love, starting when she began exercising horses in Washington and later when she became a jockey.
She enjoyed moderate success on the fair circuit, particularly two years ago when she helped train several of the better horses she rode. That led her to turn in her jockey's license and become a trainer in spring 2001.
OCEANPORT, N.J. - With Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner War Emblem out of the Grade 1 Haskell, the race took yet another blow Wednesday when trainer Neil Drysdale reported that Sunday Break would not be able to make the Aug. 4 race because of a leg injury.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - Ron Isbell could talk for only a short time Wednesday morning. Gretchen's Star, munching on grass in some quiet corner of the Thoroughbred Training Center outside Lexington, Ky., needed to be brought back to his stall. If Isbell didn't do it, who would?
Gretchen's Star is Isbell's only horse, given to him for nothing in 1999 when a bowed tendon threatened to end the horse's career. Isbell waited more than a year for the injury to heal, trading his own labor in exchange for board at the farm where Gretchen's Star was turned out.