Tax Affair made her first trip to West Virginia worthwhile by scoring a two-length victory in Tuesday's $78,150 Golden Sylvia Handicap at Mountaineer Park.

A 5-year-old mare based in New York with trainer Scott Lake, Tax Affair ($9.20) and jockey Pedro Walker sat in second while pacesetter Hurry Rafaela burned herself out by running the first half-mile in 45.87 seconds. When Walker asked Tax Affair for run, she responded by accelerating past the tiring Hurry Rafaela at the quarter pole and opened up by as many as five lengths. Tax Affair completed the mile in 1:36.81.

SASKATOON, Saskatchewan - As Marquis Downs swings into its fifth weekend of the meet, Rennie Latchman leads the jockey standings with 10 wins, two more than Serge Rocheleau and Andy Scarlett.

Latchman last competed here in 1997. He has ridden almost every race held this meet.

Rocheleau has won six local riding titles but his streak was ended last year by Isiah Sala, who died in an accident here last August.

LINCOLN, Neb. - With four weekends of racing remaining, Lincoln is on pace to post solid gains in attendance and handle this summer. Ontrack attendance is up 7 percent over a year ago, with a daily average of 1,691. The ontrack handle is up 11 percent, with a daily average of $52,792, and offtrack wagering is up more than 22 percent, to $49,761 daily. Total wagering on Lincoln's live racing is averaging $102,553 per day, up 16 percent from last year.

Field size has also increased this year, with an average of 8.6 starters per race compared to 7.5 starters last year.

MUSKEGON, Mich. - Michigan's 2001 horse of the year, Born to Dance, won the $45,000 Regret Stakes here Saturday. Bad Thing was second and Sweetwater Promise checked in third in the field of seven statebred 3-year-old fillies. Born to Dance and Sweetwater Promise are both owned by Rosendo Parra and trained by James Jackson.

Under jockey Terry Houghton, Born to Dance won by nearly seven lengths in 1:13.40 for the six furlongs. She paid $3.20 to win. In one previous start this meet, Born to Dance lost to the older Sefas Rose.

COLLINSVILLE, Ill. - Trainer Jimmy Wiser has always run a high-percentage stable here, but this meet he went winless with his first 43 starters. Stable stars such as Shania's Code and Big Adam J. had raced well, but hadn't won.

LAFAYETTE, La. - Evangeline Downs has been a longshot player's dream this meet, with five-figure exotic payoffs almost becoming routine, including a record $30,000-plus trifecta earlier in the meeting. Even imperfect trifecta and superfecta tickets, with "all" in the third or fourth spots, have been lucrative.

SHAKOPEE, Minn. - Fans here were treated to a blast from the past after To Wit won Friday's fifth race.

Following To Wit into the winner's circle, cell phone in hand, was Pat Cuccurullo, who led the trainer standings at Canterbury Park for three straight years, from 1989-1991. Now based in Chicago with a high-profile claiming stable, Cuccurullo has shipped a string of some 20 head to Canterbury under the supervision of assistant trainer Randy Sweitzer.

SALEM, N.H. - Graded stakes winners Del Mar Show and Dr. Kashnikow square off in Saturday's $200,000 Grade 3 New Hampshire Sweepstakes at Rockingham Park.

The winner of the Grade 3 Ft. Lauderdale Handicap at Gulfstream Park this past winter, Del Mar Show will be a heavy favorite over eight rivals in the 23rd running of the 1 1/8-mile turf race.

NEW YORK - Horseplayers will be able to make proposition bets on the Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships in a series of new wagers unveiled Tuesday by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and Breeders' Cup Limited.

Head2Head asks fans to predict which of two designated horses will beat the other in a given race. The horses involved in each of the eight Breeders' Cup races will be announced at the Oct. 23 post position draw for the Breeders' Cup, to be held on Oct. 26 at Arlington Park.

OCEANPORT, N.J. - On his first mount the day he lost his bug last Dec. 13, Julian Pimentel won aboard a horse trained by Buddy Carlesimo at Aqueduct. So much for the complications that arrive when an apprentice loses his weight allowance and becomes a journeyman.