HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Gulfstream Park will open its barn area Oct. 22, two weeks earlier than usual, track president and general manager Scott Savin announced Friday.
The 2002 Gulfstream meet runs from Jan. 3 through April 24.
Savin said the decision was made to help horsemen who are forced to vacate their stalls at other tracks. This will allow them to come directly to Gulfstream instead of seeking temporary accommodations elsewhere.
Racing was cancelled Friday at Finger Lakes Race Track when replacements could not be found for a group of jockeys who refused to ride in deference to the recent hijakced airliner attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C.
"Some of the jockeys didn't want to ride, they are upset at the situation (in New York and Washington, D.C.). They asked not to ride and there were not enough riders to complete the program," said Chris Riegle, President and GM of Finger Lakes.
Finger Lakes raced last on Monday, cancelling programs on Tuesday and Thursday.
With the Meadowlands sports complex closed for horse racing and pro football this weekend, the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority facilities will serve as drop-off points for the collection of items for rescue workers to help people
affected by the disaster at the World Trade Center.
Collections on will take place at the Giants Stadium Practice Bubble on Saturday from 12 noon to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 12 noon to 5 p.m.
Monmouth Park will accept donations from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday at the Grandstand Admissions Center.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Plans to resume racing Saturday at Belmont Park and The Meadowlands were canceled abruptly Friday with officials from both tracks pointing to the continuing efforts to recover from Tuesday's terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.
Weekend racing at Belmont Park has been canceled, wiping out Saturday and Sunday programs that featured five stakes, three of them Grade I events.
The New York Racing Association had originally planned to re-open Belmont Park on Saturday after canceling programs on Wednesday through Friday due to the hijacked airline attacks on the World Trade Center in Manhattan.
Racing is expected to resume at Belmont on Wednesday.
The Meadowlands Racetrack will be closed for both live and simulcast racing this weekend, it was announced Friday afternoon.
The Meadowlands will resume simulcasting on Monday and live racing on Tuesday night.
The East Rutherford, N.J. track has been closed since Tuesday's attacks on the World Trade Center in nearby Manhattan. It was previously announced The Meadowlands would re-open Saturday night.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Stage Classic probably will be taking his show back on the road, this time to the British Columbia Derby Sept. 29.
"I've considered the McLaughlin," said Dave Cotey, trainer and co-owner of Stage Classic, a 3-year-old gelding who would have carried 117 pounds here in Saturday's Colonel R.S. McLaughlin Handicap.
"But I want to find an easier spot for him, and he'll be running for $200,000 instead of $100,000."
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Meadow Gem, who won her first four starts before finishing second against older fillies and mares here in the Sept. 2 Seaway, could make her next start at Keeneland Oct. 10 in the $100,000 Raven Run, a seven-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies.
"We'll also nominate her to the Highlander," said Tiller, who trains Meadow Gem and is a co-owner of the Florida-bred, "but she'd be facing older horses, going six furlongs."
The Highlander, a Grade 3 handicap worth $150,000, will be run here Sept. 30.
POMONA, Calif. - Horse racing in Southern California has not picked up right where it left off. The Los Angeles County Fair re-opened Wednesday after a one-day shutdown due to the terrorist attracks on the East Coast, and racing officials at Fairplex Park face the challenge of regaining momentum and recovering lost revenue.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - The lesson is not buried deep in the past. Six months ago, the 3-year-old colt Monarchos followed up a smashing win in the Florida Derby with a loss in the Wood Memorial. But even before the Wood, trainer John Ward publicly proclaimed that the race was a stepping-stone to a greater goal, the Kentucky Derby, which Monarchos won three weeks later.