Welcome back to the Twelve Days of Curlin Babies, where we celebrate the twelve most memorable races from Curlin’s progeny throughout 2018. Through all the hundreds of races in which they ran this year, these are the ones to which my mind keeps wandering back. #12: Timeless Curls Marks Herself a Rising Star#11: Secret Passage Comes... Continue Reading →
Canadian Triple Crown Trifectas
As soon as Wonder Gadot, Aheadbyacentury, and Cooler Mike crossed the wire 1-2-3 in the Prince of Wales, I wondered whether they were the first repeat trifecta in the first two races of the Canadian Triple Crown. They are. Never before yesterday had the trifecta repeated itself in the Queen's Plate (or the King's Plate,... Continue Reading →
Picks and Ponderings: 2017 Canadian International in Pictures
Sunday was Canadian International Day at Woodbine. The day's racing action featured four graded stakes races: the Canadian International (G1) for open company at a mile and a half on grass, the E. P. Taylor (G1) for fillies going a mile and a quarter on the turf, the six-furlong Nearctic Stakes (G2) for turf sprinters,... Continue Reading →
thank you, The Pizza Man
I'm glad The Pizza Man is being honoured at Arlington on Woodbine Mile day. It fits. With what turned out to be his final career win, on Mile day last year, the Pizza Man gave me a hug when I needed it most. On one of Woodbine's flagship days of racing, a pair of familiar... Continue Reading →
Picks and Ponderings: Canadian International Stakes Recap
Today was the last of Woodbine's flagship race days: Canadian International Day! Anchoring the card was a pair of Grade I turf routes: the Canadian International for open company, and the E. P. Taylor for fillies and mares. The Canadian International went to a shipper; the E. P Taylor went to a horse familiar to... Continue Reading →
Picks and Ponderings: A Quietly Special Morning at Woodbine
This morning seemed mostly normal on the backside at Woodbine...but only mostly.
there’s the Top Decile we know and love!
Two years ago, I was bullish on Top Decile going into the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. A year ago, her connections had announced her retirement and placed her in the Keeneland November sale. Today, I saw her win a horse race. She had won her debut at Saratoga, and finished a solid second in the... Continue Reading →
Picks and Ponderings: back to Woodbine!
This week is another big one at Woodbine, with a Sunday card that features four stakes races including the Grade I, $1 million Canadian International. Illinois-bred The Pizza Man, winner of last month's Northern Dancer (GI - CAN), makes his second try for Canadian International glory. He will have to face a tough field, however,... Continue Reading →
a long weekend at Woodbine
As silly as it sounds, I would never have gotten on a plane to Toronto for the Woodbine Mile last week if it were not for the insistence of one sassy tweeting barn cat. But, thanks to plenty of tweets threatening whips to anyone who missed the Gator Kitten Mile, I decided I would plan... Continue Reading →
Picks and Ponderings: At Woodbine, Redemption for The Pizza Man
Though it had been a tough year for The Pizza Man so far, he put it all back together in today's Northern Dancer (GI) at Woodbine. He looked like The Pizza Man of old -- not only because he saw the winner's circle for the first time since November, but also because he reverted to... Continue Reading →
Picks and Ponderings: Woodbine Mile Day Stakes Preview
This Saturday is the Woodbine Mile, and the card features four competitive stakes races headlined by the return of Tepin in the Woodbine Mile (GI - CAN)! In addition to the Mile, the card also offers the Northern Dancer (GI - CAN), the Canadian (GII - CAN), and the Ontario Derby (GIII - CAN). I... Continue Reading →
a Grade I, and other glory
This weekend, four Curlin babies found the winners' circle, two in graded stakes company. Three more rounded out the exacta. In short, it's a good week to be a Curlin baby. Top billing, of course, goes to Exaggerator (Dawn Raid, by Vindication). After making a bold move in the San Felipe, but then stalling out, one... Continue Reading →
a gutsy run from Copperplate
On April 24, Copperplate (Verdana Bold, by Rahy) posted his last win: an authoritative two-length score in a five and a half furlong dash at Indiana Grand, against $25,000 N2L company. Since then, he tried allowance-optional company, twice on the dirt and twice on the turf. After finishing off the board in all four of... Continue Reading →
the luckiest guess
Before today, I had never bet a harness race, and I had never bet a high five. At Hawthorne yesterday, people could not stop talking about the nightcap at Woodbine Harness. The $0.20 jackpot high five had a $847,458.26 carryover and a mandatory payout. One of the people who told me about the bet pointed... Continue Reading →
Picks and Ponderings: Canadian International Day at Woodbine
It is not a stakes weekend at Hawthorne yet; those do not get underway until November. So, this weekend, Paul Mazur and I are taking another figurative road trip. This time, it is back to the Great White North for Canadian International Day at Woodbine. Paul takes a look at the Canadian International Stakes (GI)... Continue Reading →
