Kentucky Derby Day . . . Belmont Stakes Day when a Triple Crown is on the line . . . and Breeders’ Cup Weekend.
These are the days – other than those a self-inflicted controversy of some sort – when you feel a little less like a unicorn to be involved in Thoroughbred racing. Your neighbor knows those days, and understands them at least enough to have a conversation.
The Jet Stream Parking early-morning shuttle driver in Philadelphia asked where I was going when I climbed aboard his bus in the dark Wednesday. I muttered something about American Airlines, Terminal A, but then realized he really wanted to know. I said San Diego and in the midst of a story about how he and his wife have gotten along for going on 35 years – admitting you’d prefer some alone time is part of the reason – he mentioned “a stud horse.” I asked if he worked with racehorses and soon, we were discussing Buckpasser, Angel Cordero Jr., Braulio Baeza “way back” and his current favorite jockey Luis Saez. “He rides through the race,” my man said, “the whole race.” We moved on to the Breeders’ Cup and Del Mar. He said he’d be watching. I said I’d be out there trying to find stories, tried to explain The Saratoga Special to him and knew exactly what he meant when he said, “Oooh, I had some good times in Saratoga Springs.” He pulled up at Terminal A, wished me luck and I told him to say hello to his wife for me. I hope he’s driving when I get back early Sunday morning.
The people on the flight played a similar tune. A guy in a Smarty Jones hat waited at the gate. On the plane, I passed him on the way to my seat and he was pouring through a notebook of PPs. Thoroughbred owner/breeder Tim Gardner was on the plane, though his trip could be related to his career as a surgeon because I haven’t seen him out here. Two rows up, somebody was talking racing. Further back on the left, I heard “Mirahmadi” mentioned. One seat ahead of me, a woman talked about being the “house mother” to a band of friends coming to town for the races. She’s more into the people and the horses. They’re gambling.
Across the aisle from her, racing fan and amateur photographer George Trenich broke out a pile of images – including that famous one of Songbird and an actual bird at the finish line – and talked about watching Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew race. Trenich tried out a joke or two, talked about getting up early enough to catch some training this week. Thorpedo Anna was a goal. I told him he better set his alarm. I hope it worked out. He asked who I was and what I did. When I mentioned The Saratoga Special, I got a fist bump and a, “Wait until I tell my friends.”
Wait, there’s more. When the pilot came over the intercom to tell us something about seat belts, I swear he sounded like jockey Sheldon Russell – or at least Russell’s brother. English for sure, a horse guy maybe. I guess we’ll never know that answer, but Russell rides Maryland-bred and Maryland-based Post Time in the Dirt Mile. The horse is so local to me that I’ve written stories about his dam Vielsalm, breeder Brooke Bowman and grandsire Fairbanks. Years ago, Bowman’s father Tom tried to rev up the crowd at a stallion show by saying Fairbanks “just looked fast.” He did, but that didn’t really help his stallion career. His grandson Post Time, subject of a Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred magazine cover story back in April, has a shot in Saturday’s finale. He’s notorious for walking around Fair Hill Training Center on his hind legs or making some other spectacle of himself. A Breeders’ Cup win would be something for the bay colt owned by Ellen Charles’ Hillwood Stable and trained by Russell’s wife Brittany. Charles bought Post Time mainly because his second dam is named Merriweather, which reminded the owner of her grandmother Marjorie Merriweather Post. Once the richest woman in the United States, Post owned – among other things – the Florida estate Mar-a-Lago. Charles’ father MerrallMacNeille was a noted racing official for decades in Maryland. A Breeders’ Cup win would mean the world.
The races start Friday afternoon at Del Mar, but the historic track opened in part by singer/actor/racing fan Bing Crosby in 1937, was buzzing with activity Thursday morning. The best Thoroughbreds in the world and their accompanying people headed to and from the track, schooled in the paddock, strolled the sand rings, stood at the rail and went through the final nervous days before major assignments.
War Like Goddess galloped late in the morning, then prowled the backstretch. She makes her fourth Breeders’ Cup start in Saturday’s Filly and Mare Turf. She was third in the same race in 2021, third against males in the 2022 Turf at Keeneland and an uncharacteristic seventh (against the boys again) at Santa Anita last year. Since, she has a win, two seconds and a third in four starts this year. Off a second to Turf contender Far Bridge Sept. 28, she is the 5-2 favorite Saturday. Knowing her, she’ll run her race. Will it be good enough at age 7?
I saw the Aidan O’Brien squad make a lap of the paddock mid-morning. Crazy cool. Luxembourg led the way. City Of Troy followed in second. Some horse. Can he handle dirt and top-class competition from post three? Fascinating question.
Here’s to finding answers to that and more before the weekend ends. You can talk to your friends about it.
