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Sean Clancy Bill Mott doesn’t remember saying it. It was March 1998, I was just getting started as a writer, I mean just getting started, when I asked Mott if he thought Favorite Trick could get a mile and a quarter in the Kentucky Derby in two months time. Bred to be a sprinter, built like a … Read more
Jason Servis stood along the outside rail of the Oklahoma track Thursday morning as Alabama hopeful Actress enjoyed her first morning at the Spa. Arriving earlier that day, the gray daughter of Tapit jogged the wrong way, turned around and loped easily past Servis, his wife Natalie and a few gawkers on a crisp and clear morning.
“She hits 16s like nothing, like nothing,” Servis said, referring to the seconds it takes for her to cover a furlong. “Every once in a while I’ll put my watch on her and she just hits 16s. I don’t usually get these horses.”
Kip Elser called John Servis about a kid who wanted to go from teaching school in South Carolina to walking horses at Delaware Park.
“Does he know anything?” Servis asked.
“Yeah, he can walk a horse.” Elser said.
“Sure, send him up, I’ll put him to work,” Servis said.
As Servis had learned, he handed the responsibility of dealing with the new hotwalker to his right-hand man, Bill Foster. Six foot, six inches, college educated, a crossword genius, a born horseman, a bust-or-boon gambler, Foster spent all
Milestones? Al Stall Jr. won his 1,500th race Saturday afternoon when Behavioral Bliss won a 7-furlong maiden early on Whitney Day. Off to a fast start at Saratoga, Stall is 3-for-8 so far. (Originally published in the Aug. 7 issue of The Saratoga Special)
Jimmy Toner walked from one end to the other of his 18-stall barn behind the main track at Saratoga. Under the trees, with a bustling pedestrian (equine and human) crosswalk in front of it, the barn is quintessential Toner – straw pillows outside of the stalls, JJT initials, orange and white webbings, a solid batch of turf horses behind those webbings. For a change, Toner pointed to one of his horses in each stall of the barn, as opposed to about 75 percent with a few visitors at one end. (Originally published in the Aug. 4 issue of The Saratoga Special)
Three days into the meet, trainer Dallas Stewart made his meet, winning a strong 9-furlong allowance with Seeking The Soul for owner/breeder Chuck Fipke. So far, Stewart has notched a win, a second and a fifth in three starts at Saratoga. On the year, the Kentucky-based trainer has won 14 races from 94 starts, including stakes scores by Forever Unbridled and Tom’s Ready. (Originally published in the Aug. 3 issue of The Saratoga Special.)
Joe Sharp pulled off a layer of waterproofs after galloping a couple sets on a damp Tuesday morning and hopped into his souped-off golf cart to watch a set train over the Oklahoma training track. (Originally published in the July 27 issue of The Saratoga Special)
Sometimes, you feel guilty. Guilty for enjoying Saratoga. We complain about rainy days, lost photos and restaurant lines. We worry about races going, horses staying sound and pick-four sequences. We lament short fields, bad trips and long Hall of Fame speeches. We debate about Saturday stakes, the next best 2-year-old and which Ortiz is going to be leading rider. We fret over buying expensive yearlings, getting reservations for Saturday night and having enough beds for friends and family coming to town.
Norm Casse watched the Fourstardave like he was waiting in line at the DMV, silent, standing, emotionless, killing time in a time-killing vacuum. When World Approval, owned by Charlotte Weber’s Live Oak Plantation, powered through the rain-soaked turf to win the Grade 1 stakes, Casse walked toward the winner’s circle, still silent. And then he spoke, just a few words, he was a long way from the DMV.
Brendan Walsh’s dad relented and bought his son a pony. For two years, that pony tormented Walsh. Walsh persevered.
