Opinion

Time for a walk.

With a stiff neck, no afternoon races and an off-in-the-distance deadline, I go for a walk Tuesday morning. For six weeks, my exercise has consisted of reaching down and turning the key to the golf cart, moving papers from cart to rack and walking across the street to pick up dinner at Spring Street.

I needed the walk.

Garrett O’Rourke met Bill Mott at the foot of the winner’s circle after the Personal Ensign. Mott has a way of silently making people talk, he just kind of stares at you until you fill space with observations.

“She’s just that good,” O’Rourke said.

Mott smiled.

Close Hatches is that good.

Shug McGaughey watched his first Travers, or at least the first one he recalls, from a tack room at Belmont Park.

It was 1978. Laz Barrera had Affirmed. John Veitch had Alydar. McGaughey had nothing but a TV. Affirmed bumped Alydar, got disqualified and everybody left empty.

Harvey Vanier used to say rainy days were for getting his horses fitter than everybody else’s. Every day it rained, you’d see maroon saddle towels whizzing past, splashing through the mud, hooves rattling the base, while other trainers’ horses stayed dry. Now there’s something to be said for keeping horses off bad tracks, but the Travers-winning trainer had a point. There are advantages to rainy days.

It took a rainy day to make me write this column. It’s been circulating – the interview happened 10 days ago and the interview notes have been open on my laptop for a solid week. 

Nine jockeys will compete in today’s feature. Nine foreign-born jump jockeys of varying experience and ability aim at the season’s biggest prize, the New York Turf Writers Cup. One is a four-time champion father of three, one is an apprentice, one is a woman amateur. Some have made homes here and are staying for good. Others are simply passing through, a busman’s holiday at America’s best track.

Eddie Graham faced a tough decision. Agonizing, really. Go for the bigger purse, smaller but tougher field or smaller purse, weaker but bigger field? Graham’s horse was thriving, tuned like a Gibson Guitar. Graham conferred with his owners. Talked to racing secretaries. Quizzed friends. Called confidants. Finally, he made the decision. Run Aitcheson Lane in the 3-mile maiden timber at Willowdale. It worked, he won.

Vic Zast was the type of person that every time I was around him I learned something new.

Communication today. My phone barely rings, but it buzzes all day, all night. Texts from friends and family, clients and competitors, fans and foes. 

Here’s a list of texts I received this week, offers a snapshot into the world of racing at Saratoga. Can you guess the senders? The first person to correctly match the texts with the senders gets a prize. Email your answers to [email protected].

At some point, his mother called him Smilin’ Eyed Jack. And they say I’m the writer. Never has a better description been given about a person than the one Sam hung on our middle son.