The Inside Rail

Following 26 millimetres of rain since racing yesterday, and with a few false patches of ground which means the ability to race may be marginal, an inspection has been called for 12.45pm.   We are also looking at options to re-align the rail to avoid these areas.   And so it goes.   Firm Tuesday. … Read more

How about Love? Off a 10-month layoff, on the lead, swarmed by a Breeders’ Cup winner. Never in doubt.  Owned by Coolmore, ridden by Ryan Moore and trained by Aiden O’Brien, Love garnered the Group 1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes to highlight day two. Making her 4-year-old debut, the 1000 Guineas, Oaks and Yorkshire Oaks winner … Read more

A few years back, Joe asked me about my schedule and I said, “Well, I have Royal Ascot next week.” He said, “You’re going…?” I said, “No, but I’m watching.” I’m watching again.  Poetic Flare just galloped in the Group 1 St James’s Palace Stakes. Bred, owned and trained by Jim Bolger, the 3-year-old colt … Read more

It’s the perfect storm. The adrenaline rush. The fast lane. The highs and lows. The risk. The urgency. The vibrancy. The gamble. The concussions.  I found myself and still do sometimes saying, “Oh, I’ll be all right because I have that horse running Saturday. If he wins, it’ll make everything OK.”  I’m sure you can … Read more

Overcast. Brisk. Rain-sodden ground. We needed the rain, we got it. Good for the garden. Off the turf for Make A Stand at Pimlico yesterday, off the turf at Delaware today, off the turf around the Mid-Atlantic, it’s the Upperville Horse Show, of course, it rained this week. A timeless tradition.  Royal Ascot looming next … Read more

In the Room with Steve Cauthen. Three Eclipse Awards in one season. The Triple Crown. Three-time British Champion jockey. The Hall of Fame. Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year.  Last week, I had the honor to talk to Hall of Fame jockey Steve Cauthen for In the Room on HRRN.  “That’s probably the most pressure … Read more

And it’s over. Miles’ Little League career has come to a close. And what a close.  First playoff game, Tigers vs. Orioles, Wednesday night. Round Hill Center Field #1. We had met the Orioles, the best team in the league, twice this season. Both games were called. The slaughter rule. Down 12 after three innings, … Read more

Once a week (or at least that’s the goal), we have been producing “In the Room” on HRRN. Mike Penna, a longtime friend/colleague, came up with the idea when his flagship show, the Equine Forum, stretched to three hours every Saturday. It’s been a fun, albeit, time consuming, project, interviewing the likes of Ramon Dominguez, … Read more

It’s that time of day. When there’s still a choice, albeit, a small, sliver of a choice and it won’t last long. The clock ticks. The sun wanes. Work more, one last email, one last sales pitch, one last transcription, one last paragraph on a plane that won’t land? Go for a run (the 1,000 … Read more

Wild and wooly day at Virginia Gold Cup. Cold and blustery at the end of May. Really? Schoodic made up for a frustrating spring with a win in the big one. Jack Fisher training the winner of the Gold Cup for his parents, 40 years after riding the winner of the Gold Cup for his … Read more