Join The Saratoga Special Readers Club for exclusive access to news, swag, discounts, special events and more
Editor’s Note: Saratoga Race Course hosted the first edition of the Leo O’Brien Stakes Sunday, July 5. One of the last times someone from The Special interviewed him, he talked about what it was like to gallop champion 2-year-old of 1970 Hoist The Flag. From the Aug. 6, 2019 edition of The Saratoga Special. It’s … Read more
And then there was one. The much-anticipated and somehow glad-it’s-over spring steeplechase season culminates with a five-race card at the Radnor Hunt Races Saturday. Run for the 94th time, the third-Saturday-in-May fixture attracted overnight-busting entries over the W. Burling Cocks Memorial Racecourse. Last week, Bernie and Kate Dalton, the most rooted-for couple in the history … Read more
One of the biggest days of the year on the Mid-Atlantic racing calendar – and in America to boot – unfolds Friday with Black-Eyed Susan Day at Pimlico Race Course. A 14-race card is on tap for Friday, including six stakes topped by the Grade 2 Black-Eyed Susan for 3-year-old fillies and Grade 3 Pimlico … Read more
The week between the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes might be a good chance for racing people to catch their breath. Or inhale and go again. Steeplechasers go to work in Nashville Saturday for the Iroquois Steeplechase at Percy Warner Park. The richest stop on the National Steeplechase Association’s spring circuit puts up $575,000 … Read more
Two-time Eclipse Award winner Tom Law, managing editor of ST Publishing which produces The Saratoga Special and thisishorseracing.com, will receive the Old Hilltop Award for covering Thoroughbred racing with excellence and distinction. Law will be presented with the Old Hilltop Award Thursday, May 15 at the Alibi Breakfast at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. … Read more
The big day is here. Welcome to the Kentucky Derby. America’s great institution turns 151 this year and certainly packs a punch. No chance of a full starting gate after a few 11th hour defections but that won’t dampen the enthusiasm of the monster crowd expected at Churchill Downs to see some of the world’s … Read more
The seventh week of the spring season. Already? Can that be right? Saratoga will be here before you know it. And, sure, the Colonial Cup, too. Time flies when you’re… The Virginia Gold Cup holds its traditional spot on the first Saturday in May while Winterthur crosses its calendar block on the first Sunday of … Read more
The weekend everyone waits for all winter and spring is here. Derby Week in Louisville – make sure you watch the weather and always bring a rain jacket – is like no other week of the year. Everyone’s an expert, or at least has some type of take. From restaurants to winners, opinions vary like … Read more
Steeplechase Saturday. A six-race menu at Foxfield and a one-race fete at the Maryland Hunt Cup offer a little of everything this weekend as the steeplechase tour hits high speed in the heat of the spring season. Last week, the Middleburg Spring Races provided one of those days when you’ll look back and say you … Read more
Easter Weekend means eggs, bunnies, basket, bonnets and – at least this year – a tripleheader of steeplechase action in Maryland and Virginia. Saturday showcases Maryland timber horses at the Grand National and major hurdle players in a deep card at Glenwood Park in Middleburg, Va. Sunday heads to Morven Park in Leesburg, Va., for … Read more
A standard and a hybrid. My Lady’s Manor and Blue Ridge provide Saturday’s steeplechase menu. The former, a four-race card, serves yet again as the long-standing traditional opener to the Maryland timber circuit. The latter, a longtime point-to-point, has transformed into a hybrid meet with four NSA races and five unsanctioned races. Thank you to … Read more
