Badge of Glory Captures Rare Triple, Lil’ Apollo Wins Derby
There was an answer to the most asked question among the daily players, breeders, owners, trainers and anyone else with an interest in the race. YES. EASILY. The question, of course, concerned Badge of Glory, the most accomplished horse in the $75,000 Minnesota Oaks on Saturday. Could she stretch her talent to a mile and […]
2013 Derby Day Nears
Occasionally she’ll think about the race and the biggest win of her career, the stuff of warm feelings and pleasant thoughts, except for that interminable wait. “It was intense, wasn’t it though,” says Lori Keith. The subject at hand, of course, is the inaugural Mystic Lake Derby first held in 2012 and Keith’s controversial win […]
Cold Weather in July
The temperature dropped as much as 25 degrees in the last couple of days, a welcome change to horses, particularly those that engage in morning workouts and race for a living. They appreciate the crisp, morning air and will exhibit their enthusiasm on the way to the track, prancing on their toes, pulling on the […]
Streak Begins? (Heliskier Update)
Trainer Bernell Rhone was asked about a horse he handled last year named Gold Brew, the first horse in his career to win six consecutive races. “I’ve stopped some winning streaks,” Rhone quipped Saturday afternoon, “but, yes, that was the first horse to win that many in a row for me.” Gold Brew was back […]
Opening Night Elicits Excitement
The planets are back in the proper orbits, circling the heavens in their celestial splendor. The stock market will take off like a rocket in the coming days. Peace has come to this little corner of the world. Just like that, horse racing is back on the Minnesota sports and entertainment calendar. Under gray, wet, […]
Canterbury Inside the Numbers
Live racing at Canterbury Park starts Friday, May 17. Optimism is high for the 2013 season with full barns on the backside and a higher purse structure in place. This should be a good formula for larger fields and more competitive racing, which equals better opportunities for large payoffs! Let’s look back at the 2012 […]
Record Crowd of 17,053 Enjoys 2012 Festival
The Festival of Champions began 20 years ago as a rebuke to track management at the time, as a demonstration by horsemen that the Ladbroke Corp.’s marketing strategies and ideas about live racing were wrong. They’ve been proving that nearly every year of live racing since, often most notably on Festival day, but never quite […]
Gracias Takes Commanding Lead
Canterbury’s 2012 Claiming Series continued last night with the second of three qualifying races for fillies and mares (the final qualifying race is scheduled for July 12). Gracias appeared tough to beat once Boneafide Cat, the early point leader, scratched. On the track, she proved difficult indeed as she drew off to an easy victory. […]
Heliskier & Happy Hour Honey Win Stakes
Sometimes life is fair. Sometimes the world spins on its axis, like a giant roulette wheel, and the numbers come up just right. Yes, Virginia, there is a God! You can’t debate any of those propositions after Saturday’s stakes races for Minnesota-bred horses. Not only were these state-breds running for $50,000, as they once did, […]
Dean Butler – The Pro
He’s not apt to give you a high five, a slap on the back or rap knuckles with you. It is often difficult to gauge just what’s stirring within him because his usual demeanor is that of a focused, take-charge individual. To Dean Butler, the horse racing business is all business. There is no drama, […]
