Paul Nolan Wins Ron Turcotte Courage Award
Former jockey Paul Nolan received the Ron Turcotte Courage Award on Monday during the Jockeys’ Guild Annual Assembly held at TopGolf, adjacent to the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. Nolan, who spent much of his career at Canterbury Park, was injured in a racing accident in April 2017 at Will Roger Downs. He has […]
Enough Nolan Stories To Fill A Book
BY JIM WELLS There are countless stories to tell when Paul Nolan is at the center of a discussion, but race fans seldom tire of the tale regarding the 1997 Lady Canterbury Stakes and the longshot K Z Bay. She paid $67.80 to win and anyone who cashed in that afternoon can provide details that […]
Canadian Connection
By Noah Joseph Over the last hundred years, Canada has played a major role in the history of thoroughbred racing. From having the oldest continuously run stakes race in North America in the Queen’s Plate to being the home of the legendary Northern Dancer, and even hosting the Breeders’ Cup in 1996. Canada’s influence can […]
Nolan Cheers On Vikes In Opener
BY JIM WELLS Sunday arrived with an immediate question _ which jersey for the Minnesota Vikings season opener: Brad Johnson, Jared Allen or Adrian Peterson ? As it turned out, No. 14, the Johnson pullover, seemed right. The choice of ball cap was simple, ….plain, with the Vikings logo on the front. Paul Nolan, former […]
FOR NOLAN, THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE HOME
BY JIM WELLS There is indeed substance to the notion that you can’t go home again, back to the place you left at one time and the way it was, with all of the same elements in place, supported now by only memory. But sometimes just getting to that physical place you left behind seems […]
VODKA AT MOONLIGHT WINS MOREHOUSE
BY JIM WELLS The bloodlines in racing are not always a study exclusively of the horses that line up in the starting gates or of those that send their progeny to the racetrack. The connections between owners and breeders, their sons and daughters and the generations that follow in their footsteps are often overlooked. An […]
Nolan Left Mark On Lady Canterbury
Paul Nolan was known as the Sod Surgeon when he rode regularly at Canterbury Park, for his success on the grass, often aboard horses that were sent off at long odds. Take the most spectacular win in the history of the Lady Canterbury Stakes, the race that headlines Sunday’s card, as a prime example. Nolan […]
Smooth Chiraz, Dazzlingsweetheart win stakes
BY JIM WELLS VICTOR S. MYERS STAKES The joy of winning a race can sometimes be enough including as it does validation of a job well done. The monetary reward that goes with it is additional compensation for the investment of time and money, and sometimes there is even more. Take the case of Francisco […]
NOLAN BACK IN THE SADDLE…at HOME
BY JIM WELLS He was known first as the Turf Doctor and later as the Sod Surgeon but given a choice there was no doubt that he preferred the latter. “Surgeons make more than doctors,” Paul Nolan said with a grin Saturday night, discussing the past in the jockeys lounge. Yes, Paul Nolan, the champion […]
2012 Jockey Rumor Mill Begins
You know the live race meet is near when the Canterbury stable begins coming to life. Trainers are now sending in their advance teams to prepare barns for the imminent arrival of horses this week. Lay down the mats, hang the tubs, bed the stalls, sharpen the pitch forks. The main track will open for […]
