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 […]
Royal Birth Touches Canterbury
Superstitions abound around any racetrack, among the riders, the trainers and the public as well. So wrap your belief in signs, omens, precursors and presentiments around this tidbit: birthdays were being celebrated along with actual births at Canterbury Park on Thursday and some of the results were eye-opening. Lori Keith, Canterbury’s third leading rider at […]
Nebraskans Reunite in MN
Centura High School is located in rural central Nebraska on the banks of the Loup River and draws its students from Boleus, Dannebrog and Cairo, where it is located. A recent count put the enrollment for grades 7 through 12 at 250 students, so it is not a large school by any means. So, what […]
Must Be Divine Intervention
It happened to Paul when he was knocked from his horse by a bolt of lightning. The best selling book of all time has numerous other examples of divine intervention, but heretofore none have been documented at Canterbury Park until Thursday night. In fact, three examples were brought forth recently, putting the track itself in line […]
Paychecks Being Decided by Inches… and Photos
It’s a game of inches (and photo finishes) this summer for the riders in Shakopee where increased purses have expanded the jockey colony and spread out available horses. Sunday, for instance, there was a different rider in the winner’s circle after each race. Competition is the name of the game, for mounts of any kind […]
The 4th of July
No one in the public eye of American Racing captured the hearts of the thoroughbred world more convincingly than a 92-year-old woman from Minnesota in 1990. Frances Genter, the grand dame of American racing, is still recalled for her Kentucky Derby win with Unbridled and the emotional race call of trainer Carl Nafzger that year […]
Video: The Life of a Jockey
Jockeys may be the strongest athletes pound-for-pound in the world. Their task is certainly not easy as they’re required to control a one thousand pound horse running at full speed in the tightest of situations. Rider Ry Eikleberry and his valet talk about what it’s like in the day of a life of a rider […]
There’s No Place Like (Almost) Home
He last trained in the Sonoran desert but Robertino Diodoro has the characteristics of a long-time Minnesotan. He knows all about cold and ice. He grew up in it. He knows all about the game of hockey. He grew up playing it and is a National Hockey League fan. He doesn’t like it but shoveling […]
Brooks Fields Stakes on Tap
When you walk into Churchill Downs the history of its most famous race is displayed along the upper reaches of the grandstand outside the paddock, one Kentucky Derby winner after another, starting with Aristides in 1875. Thoroughbred racing is empty without its history, without the stories of its great horses, sires and broodmares, jockeys, trainers […]
Vergara (Finally) Arrives in Shakopee
An owner once refused to let Daniel Vergara ride his horse because he found the jockey’s handshake unimpressive. A bit too lifeless. Then again, horses seem to like Vergara’s hands because they are gentle, imbued with finesse. Vergara, a native of Mexico City, has been in the United States for the past two decades, riding in […]