Public Invited to Racing Hall of Fame Day Celebrations

Edited from a National Museum of Racing press release
The public is invited to the National Museum of Racing's annual Hall of Fame Ceremony, Monday, Aug. 9 at the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion. Members of the Hall of Fame Class of 2004 include trainer Claude "Shug" McGaughey, jockeys Kent Desormeaux and Jimmy Winkfield, and Thoroughbred champions Bowl of Flowers, Flawlessly, and Skip Away.

The induction ceremony will begin at 10:30 a.m. at the sales pavilion, located on East Avenue. Admission is free. Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas will be the keynote speaker. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999, Lukas holds the all-time earning mark for a trainer with more than $230 million and is tied with Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons with the most Triple Crown victories, each with 13.

Festivities will celebrate and honor the career achievements of the new inductees, as returning Hall of Famers such as jockeys Jerry Bailey, Braulio Baeza, Walter Blum, Angel Cordero, Pat Day, Ron Turcotte, and Bobby Ussery; and trainers, Elliott Burch, H. Allen Jerkens, Tommy Kelly, Bill Mott, John Nerud and Jonathan Sheppard, are scheduled to appear.

Beginning at 2:30 p.m., racing fans will have the opportunity to meet returning members of the Hall of Fame for a free autograph session held at the Saratoga Race Course in front of the silk's display area of the Jockey's Room. The feature race of the afternoon is the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame Stakes, for 3-year-olds, on the Mellon Turf Course. The trophy presentation will be made by museum president John T. von Stade, jockey Kent Desormeaux, and trainer Claude "Shug" McGaughey.

The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame is located across from the Saratoga Race Course on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs. The summer hours for the museum are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily during the Saratoga Meet.