
Stellar Wind Again Named Top Mid-Atlantic Horse
For the second time in three years, Stellar Wind has been chosen as the top horse bred in the mid-Atlantic region in the final Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred/The Racing Biz Top Midlantic-bred Poll.
For the second time in three years, Stellar Wind has been chosen as the top horse bred in the mid-Atlantic region in the final Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred/The Racing Biz Top Midlantic-bred Poll.
Maryland-bred Cathryn Sophia has earned the Mid-Atlanic Thoroughbred/The Racing Biz Top Midlantic-bred for 2016.
Ebby Novak succeeds in horses and party merchandise
Though the numbers certainly can't be considered robust, average field size at racetracks in five states in the Mid-Atlantic region and neighboring New York is up from the comparable period in 2014.
Lion Hearted, perennially among Maryland's leading sires, died May 28 of an apparent heart attack at Northview Stallion Station in Chesapeake City, Md. He was 19.
Live racing was canceled for the evening of March 20 at Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course as the Mid-Atlantic region was hit with six new inches of snow.
As the Maryland Jockey Club moves forward under new leadership, it will place an emphasis on improving the day-to-day racing product by lowering takeout to attract new bettors and improving regional cooperation.
The cooperative spirit between racing and breeding programs in the Mid-Atlantic region will be on full display Sept. 13 when Maryland's Laurel Park offers five stakes for horses bred and/or sired in Virginia.
Apprentice jockey Michael Ritvo, the leading bug rider at Gulfstream Park, plans to ride at Laurel Park, Delaware Park, Parx Racing, and Penn National during the fall and winter months.
Racing jurisdictions concentrated in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions are finding progress to be a subjective term: Much has been accomplished, but much remains to be done.
Donald D. Smith, a longtime Mid-Atlantic-based jockey and winner of more than 1,500 races, died Oct. 17 at the age of 69.
An initial introduction in Kentucky of the Mid-Atlantic Uniform Medication Program received raised eyebrows, but supporters of the changes are encouraged that the important racing state is giving the program consideration.
CandyLand Farm's Herb and Ellen Moelis have raised millions for retired racehorses.
A review of wagering on this year's World Championships indicated the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy cost Breeders' Cup roughly $9 million in pari-mutuel handle compared with 2011 figures, organization officials said.
The stallion operation has faced plenty of adversity, but with its original facility and a new post in the growth state of Pennsylvania, Northview now boasts the deepest stallion roster in the Midlantic region.
New York revival fueled by VLTs at Aqueduct.
Tough-as-nails "Buck" Woodson is making his own way in West Virginia
New Jersey-born owner, trainer, and breeder Edwin Broome obviously relishes the mountaintops in racing much more than the inevitable valleys, but like every other horseman he knows both extremes are part of playing the game.
Bessie Gruwell earns the respect of horsemen nationwide.
As expected, states in the Mid-Atlantic region have announced they are working to implement a ban on anabolic steroids in racehorses effective April 1, 2008.
The New York Racing Association has invited representatives of racetracks in Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania to a meeting Oct. 31 to discuss topics of mutual interest.
Maryland officials who oppose expanded gambling met with lawmakers and activists in Pennsylvania April 28 in the hope of combating any push for racetrack slot machines or casinos.
Mid-Atlantic regulators and the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association are scheduled to meet June 12 in New Jersey to discuss medication and drug-testing issues on a regional and national scope.
The Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association is opposed to a racetrack gaming bill that would award 15% of gross revenue to purses and 1% to breed development. Meanwhile, an official at Philadelphia Park said he can't understand the horsemen's position.
The seven-month racing series known as Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships (MATCH) will not take place this year because of turmoil in two key racing states.
The Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships, a series of stakes tied together to reward the top horses by division in the region, is on hold pending resolution of racing schedules in Maryland and New Jersey, said Alan Foreman, who created MATCH in the late 1990s. Foreman, chief executive officer of the Maryland-based Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, is hopeful something can be worked out soon.
The Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association on Nov. 27 issued a list of recommendations that call for a restructuring of medication use and drug testing procedures in horse racing. Among them are formation of a non-profit consortium that would be funded via a per-start fee for every Thoroughbred, Standardbred, and Quarter Horse.
November will be a critical month for many Mid-Atlantic horsemen as they seek to secure racetrack stabling for the winter.
The next few weeks will be critical for many Mid-Atlantic horsemen as they seek to secure racetrack stabling for the winter. In New Jersey, The Meadowlands concludes its meet Nov. 10 and plans to close its backstretch on Nov. 22, leaving no stabling in the state, while Delaware Park ends on Nov. 4 and will close its backstretch one month later. In addition, the Maryland Jockey Club intends to close Pimlico for the winter, while Hialeah's backstretch also will be closed. That leaves few options for horsemen that don't have the stock to race in New York or at Gulfstream Park.
The Mid-Atlantic Cooperative, which represents 17 Thoroughbred and Standardbred racetracks, will begin taking the Keeneland signal effective Oct. 10.
Unable to strike a deal on a simulcasting fee, the racetracks that fall under the Mid-Atlantic Cooperative will not offer the Keeneland signal at their facilities effective Friday, opening day of the Lexington track's fall meet.
The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority and its two racetracks--Meadowlands and Monmouth Park--are rejoining the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, effective Jan. 1, 2002, it was announced by both organizations on Friday.
With a Saturday deadline to land a seat on the National Thoroughbred Racing Association board of directors fast approaching, the Maryland Jockey Club has rejoined the NTRA, and its president, Joe De Francis, will take a seat on the NTRA board.
This year's Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships series will feature 30 races worth $3.125 million, and offer $550,000 in bonus money for owners and trainers.
This year's Mid-Atlantic Thoroughbred Championships series will feature 30 races worth $3.125 million, and offer $550,000 in bonus money for owners and trainers.
Racetracks in the Mid-Atlantic region, having failed to win concessions from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association board of directors, have no intention of rejoining the NTRA any time soon. But the NTRA insists the negotiations will continue. "I'm disappointed," Penn National Gaming president Bill Bork said. "What it boiled down to was this: We asked them, 'Don't compete with us.' The board rejected that, and unless we can solve that issue, we're out."
A joint statement from Magna Entertainment Corp., and the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, announces Magna's decision to rejoin the NTRA with a two-year commitment after the NTRA has committed to changes in how the organization is governed.
No major developments emerged from a meeting of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association board of directors, which was presented with a report prepared by many of the 22 racetracks that said they are dropping out of the NTRA at the end of the year. Meanwhile, the organization plans to continue discussions with Magna Entertainment chairman Frank Stronach concerning his proposals for the NTRA.
The head of Churchill Downs Inc., also an NTRA board member, has spearheaded the talks between the organization and the 22 racetracks that said they wouldn't renew their memberships.
A meeting has been scheduled for Nov. 9 between Churchill Downs president Tom Meeker and representatives of 22 racetracks that have or will defect from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association as of Dec. 31. The 22 member tracks account for almost $2.5 million in annual NTRA dues.
Executives from 22 racetracks are abandoning the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, saying the organization provides more competition than benefits.
The racing and wagering network has made scheduling adjustments as it continues to seek a larger slice of the national market.
Racing associations in the Mid-Atlantic region aren't expected to renew their memberships in the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, nor are the seven racetracks owned by Magna Entertainment. But officials indicated it could be a fluid situation up to the Nov. 10 deadline.
Breeders' Cup president D.G. Van Clief Jr. on Friday issued a statement from four members of an NTRA Independent Advisory Committee in opposition to that committee's draft memorandum made public one week earlier, saying the conclusions represented a "minority viewpoint."
The Mid-Atlantic racetracks haven't signed a contract to simulcast the seven Claiming Crown races on Aug. 6.