Monthly Archives: December 2009

Victor Espinoza, who’s won six Southern California riding titles but none since the 2006-07 Santa Anita meet when he tied Garrett Gomez for the crown, is out of the gate quickly after the first three days of Santa Anita’s 75th … Continue reading →

There is no doubt the economy is still bad and it’s no secret that thoroughbred racing is in dire straits, particularly in California where a shrinking horse population has led to smaller fields, purse cuts and dwindling on-track attendance. But … Continue reading →

I think today’s $300,000 Grade 1 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita could be won by any one of five of the 13 horses. Here’s who I like in order of preference: 1. Misremembered The 3-year-old son of Candy Ride just … Continue reading →

Add Santa Anita president Ron Charles to the growing list of horsemen who are not quite as high on synthetic race tracks as when they were first installed. Two years ago, when Santa Anita ran its first winter-spring meet on … Continue reading →

Trainer Bob Baffert already knew he had one legit Kentucky Derby prospect in his barn before Saturday’s races at Hollywood Park. He was going to saddle Lookin At Lucky, who could easily have carried a 5-0 record into the $750,000 … Continue reading →

Rafael Bejarano, who’s finished no worse than second at any SoCal meet — except for this past Del Mar season when he was injured and missed much of the meet — since he began riding here fulltime in December 2007, … Continue reading →

On a day when Santa Anita had to cancel its morning workouts over the synthetic Pro-Ride surface after it did not drain properly following three inches of rain Saturday (sound familiar?), I received an e-mail from a longtime racing fan. … Continue reading →

The five finalists for the 2010 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award include Calvin Borel, Garrett Gomez, Randall Meier, Gallyn Mitchell and DeShawn Parker, Santa Anita announced Wednesday. The winner, chosen by a vote of their peers, will be announced in … Continue reading →

John Shirreffs may be only 10th in the nation in earnings among North American trainers, but sometimes the numbers tell only part of the story. The 64-year-old Arcadia resident deserves to win the Eclipse Award for top trainer this year, … Continue reading →

Bill Christine talked to Jess Jackson, owner of Rachel Alexandra, about the Horse of the Year race this week and got some interestng observations from the 79-year-old billionaire who, to his credit, called Zenyatta owner Jerry Moss immediately after the … Continue reading →