Posted: 06 May 2010 04:15 AM PDT

By D'Arcy Egan, The Plain Dealer

May 06, 2010, 7:00AM

Charlie Riedel / Associated PressA good crowd was at Thistledown in North Randall on Saturday to watch broadcasts of Calvin Borel, far right, riding Super Saver to victory in the 136th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky.CLEVELAND, Ohio — The joint was jumping Saturday, with good weather encouraging an overflow crowd to greet Kentucky Derby Day at Thistledown. There were plenty of reasons to bet a few bucks, or at least a few quarters, in the Fortune 6 at Beulah Park.

With highly touted Eskendereya scratched with an injured leg, one of the most evenly matched fields in the history of the Kentucky Derby enticed Thistledown fans to pick a favorite in the 20-horse field.

Before the Saturday races were over, a crowd of 9,000 to 10,000 wagered more than $1 million. The crowd was estimated, since it's impossible to count heads when everyone gets in for free, but the parking lot was full and some fans had to motor across the street to park at Randall Park Mall.

A couple had its wedding photos taken at trackside. Women wore fancy hats. Everyone had a favorite for the Kentucky Derby.

"Our clubhouse was sold out and the parking lot was full," said General Manager Brent Reitz. The best part, Reitz said, was the fans didn't bolt after jockey Calvin Borel and Super Saver splashed to an exciting Kentucky Derby victory.

Thistledown's future: The fate of the North Randall thoroughbred track may be known soon.

Scott Shaw / PDThe fate of Thistledown race track should be known soon.

A Delaware bankruptcy court has closed the books on the track's former Canadian owner, Magna Entertainment Corp. Thistledown is now bundled with a batch of former Magna race tracks, including Pimlico and Santa Anita, owned by Magna's parent company, MI Developments Inc.

Harrah's reports it is interested in purchasing Thistledown, but that could change. A bankruptcy court agreement allows Harrah's to walk away from the $89.5 million purchase at any time. On May 15, MID could also back out of the sale, though it's unlikely.

Fortune 6 winners: A batch of winning favorites in the six races Saturday that made up the Fortune 6 exotic wager at Beulah Park resulted in lots of winners, and small payoffs. The pool soared to more than $1 million for the winners to split on Beulah's final day, and more than 300 tickets picked it correctly. The Fortune 6 payoff was $3,750.40.

The $445,139 pool was put into hibernation until Kentucky Derby Day. Another $704,691 in quarters was bet Saturday.

Handicappers foiled: There was no dominant favorite in this year's Kentucky Derby.

The Daily Racing Form had 22 handicappers making picks in its Run for the Roses section. None picked Super Saver to win it all. Only four prognosticators had Super Saver in their top three selections.

The Plain Dealer picked Super Saver second, with second-place Ice Box on top. Super Saver paid $18 to win, Ice Box $11.20 to place and the 4-2 exacta was worth $152.40. The 4-2-10 trifecta returned $2,337.40.

Courageous Lady coming up: Northfield Park is sending out the $125,000 Courageous Lady Pace on May 22, and the early filly to beat among the 3-year-old pacers is Hawk's Cry Electra, last year's Ohio Sires Stakes champion who won six of seven races and $97,800.

In her first outing, a recent qualifying race at Scioto Downs in Columbus, Hawk's Cry Electra cruised to a 1:55.4 mile on the 5/8-mile track. The filly is owned by Joe Muscara of Huntingdon Valley, Pa.

Northfield news: Two Northfield Park winners are in the running for the April Horse of the Month, to be named by the Ohio Chapter of the U.S. Harness Writers Association.

Painted Speed won two April races at Northfield and Saturday's $6,000 Open Pace at Northfield in 1:53.1 to begin May in great fashion for New York owner Todd Liebman's Speed of Light Stable. Also nominated is Little Old Ladywho, who has a win and a second in featured trotting events at Northfield for trainer Fred Winstead and owner Chad Webb.

Northfield Park driver Aaron Merriman, who nailed four wins on Saturday's program, remains at the top of the North American driving standings with 267 victories. Jason Bartlett has 205 wins, followed by Corey Callahan with 195.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: degan@plaind.com, 216-999-5158

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Horse racing is back this weekend

Posted: 05 May 2010 10:24 PM PDT

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After taking a year off due to state budget cuts horse racing is returning to the Cochise County Fairgrounds this weekend

Crowds show up as horse racing returns to CCF

Posted: 05 May 2010 10:19 PM PDT

Thoroughbred and Quarter horse racing returned to the Cochise County Fairgrounds this past weekend and the size of the crowds seem to indicate the event was missed last year.

Early reports indicate over 4,000 people came through the gates Saturday and Sunday.

Despite all the conflicting events going on with the races fans seemed to show up in large numbers Saturday and Sunday with a new sense of appreciation for the event which was cancelled last year due in part to state budget cuts.

Even the trainers and jockeys were happy to be back in Douglas.

Longtime local trainer Ron Salmon has been coming to the Douglas races for 19 years and had a horse in the fourth race Sunday which won making the weekend more enjoyable.

"This is probably the best track there is," he said. "It's wide, it's well maintained. It's one of the better tracks we run on."

Salmon races horses all over the state and has seen his fare share of tracks. He says the horse racing environment at the Cochise County Fairgrounds is something special.

"There's no other place like it," he said. "Everybody seems to have a good time when they come here."

Not having the horse races last year hurt not only Salmon who had a hard time finding work during those "dark weeks" but also the fairgrounds and local businesses that rely on the races to help them remain open.

Salmon said he and the other trainers hope what happened last year doesn't happen again for a long time.

"It's a good track, good environment, they have plenty of stalls here for all the horses, it's an overall good atmosphere," he said.

Ten races were held each day this past weekend and the lines at the betting windows were taking bets up till the very last minute all day long.

Reports the day after the race indicate the betting held its own which is good.

Jockey Rick Oliver who rode both days in Douglas, echoed Salmon's feelings.

"I love coming down here," he said. "It's such a nice facility. The crowd seems to really get into the races. They seem to have such a great turnout year after year. … This is one of the best tracks on the fair circuit."

When Douglas was unable to host the races last year Oliver said he felt they may never come back.

"I didn't think we'd ever be down here again," he said "I really like coming here."

Oliver was a jockey for 10 years, quit for 15 and returned to riding in 2004. He has become a regular in the El Moro de Cumpas stakes winning the race in 2006 and again last year when the finals were held in Sonoita.

"I'd wish they would bring the finals back here," he said. "It helps having the border right here."

Oliver said he did not realize the significance of the El Moro de Cumpas until he got his horse back in front of the grandstand in 2006 to the cheering fans and the large group waiting to greet him with the El Moro de Cumpas trophy.

"This race means more to me than any other race all year long that I ride," he said. "The money is not all that great but this race is great for older horses. We need more races like this."

Oliver rode three different horses in the El Moro de Cumpas time trials Saturday finishing third, fourth and third in the sixth, seventh and eighth races. His horse in the eighth race Monarca Dash, qualified for the finals in Sonoita.

In 2008 another jockey, Anna Barrio, who has a big fan base of her own, told the Douglas Dispatch in a story they were doing on her she too enjoys coming to Douglas every year because the track conditions are excellent and there is a strong sense of support here for the sport.

"Its fun riding in front of a crowd that's into the race," she said. "I've done well here … I really like coming here."

An injury prevented Barrio from riding in Douglas this year.

Fairgrounds officials report they had two track records set Saturday in the seventh and eighth races of the El Moro de Cumpas trials. The first record was set in the seventh race but broken in the very next race by a Quarter Horse called Jesstifiable who was ridden by Floyd Campbell.

Jesstifiable, owned by Victor Ramos and trained by Roy Ronquillo, was one of the eight horses to advance to the El Moro de Cumpas finals which will he held in Sonoita.

The other qualifiers for the finals were Leonas TR, owned and trained by Armando Orozco; Stoli Chaser, owned by Manuel Medrano and trained by Dennis Martsteller; Lanes Luck, owned by Francisco Ayon and Abel Rodriguez and trained by Ayon;

Fly Corona Cat, owned by Y/N Horse Stables LLC and trained by Omar Lorta; Monarca Dash, owned by Jose Gallardo and trained by Alejandro Sanchez; Chicks on the Berge, owned by Chuck Stanton and trained by Ramon Fontes and Oh So Chilly owned by Victor C. Ramos and Francisco J. Rivera and trained by Roy Ronquillo

Cochise County Fairgrounds manager Karen Strongin said she was quite pleased by what she saw this past weekend.

"All of the vendors did well and were happy, there were no accidents or incidents and the whole race meet went smoothly," she said. "The Cochise County Fair Association would like to thank all of the people who attended, helped, participated and supported the horse races."

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Horse Racing

Thursday, May 6, 2010

“Kentucky Derby, Fortune 6 draw big crowd to Thistledown: Horse Racing Insider” plus 2 more

“Kentucky Derby, Fortune 6 draw big crowd to Thistledown: Horse Racing Insider” plus 2 more

By D'Arcy Egan, The Plain Dealer

May 06, 2010, 7:00AM

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