“Horse racing for free at Epsom and Sandown” plus 1 more

Horse racing for free at Epsom and Sandown

Posted: 04 Mar 2011 02:24 AM PST

Horse racing for free at Epsom and Sandown

10:12am Friday 4th March 2011

In an unprecedented move for spectator sport, 25 of Britain's racecourses - including Epsom Downs and Sandown Park - are to open their doors and give the public the chance to watch horse racing free of charge.

Following on from the success of last year's 'free racing week', the venture by Racing for Change, the racecourses and lovetheraces.com in 2011 has been extended to a whole month. So successful was the free week in April 2010 that an additional 40,000 visitors flocked to the races.

This year, it means that even more followers of the sport in England, Scotland and Wales can enjoy a complimentary day at the races during a period which includes the spring school holidays and Easter. There's also the public holiday for the Royal wedding on Friday 29th when admission will be free at Doncaster Racecourse.

Some of Britain's most famous racecourses are involved, including Ascot, Epsom Downs, Newbury, Newmarket and Sandown Park.

Seventeen fixtures are entirely free in at least one major enclosure at each racecourse, while there are a total of 5,500 free tickets available in advance at a further 11 meetings. However, these are expected to be snapped up quickly.

All racecourses already admit accompanied under 16s free of charge - and many extend that to under 18s - so racing is offering tremendously affordable afternoons and evenings out. It helps to make horse racing the second most popular spectator sport in Britain, with only football watched by more people.

Rod Street, chief executive of Racing for Change, which is leading the initiative, said: "This ground breaking move in April is being organised in a bid to attract record numbers of new customers to the fun and exciting sport of horse racing. It's also a great way to reward existing fans of the sport.

"The aim of the month is to appeal to people who have been infrequent visitors to horse racing in the past or who have never been to a racecourse. At many of the meetings, there will be staff, literature and displays to explain more about the sport."

The month of free racing provides a mix of both afternoon and evening meetings as well as a choice of racing over jumps and on the flat.

Among the free highlights are: v The opening day of Newmarket's Craven meeting (500 tickets); v An opportunity to visit the Queen's racecourse at Ascot on the day when the Group 3 Sagaro Stakes is run; v The Easter Day fixture - the bet365 Gold Cup Easter Festival - at Sandown Park (500 tickets); v A chance to go to Epsom Downs, where the Investec Derby is run, for the Investec Spring meeting (500 tickets - plus anyone named William, Kate or Catherine); v The first day of the Dubai Duty Free Spring Trials weekend at Newbury; v The high class Saturday afternoon fixture at Kempton Park at the start of the month (500 tickets); v The first day of the 'Royal Wedding meeting' at Britain's most northerly racecourse - Perth (500 tickets); v The finale to the 'Free Racing Month' at Doncaster, the home of the St Leger.

Bookings will be taken via www.lovetheraces.com from Friday 4 March.

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HORSE RACING: Sadler sends out 4-5 favorite Twirling Candy in $750,000 Big 'Cap

Posted: 04 Mar 2011 08:33 PM PST

ARCADIA - Sometimes when an owner or trainer has a special race horse, it's the rare losses they remember as vividly as all the graded-stakes victories.

Maybe it's because they're less frequent than the victories, or perhaps it's because they sting more than the glorious success stories.

When it comes to Twirling Candy, the 4-5 morning-line favorite in today's $750,000 Grade I Santa Anita Handicap, trainer John Sadler remembers the one loss on his resume as clearly as the six victories.

"He just wasn't himself that day, and he was kind of crampy after the race," said Sadler, who has won all four Grade I races at the meet and can make it six of seven today if Twirling Candy wins the Big 'Cap and Zazu can follow her victory in the Las Virgenes Stakes with a win in the Grade I Santa Anita Oaks.

Twirling Candy's fourth-place finish in the Grade I Goodwood Stakes during the Oak Tree at Hollywood Park meet came on the heels of a 3 1/4-length victory in the Grade II Del Mar Derby on Sept. 5.

Since then, the 4-year-old colt won the Grade I Malibu Stakes on opening day in track-record time and then came back six weeks later and breezed home by 4 1/2 lengths in the Grade II Strub Stakes.

If Twirling Candy gives Sadler his first Big 'Cap victory in his second try, it will enable Candy Ride, who sired last year's winner Misremembered, to become the first stallion since Mr. Leader to sire two different Big 'Cap winners in

back-to-back years.

Mr. Leader's offspring, Martial Law and Ruhlmann, won the 1989 and '90 runnings of the meet's signature race. Martial Law returned $103.60 in '89, the second-highest payoff in the race's history behind Bay View's $118.40 in 1941. Ruhlmann returned $47.80 for his upset victory.

Twenty-six favorites, or 35.6 percent, have won the Big 'Cap and Twirling Candy, despite the fact he has never run today's distance of 1 1/4 miles, is heavily favored to add to that total.

Still, Bob Baffert has been around long enough to know the races aren't run on paper. He's scheduled to start a record-tying four horses in the race, including 5-1 second choice First Dude.

"Twirling Candy looks tough," Baffert said, "but it's the Big 'Cap and it's only 100 yards to walk the horses over."

Sadler will also saddle co-third choice Gladding, who along with Aggie Engineer is 6-1 on the morning line. Gladding won the Grade II San Antonio Stakes, the final major prep for the Big 'Cap, by one length on Feb. 6.

"We got a good draw with both horses and we're pretty much ready to go," Sadler said.

Twirling Candy will start from the No. 5 post in the 11-horse field and Gladding drew No. 3.

Sadler believes Twirling Candy is not only the best horse in the race, but the top older runner in the country.

"He's ready to go," Sadler said. "Geez, what a horse."

The Big 'Cap, which will be run as the 10th race on an 11-race card and is scheduled to go postward at 5:10 p.m., is one of three Grade I races today at Santa Anita.

The top 3-year-old fillies on the grounds will clash in the $250,000 Santa Anita Oaks, and a top field of turf runners will compete in the $300,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile one race before the Big 'Cap.

First post is noon.

art.wilson@sgvn.com

Horse Racing

Friday, March 4, 2011