Mighty Heart has become a bit of a locomotive in the Canadian racing world, the little man’s folk hero, the little engine that could. On Saturday, he will attempt to become the 13th Canadian Triple Crown winner, a good omen, considering that he broke from post 13 in the Queen’s Plate last month, and was listed at odds of 13 to 1. The one-eyed wonder is the … [Read more...] about Mighty Heart’s Date with History
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When a Cup and Saucer is Golden
Mrs. Orpen would have loved it. It all sounded so dramatic: a horse called Master Spy came out of the mists at Woodbine Racetrack and won the 84th running of the Cup and Saucer Stakes, a dark streak that could not be caught. The Cup and Saucer was Mrs. Orpen’s race, all those years ago, when it first was held. Her husband Abe Orpen was an Irish immigrant who … [Read more...] about When a Cup and Saucer is Golden
Photo Gallery from Woodbine Mile Day
Girl Power day started early at Woodbine. The star of the show, Starship Jubilee, the only mare in the field for the $1-milllion Woodbine Mile, showed her heels to the boys, but she was not alone. Emma-Jayne Wilson piloted Credit River, the longest shot on the board at 41 to 1, to win the $155,790 Ontario Racing Stakes, giving Breeda Hayes her first stakes win as a … [Read more...] about Photo Gallery from Woodbine Mile Day
A Jubilee of Epic Proportions
“Come on, mama,” Tino Attard repeated to Starship Jubilee as she floated into the paddock before the $1-million Woodbine Mile on Sept. 19. It was almost like a chant. He was rather like a pacing parent. The elder Attard was a believer in this spunky 7-year-old mare. She made believers out of the rest of us moments later. At odds of 6 to 1, Starship Jubilee trounced … [Read more...] about A Jubilee of Epic Proportions
The beat of a Mighty Heart, 2020 Style
Thirty seconds after Woodbine race announcer Robert Geller finished calling the 161st Queen’s Plate on Sept. 12, a big, fat spider marched in by his window, and plunked himself down in front of him. “I guess he was out watching the race,” Geller said. The arachnid was probably as astonished as the rest of us. It’s 2020, after all. “Come on, Robert,” the … [Read more...] about The beat of a Mighty Heart, 2020 Style
Queen’s Plate or bust
We’ve waited a long time for this 161st running of the Queen’s Plate, as in an extra three months or so, but finally we have the clues as to what it will look like. Aside from fences instead of spectators, sanitizer stations instead of Timbits, and barely familiar faces wrapped in all manner of masks, Woodbine and its premier $1-million race looks like a close … [Read more...] about Queen’s Plate or bust
Eurico Rosa da Silva: Early Retirement
Woodbine’s leading rider, Eurico Rosa da Silva hadn’t pictured anything developing this way during his retirement ceremony at the track on Dec. 7: He found himself ass-over-tea-kettle in a bank of snow. You get a group of jockeys together, shivering in the cold like winter flies, and all sorts of naughtiness can happen. It all happened in the … [Read more...] about Eurico Rosa da Silva: Early Retirement