Everything seems improbable this year. The 162nd Queen’s Plate is no different. Mitchell Kursner found himself clutching petals and stuffing them into his pockets for a later engagement at a cemetery, after the horse he bred, Safe Conduct, won the Queen’s Plate. He went to the Plate on Sunday, wearing the same shoes he had worn when Neshama, a filly he owned in a … [Read more...] about Safe Conduct Wins an Unusual Queen’s Plate
Queen's Plate
Take A Chance. Nuff Said.
Why not? Take a chance. Flip a coin. Roll the dice. Listen to your innerds. That’s as good a reason as any to enter a horse in the 162nd Queen’s Plate, to be held at Woodbine, in a year unlike any other year. Thirteen entered the $1-million classic on Wednesday. (We’ll see if this is a lucky number when the race is run on Sunday.) Of this lot, two are maidens, … [Read more...] about Take A Chance. Nuff Said.
Mighty Heart’s Date with History
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
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
One Bad Boy romps in the Queen’s Plate
What a scamp, that One Bad Boy, who ran off so easily with the 160th running of the Queen’s Plate, making it look like just about anything is possible. He made off with this gem of Canadian racing, worth one million Canadian bucks, pulling away at will from Canada’s top juvenile of last season, Avie’s Flatter, winning by 3 ¾ lengths, laughing. And how crazy is this? … [Read more...] about One Bad Boy romps in the Queen’s Plate
Start Your Engines for the 2019 Queen’s Plate
This is a milestone year for the Queen’s Plate: it’s the 160th running, so many years from the first, won by Don Juan. Don Juan had to run three heats to win it and defeat seven others in Toronto, which at the time had a population of 44,425. This time, there are 14 horses, and it’s one dash for $1-million in front as the crowd tries to muster up the Royal Ascot flavour. … [Read more...] about Start Your Engines for the 2019 Queen’s Plate
Two hearts as one at the Queen’s Plate
Anyone with half an eye could see that this is racing’s finest hour: when two racing industries from opposite sides of the fence have come together in one Queen’s Plate horse: Lucas n’ Lori. Lucas n’ Lori, a 3-year-old chestnut gelding that cost the princely sum of $9,000 at a yearling sale, is the tale of two cities, the crossing of a bridge, the meeting in the middle, … [Read more...] about Two hearts as one at the Queen’s Plate