Down The Stretch Podcast

There were 2 important Stakes races from Woodbine on Saturday, but the story was Kevin, Steve and Sid Attard taking down 5 of the 10 races, including both features. Jockey agent Neal Wilson talks about how Desean Bynoe is the 2nd of his 2 jockeys to suffer a year-ending broken leg. Natasha Day had a Monday night to remember – a win at Western Fair then a win at Mohawk, then a horse doing gymnastic moves in the winners’ circle. Woodbine’s Bill Ford tells us that re-invigorating the E. P. Taylor Turf course is a little more complicated than mowing your lawn. And 68-year-old Hall of Famer Doug Brown won a race at Mohawk for the first time in 15 months; how he did it is amazing.

This week we feature the Kennedy Road Stakes from Woodbine and it was an Australian horse that won. Rafael Hernandez is in his 20th year as a jockey and he tells us how he won 4 races on the same card recently. Sofia Vives enhanced her apprentice jockey stats with an impressive 3-win Friday at Woodbine. We have a great betting story – trainer-owner-journalist Santino DiPaola breaks down the $48,000 he and his entourage won and Garnet Barnsdale explains why betting on a second time out horse in a mandatory payout pool is the best thing to do with your betting dollar. And the pacer, Sintra had a retirement party at Mohawk last Saturday. Jody Jamieson and Dave Menary offer unforgettable memories of a wonderful 48-win warrior.

In episode 199, we have Stakes races at Woodbine on Friday and Saturday. Rafael Hernandez did not violate his wedding vows but he did score with 4 females on the same day. Tattoo Artist lost to Bythemissal and that probably affected his Dan Patch status. Cody Dorman died on the plane ride home from the Breeders’ Cup, but the story of Cody and Cody’s Wish will resonate forever. Race caller Frank Mirahmadi breaks down the races from the Breeders’ Cup that he thought were the most exciting. And photo-Journalist Jessica Hallett talks about the generosity of the industry after a horrible stable fire at Tioga Downs.

Santa Anita hosted 14 Breeders’ Cup races. This podcast has the stretch call of all of them; not many longshots and very modest returns for Canadian connections. There were 3 Stake races on the weekend at Woodbine – The Grey, the Mazarine and the Autumn and we have multiple harness racing angles: Driver Tyler Borth walks us through his 7-win night in London. James MacDonald won 6 last Friday at Mohawk. Ed Hensley hit the 6,000 win mark at Flamboro. Julie Walker stunned the bettors when she won the all-lady drivers race at Mohawk. A 2-year-old filly in Australia paced a mile in 1:49.1 and our friend from down under, Ric Chapman, previews the $8 Million Melbourne Cup.

We sent Garnet Barnsdale to Hoosier Park and he broke down the Breeders Crown races, emphasizing the Canadian Content – how did Sylvia Hanover, Tactical Approach, Scott Zeron and Tattoo Artist do? Amazing feats by horse racing athletes – Sylvain Filion hit the 10,000-win mark on Monday at Mohawk Park, then added 5 more on Friday on a night when Fort Erie race caller Doug McPherson described the action Also with the 5-bagger stunt – Kazushi Kimura who swept the Saturday Stakes at Woodbine and added 3 more wins. Legendary trainer Roger Attfield talks to us about Shirl’s Speight, who is back in next week’s Breeders’ Stakes at Santa Anita. The quarter horse season came to an end at Ajax Downs and Brian Bell punctuated his championship season by riding the winner in the final Stakes race. And Presque Isle race caller, Jeff Cernik had a bucket full of fun in a certain race last week.

We have the disputed outcome from the Ontario Derby at Woodbine. We chat with apprentice jockeys Cheyenne Kerr, Fraser Aebly and Pietro Moran about the thrill of winning for the first time at Woodbine. The country’s leading apprentice, Sofia Vives, had an unforgettable ride in Fort Erie’s final race. Doug McNair pushed his harness driving purse earnings past the $80 million mark then drove to Indiana to win a pair of Breeders Crown Eliminations. Also good times at Hoosier Park for Louis-Philippe Roy and Tattoo Artist. And we’re not worthy to be in the same room with the guy who won a lot of money when he accurately predicted the exact finish of all 12 horses in a big Stakes race in Australia.

The $250,000 Cup and Saucer is one of 5 Stakes from Woodbine featured this week. There were 8 $300,000 OSS Golds at Mohawk. At Ajax Downs, 2 horses dead-heated for 2nd in a Stakes event, and both were elevated to the win spot. We got Scott Zeron on the phone. This year, Zeron won the North America Cup, the Hambletonian, the Jug, the Jugette and the Kentucky Futurity. Does that make him the Dan Patch Driver of the Year? You might not have heard about Michael Copeland taking over the job as CEO of Woodbine from Jim Lawson. Lawson tells us why the transition was so quiet. We have another (yawwwwn) 5win night for James MacDonald at Mohawk, and, over the span of 3 days at Laurel Racetrack, a horse named Haint Blue ran twice – except - it was a different horse each time.

It was another huge Sunday at Woodbine with the Grade l Canadian International, the E.P. Taylor, the Algonquin and the Nearctic Stakes and most of the big purses went to invaders Resilience, the filly won the Jimmy Freight Stakes and Jimmy Freight was resilient, coming off a 6-month layoff to win on the same night. It took another magical drive from, Scott Zeron as Tactical Approach won the Kentucky Futurity, 3rd leg of the Trotting Triple Crown/Trainer Layne Giliforte tells us what it was like winning the Breeders’ Stakes – the biggest win for him in 30 years and it came only after some heart-stopping filly on colt conflict in the stretch. Has jockey Brian Bell created enough wiggle room in his quest to win the riders race at Ajax Downs? And how does a horse pay over $1,000 to show.? It happened in Summerside, P.E.I.

This podcast is full of great races – The Breeders’ Stakes, 3rd leg of the Canadian Triple Crown at Woodbine, 4 OSS Golds from Mohawk Park, Tattoo Artist crushing again, this time at the Dayton Raceway. Natural hattricks at Woodbine for jockeys Sahin Civaci and Sofia Vives. We check out the very close jockeys race at Ajax Downs; will it be Brian Bell, or Ramiro Castillo or J B Botello?.Promoter and horse owner Adriano Sorella tees up next weekend’s Jimmy Freight Stakes, and, appropriately, after the weekend of the Breeders’ Stakes, we talk with the only woman to win this race and let’s just say that Laurie Gulas’ life has not always been in the winners’ circle.

We start with the Bull Page and Victorian Queen Stakes from Woodbine, go to Mohawk Park for the Mohawk Million, the Elegant Image, the She’s a Great Lady, the Canadian Trotting Classic, the Metro Pace and another stunning win by Tattoo Artist. Two ends of the jockey spectrum -55-year-old Gary Boulanger tells us why he’s retiring 36 years after his first ride and 21-year-old Sofia Vives, in her first full year of riding, gets the news from us that she will win the Sovereign as Canada’s outstanding apprentice.

Scott Zeron won both the Little Brown Jug and the Jugette last week in the same year that he won the NA Cup and the Hambletonian so we ask, ‘Is he the driver of the year?’

A special treat for you as Tom Durkin interrupted his retirement to call a $3,000 trot at the Delaware Fair Grounds. He nailed it. We look at the contentious jockeys’ race at Ajax Downs, and some schadenfreude in this podcast - pleasure at the pain of others - someone bet $40,000 to show on a sure thing in a 4-horse race at Assiniboia Downs. Wait until you hear what happened.