UNBRIDLED'S SONG GETS A NEW TRAINER
The saga of Unbridled's Song took a new turn when Nick Zito became the colt's new trainer. Owner Ernie Paragallo transferred the colt to Zito's Saratoga barn Wednesday, firing trainer Jim Ryerson.

'I pledge I will do the best for him,' said Zito of Unbridled's Song, who has been plagued by cracked hooves, a lung infection and ulcers. 'Hopefully, he'll come around and we'll get him straightened out mentally and physically.' Zito stated the colt would likely not start again this year.

Unbridled's Song, winner of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, Florida Derby and Wood Memorial, finished a disappointing fifth as the favorite in the Kentucky Derby. He subsequently lost the Peter Pan and Arlington Citation Challenge.

CALDER HOTWALKER ON TRACK FOR OLYMPIC MARATHON
Olympic athletes come from all 'walks' of life and that is true literally and figuratively in the case of Ron Holassie. The 24-year- old marathoner, a native of Trinidad and Tobago, is a hotwalker at Calder Racecourse in Miami, where he walks horses around the shedrow for an hour before and after their daily workouts. Before the sun rises, he runs 12-14 miles around the outside of Calder's turf course; after the last race of the day he goes for another 6-8 miles run. He has competed in only four marathons to date, but ran 2:17 in the Disney World Marathon in Orlando in 1995 and will participate in the Olympic Marathon on Aug. 4, wearing the red, white and black colors of his native country.

When he's not working for trainer Shawn Musgrave, he's usually working out with his trainer, Keith Brantley, a 1996 U.S. Olympic marathoner. His dedication has so impressed the South Florida racing industry that both Calder and the Florida Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association are subsidizing his five week stay in Atlanta as he prepares to run in the event.

Holassie plans to apply for dual citizenship in November so he will eventually be eligible for the U.S. marathon team.

LARRY THE LEGEND TO RETURN SATURDAY
Larry the Legend, winner of the 1995 Santa Anita Derby and early favorite to win last year's Kentucky Derby before knee surgery sidelined him in April, will return to the races Saturday, July 27 at Del Mar. The colt, who had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee April 18, 1995 and again on Oct. 15 to remove bone chips, will start in the seventh race at the Del Mar, Calif., racetrack. Larry, to be ridden by Kent Desormeaux, is listed as co-favorite with stakes winner Forest Gazelle.

'We're pleased with his progress and we'll just take it one day at a time,' said trainer Craig Lewis. 'We don't want to be disappointed and we don't want to disappoint anybody.'

Larry the Legend is the namesake of Craig Lewis' brother Larry Lewis, who coached the Long Beach, Calif., Little League team to back-to- back Little League World Series victories in 1992 and 1993. Larry the Legend, who was purchased by Craig Lewis in 1994 in a bankruptcy settlement for $2,500, won four consecutive races at age three, including the Santa Catalina Stakes and San Rafael Stakes.

DATE OF SECOND DUBAI WORLD CUP ANNOUNCED
The second running of the Dubai World Cup will be held Saturday, March 29, 1997 in response to requests from racing enthusiasts worldwide to move the event to a weekend. The Dubai World Cup Committee feel that the shift to a weekend date will increase viewership for the event. This year's running was held on a Wednesday. No other major sporting event is scheduled in Europe on March 29, so the race will not be competing for viewers and media coverage. In the U.S., the morning post time will not conflict with the semi- finals of the NCAA Basketball Championship scheduled for later that day.

FLORIDA HBPA AND GULFSTREAM INK PACT
After seven months of negotiations, the Florida Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (FHBPA) and Gulfstream Park have entered into a new revenue sharing agreement for the 1997 race meet. The arrangement, signed earlier this week, calls for all forms of parimutuel income to be split evenly between the parties. 'This contract exemplifies the desire by horsemen and racetrack management at Gulfstream Park to move forward with a unity of purpose,' said FHBPA President Scott Savin.

HOLLYWOOD PARK CLOSES RECORD SPRING-SUMMER MEET
Hollywood Park closed its 67-day spring-summer meet Monday with a record daily average total handle of more than $10.4 million, the fourth consecutive year business has increased at the Inglewood, Calif., racetrack. The total includes a record daily common pool handle of $9.7 million and $700,000 daily in separate pool handle. Since the introduction of inter-track wagering in the Los Angeles area in 1991 and the expansion of national and international simulcasting, overall business at Hollywood has grown 61 percent, from an average of $6.5 million in 1991 to this year's record. On- track business decreased by 9.6 percent over last year's figures. On- track handle averaged $2.3 million in 1996 versus $2.6 million in 1995. On-track attendance decreased 3.6 percent to an average of 11, 188 in 1996, while combined attendance declined 5.9 percent to an average of 25,484.

CINCINNATI HANDICAPPED RIDERS TO PERFORM AT RIVER DOWNS
For the seventh consecutive year, members of the Cincinnati Riding for the Handicapped will perform at River Downs in, Cincinnati, Ohio. The demonstration will take place on Saturday, July 27 at 11:30 a.m. In what has become a tradition, the River Downs jockey colony will act as assistants with the riding program, helping the students dress in racing silks and goggles. The jockeys will also assist the riders as they mount their horses and go through their prepared program.

'The riders in our program look forward to this all year long,' said Bobbie Theis, co-director of the handicapped riding program. 'It's hard to tell what they like more -- performing on horseback or interacting with the jockeys. The jockeys are great with the students, it's a therapeutic exercise not only in body but in spirit also.'

Local restaurateur Ted Gregory of the Montgomery Inn lends his support to the program each year by supplying a free lunch to all the students, their families and the volunteers at the track.

THREE CHIMNEYS FARM HOSTS GEORGE BUSH AT REPUBLICAN FUND
RAISER Former President George Bush was among the 200 people who were at Mr. and Mrs. Robert Clay's Three Chimneys Farm in Midway, Ky., on July 24 to attend a $500-a-plate fund-raising dinner to support the state's Republican party. According to Monica Noe, one of the event's organizers, approximately $360,000 was raised for the party's fall campaigns. A pledge of $1,000 entitled admission to a reception with the former president, while a donation of $2,500 included a special photo session with Bush.

THE JOCKEY CLUB HOSTS RACING EXECUTIVES FROM FAR EAST
The Jockey Club was host to several high-ranking executives representing the Japan Racing Association and the Hong Kong Jockey Club. The meetings offered an opportunity for the Japanese and Hong Kong executives to examine the computer operations of The Jockey Club, who toured Equibase Company, the Thoroughbred racing industry's central database of race records, and discussed administrative and operational procedures.

'We had a very educational discussion about the difference in structure between Japanese and American racing,' said Nick Nicholson, The Jockey Club executive vice president and executive director. 'These exchanges are highly important in today's global racing marketplace.'

RACING ON THE AIR

RACING TO HISTORY

July 26, 1962: Jockey Angel Cordero Jr. rode his first winner in the U.S., Counterate, at Aqueduct Racetrack.

July 26, 1973: The New York Racing Association and the Philip Morris Corporation announced the inaugural Marlboro Cup, a race to feature Secretariat and his stablemate, Riva Ridge, that would be run Sept. 15 at Belmont Park.

July 27, 1973: In preparation for the Aug. 4 Whitney Stakes, Secretariat worked a mile at Saratoga Racecourse in 1:34 over a muddy track. His workout time was 4-5 of a second lower than the 55-year- old track record for the distance. He galloped out another eighth of a mile for a final time of 1:47 4-5, which was 2-5 of a second lower than the track record.

July 28, 1951: Citation, then the world's leading money-winning Thoroughbred, was paraded before a crowd of 28,000 at Arlington Park in his last public appearance at a track before being retired to stud.

July 28, 1987: Jockey Angel Cordero Jr. won his 6,000th victory in the Colleen Stakes at Monmouth Park aboard Lost Kitty. He was the fourth rider in racing history to accomplish that feat.

July 29,,1953: Trainer Bill Mott was born in Mobridge, S.D.

July 29, 1953: Jockey Walter Blum rode his first career winner at Saratoga Racecourse.

July 29, 1972: In preparation for a July 31 race at Saratoga, Secretariat went three furlongs in :35.

July 29, 1973: Jockey Pat Day rode his first career winner, Forblunged, in a $2,000 claiming race at Prescott Downs, Prescott, Ariz. His mount earned $347 -- the winner's share of the $631 purse.

July 30, 1870: Monmouth Park opened with a five day race meet.

July 31, 1972: Secretariat, ridden for the first time by Ron Turcotte, won his second victory in three starts, on opening day at Saratoga Racecourse. The pair were sent off at odds of 2-5.

Aug. 1, 1945: Open racing resumed in place of the war-time restricted, or zoned, system in England.

Aug. 2, 1864: America's oldest Thoroughbred racetrack, Saratoga Racecourse, opened its inaugural meet with four days of racing. Since then it has been the site of some of racing's most famous upsets. Man o' War suffered his only loss in 21 starts while racing at Saratoga, and Triple Crown champion Gallant Fox was defeated by a 100-1 shot named Jim Dandy in Saratoga's 1930 Travers, prompting the track to be called 'the graveyard of favorites.'

Aug. 2, 1969: Jockey Robyn Smith, one of the first female jockeys in the U.S., won her first career race, at Ferndale.

Aug. 3, 1971: The yearling Secretariat was shod on his front feet for the first time and transferred to the Meadow training center for breaking.

Aug. 3, 1989: Jockey Jorge Velasquez notched his 6,000th career victory aboard 3-year-old filly Maddie Bumpo in the third race at Arlington International Racecourse.

Aug. 4, 1973: In his first race against older horses, 1-10 favorite Secretariat was defeated in the Whitney Stakes at Saratoga by Allen Jerkens' 4-year-old trainee Onion, who beat him by a length. Secretariat was subsequently found to be suffering from a virus.

Test Stakes, , 3yo fillies,, $150,000, 7 furlongs, Grade I, Saratoga
The Test will feature the speedy Capote Belle who has won three straight sprints, including the Grade II Prioress Stakes at Belmont in stakes record-tying time of 1:08 4-5. Escena has been running in longer races with a victory in the Grade II Fantasy Stakes and seconds in two Grade I stakes, the Kentucky Oaks and Mother Goose Stakes. Flat Fleet Feet was easily beaten by Capote Belle in the Prioress but won the Grade II Adirondack Stakes at Saratoga last year. Minery has been impressive in Kentucky, winning her three starts by a combined 22 1-2 lengths.

San Diego Handicap, 3&up;,, $150,000, 1 1-16m, Grade III, Del Mar
The San Diego is a competitive race. Nonproductiveasset ran well to be fourth in the Grade I Hollywood Gold Cup. The Exeter Man disappointed in the Grade III Triple Bend Breeders' Cup at Hollywood but beat Dramatic Gold in the Sultry Song Handicap at Hollywood. Savinio tries dirt after some disappointing turf outings.

San Clemente Handicap, 3yo fillies, $100,000, 1M (T), Grade II, Del Mar
The San Clemente is also competitive. Gastronomical is a multiple stakes winner on grass. Najecam finished third in the Grade III Honeymoon Handicap. Supercilious won the Grade II Railbird Stakes on dirt. True Flare is Group 3 stakes placed in France. Tarte Aux Pommes is stakes placed in France also.

Go for Wand Handicap, 3&up; (F&M;), $175,000, 1 1-8M, Grade I, Saratoga
Exotic Wood, beaten only by Serena's Song in the Grade I Santa Monica Handicap, looks for her first stakes victory at a mile or more after taking sprint stakes on both coasts. Forty Nine Hearts has been winning allowance races in Kentucky and is a full sister to Editor's Note. Shoop finished second to Serena's Song in the Grade I Hempstead Handicap at Belmont.

Bing Crosby Handicap, 3&up;, $200,000, 6 furlongs, Grade III, Del Mar
Lit de Justice returns at Del Mar for a late season campaign to try and improve on his third place finish in the 1995 Grade I Breeders' Cup Sprint. Earlier this year, the long striding gray used his powerful late kick to win the Grade III Palos Verdes Handicap at Santa Anita and to break Santa Anita's 5 1-2 furlong track record in the El Conejo Handicap. Abaginone won the Grade III Potrero Grande Handicap and the Grade III Los Angeles Handicap in a dead heat.

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