TRC THOROUGHBRED NOTEBOOK

October 29, 1997

News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by Thoroughbred Racing Communications, Inc. (TRC) (212.371.5911..)

GREEN RULER

Vol. 10, No. 30

BREEDERS' CUP PREVIEW
LAST OF FIVE ISSUES SPOTLIGHTING THE PEOPLE AND HORSES OF RACING'S $11
MILLION DAY.
NEWS, NAMES AND NOTES
MERKLEY NEWMAN HARTY NAMED ADVERTISING AGENCY FOR NATIONAL THOROUGHBRED
RACING ASSOCIATION; HALL OF FAME TRAINER BUDDY HIRSCH IS DEAD AT AGE 88;
AND MORE.
FEATURES
KIDS GET A LEG UP ON HORSE RACING WITH THE MARYLAND JOCKEY CLUB'S PONY
PALS PROGRAM.
PLUS
RACING TO HISTORY; THOROUGHBRED WORLD SCHEDULE FOR NOVMEBER; RACING ON
THE AIR; THE TRC NATIONAL POLL.
ADVISORIES: Thoroughbred Racing Communications will provide Breeders'
Cup audio feeds to radio networks and stations starting Tuesday, Nov. 4
and continuing through Saturday, Nov. 8. The TRC phone number in the
Hollywood Park press box will be: (310) 674-5926. For additional
information about the feeds, contact TRC at (212) 371-5910.
The next issue of Media Update will be published Tuesday, Nov. 11.
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BREEDERS' CUP PREVIEW
BREEDERS' CUP PRE-ENTRIES
The following are the 94 horses that were pre-entered Tuesday, Oct. 28,
for the Breeders' Cup races to be run Saturday, Nov. 8, at Hollywood
Park. (The post position draw will be Wednesday, Nov. 5, at 10 a.m.,
PST). The numbers following the race names represent the number of
horses for which the race is the first choice. Horses may be pre-entered
for more than one race-the race name in brackets is an alternate choice,
an asterisk signifies first choice is another race. Preferences are
non-binding. If there are more than 14 pre-entries, the eight horses
with the most Breeders' Cup points plus six horses chosen by an
international committee will comprise the field. Entries ranked higher
than 14 will draw in according to rank. There are four supplemental
entries, marked with an "S" and the amount of the supplement, 12 percent
(sire nominated, foal not nominated) or 20 percent (sire and foal not
nominated). If a horse is pre-entered for more than one race, the
required pre-entry payment must be for the race of greatest value
regardless of whether that is the race of first choice; the connections
of three horses, Honor Glide, Taiki Blizzard and Big Sky Chester paid
standard entry fees based upon entry in the Classic, their second-choice
race.
Sixteen horses have made previous Breeders' Cup starts. One winner
returns in the same race: Jewel Princess in the Distaff. The year, race
and finish for horses with previous Breeders' Cup starts are in
parentheses.
(C-Classic; D-Distaff; J-Juvenile; JF-Juvenile Fillies; M-Mile;
S-Sprint; T-Turf).
JUVENILE FILLIES (17)
Balisian Beauty
Bay Harbor
Beautiful Pleasure
Career Collection
Carrielle
Countess Diana
Diamond On the Run
Kirby's Song
Lily O' Gold
Love Lock
Nancy's Glitter
Primaly
Silver Maiden (S-12%)
Vivid Angel
15-Marie J
16-Came Unwound
17-Ultimate Force
MILE (16)
Anet
Decorated Hero (GB)
El Angelo
Fantastic Fellow
Geri
Helmsman (1996, M, 6th)
Honor Glide [Classic]
Lucky Coin (S-12%)
Magellan
Pinfloron (FR)
Soviet Line (IRE) (1995, M, 6th)
Spinning World (1996, M, 2nd)
Taiki Blizzard (1996, C, 13th) [Classic]
Wild Event
15-*Hesabull
16-Naninja
17-Vilhelm
SPRINT (21)
Carmine Lake (IRE)
Confide
Crafty Friend
Elmhurst
Hesabull [Mile]
Kelly Kip
Men's Exclusive (S-20%)
Northern Afleet
Pas de Reponse
Richter Scale
Royal Applause (GB)
Tale of the Cat
Track Gal (1995, S, 11th)
Trafalger
15-Exotic Wood
16-Bet On Sunshine
17-Swiss Yodeler
18-Advancing Star
19-Lucayan Prince
20-Hever Golf Rose (GB) (1995, S, 8th)
21-Gold Knuckles
TURF (13)
Awad (1995, T, 6th; 1996, T, 9th)
Big Sky Chester [Classic]
Borgia (GER)
Buck's Boy
Chief Bearhart (1996, T, 11th)
Dance Design (IRE) [Distaff]
Desert King (IRE)
*Down the Aisle
Flag Down (1994, C, 12th)
Majorien (GB)
Ops Smile
Rajpoute (FR)
Singspiel (IRE) (1996, T, 2nd)
Val's Prince
DISTAFF (9)
Ajina
Clear Mandate (1996, D, 6th)
*Dance Design (IRE)
Escena
Hidden Lake
Jewel Princess (1996, D, 1st)
Minister's Melody (1996, JF, 4th)
Radu Cool
Sharp Cat (1996, JF, 9th)
Twice the Vice
JUVENILE (9)
Black Cash
Dawson's Legacy
Double Honor
Favorite Trick
Grand Slam
Johnbill
Nationalore
Souvenir Copy
Time Limit
CLASSIC (9)
Behrens
*Big Sky Chester
Deputy Commander
Down the Aisle [Turf]
Dowty
Formal Gold (1996, C, 5th)
*Honor Glide
Savinio (1995, M, 5th)
Skip Away (S-12%)
*Taiki Blizzard (1996, C, 13th)
Touch Gold
Whiskey Wisdom
PREPARING FOR A BREEDERS' CUP WIN
Certain prep races have proven to be key races for Breeders' Cup
success. Following is a list of all the Breeders' Cup winners by race
and the last race they ran in before the Breeders' Cup. Forty-six
Breeders' Cup winners won their preps, 45 didn't.
How important is winning a prep race? Only three horses have won the
Sprint or the Mile who were winners in their previous start while 10
have taken the Distaff off victories. The females seem to be more true
to form as no winner of the Distaff or Juvenile Fillies has been worse
than second in her previous race. Six Juvenile Fillies champs came from
Belmont Park's Frizette Stakes while Belmont's Vosburgh Stakes has
produced three Sprint winners; however, none of them actually won the
Vosburgh. Eleven different races have served as stepping stones for the
Sprint. The Spinster has been a great predictor of Distaff greatness,
with seven winners coming from the Keeneland race. Seven Europeans have
won the Mile with three capturing the Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.
Five Juvenile victors ran in the Champagne at Belmont Park while three
Turf champions each have run in the Oak Tree Turf Championship at Santa
Anita Park and the Turf Classic at Belmont Park. The best prognosticator
of Classic greatness? Surprisingly, it's the Super Derby at Louisiana
Downs, with three winners.
Juvenile Fillies
Frizette Open Mind (1988, 2nd), Go for Wand (1989, 2nd), Meadow Star
(1990, 1st), Flanders (1994, 1st), My Flag (1995, 2nd), Storm Song
(1996, 1st)
Alcibiades Epitome (1987, 2nd), Eliza (1992, 1st)
Oak Leaf Pleasant Stage (1991, 1st), Phone Chatter (1993, 1st)
Critical Miss Twilight Ridge (1985, 2nd)
My Dear Girl Brave Raj (1986, 1st)
Allowance race Outstandingly (1984, 1st)
Sprint
Vosburgh Gulch (1988, 2nd), Dancing Spree (1989, 4th), Cherokee Run
(1994, 3rd)
Chief Pennekeck Eillo (1984, 1st)
Hollywood Gold Cup Precisionist (1985, 2nd)
Philadelphia Breeders' Cup Smile (1986, 6th)
Arlington Breeders' Cup Very Subtle (1987, 2nd)
Boojum Safely Kept (1990, 4th)
Prix de l'Abbaye Sheikh Albadou (GB) (1991, 2nd)
CERF Sprint Thirty Slews (1992, 1st)
Ancient Title Cardmania (1993, 1st)
Rancho Bernardo Desert Stormer (1995, 2nd)
Pat O'Brien Lit de Justice (1996, 3rd)
Distaff
Spinster Princess Rooney (1984, 1st), Life's Magic (1985, 2nd),
Sacahuista (1987, 1st), Bayakoa (ARG) (1989-90, 1st), Paseana (ARG)
(1992, 2nd), Inside Information (1995, 1st)
Beldame Lady's Secret (1986, 1st), Personal Ensign (1988, 1st)
Lady's Secret Hollywood Wildcat (1993, 1st), Jewel Princess (1996, 2nd)
Molson Million 1 Dance Smartly (1991, 1st)
Rachel Jackson 1 One Dreamer (1994, 1st)
Mile
Queen Elizabeth II Miesque (1987, 2nd), Barathea (IRE) (1994, 2nd),
Ridgewood Pearl (GB) (1995, 2nd)
Keeneland Breeders' Cup Steinlen (GB) (1989, 1st), Opening Verse (1991,
2nd)
Kelso Lure (1992, 2nd, 1993, 1st), Da Hoss (1996, 2nd)
Cliff Hanger Cozzene (1985, 6th)
William Hill Sprint 2 Last Tycoon (1986, 1st)
Ladbroke Sprint Cup 3 Royal Academy (1990, 2nd)
Prix du Moulin Miesque (1998, 2nd)
Ramona Royal Heroine (IRE) (1984, 2nd)
Juvenile
Champagne Is It True (1988, 2nd), Rhythm (1989, 2nd), Fly So Free (1990,
1st), Timber Country (1994, 1st), Unbridled's Song (1995, 4th)
Norfolk Chief's Crown (1984, 1st), Capote (1985, 1st), Success Express
(1987, 4th)
Breeders' Futurity Tasso (1985, 1st), Boston Harbor (1996, 1st)
Arlington-Washington Futurity Gilded Time (1992, 1st)
Grand Crit�rium Arazi (1991, 1st)
Allowance race Brocco (1993, 1st)
Turf
Oak Tree Turf Championship Great Communicator (1988, 2nd), Kotashaan
(FR) (1993, 1st), Northern Spur (IRE) (1995, 1st)
Turf Classic Manila (1986, 1st), Fraise (1992, 2nd), Tikkanen (1994,
1st)
Arc de Triomphe In the Wings (GB) (1990, 4th), Pilsudski (IRE) (1996,
2nd)
Budweiser International 1 Miss Alleged (1991, 5th)
Dubai Championship Pebbles (GB) (1985, 1st)
Jockey Club Gold Cup Prized (1989, 4th)
Man o' War Theatrical (IRE) (1987, 1st)
Prix du Conseil de Paris Lashkari (GB) (1984, 1st)
Classic
Super Derby Sunday Silence (1989, 1st), Unbridled (1990, 2nd), Concern
(1994, 2nd)
Goodwood Ferdinand (1987, 1st), Alphabet Soup (1996, 3rd)
Jockey Club Gold Cup A.P. Indy (1992, 3rd), Cigar (1995, 1st)
Allowances race Wild Again (1984, 3rd)
Col. Koester 4 Skywalker (1986, 3rd)
Discovery Proud Truth (1985, 1st)
Meadowlands Cup Alysheba (1988, 1st)
Prix Dollar Arcangues (1993, 4th)
Washington Park Black Tie Affair (IRE) (1991, 1st)
1 No longer run
2 Now Nunthrope Stakes
3 Now Haydock Park Sprint Cup
4 Now Oak Tree Breeders' Cup Mile
BREEDERS' CUP PAYOFFS BY YEAR AND RACE
 J. FILLIES SPRINT DISTAFF MILE JUVENILE TURF CLASSIC AVERAGE
1984 @ Hol 47.60 4.60 3.40 5.40 3.40 108.80 64.60 33.97
1985 @ Aqu 3.20 8.80 2.80 9.20 13.20 6.40 16.80 8.63
1986 @ SA 10.00 24.00 3.00 73.80 6.80 19.60 22.20 22.77
1987 @ Hol 62.80 34.80 7.80 9.20 10.20 5.60 4.00 19.20
1988 @ CD 3.40 13.60 3.00 6.00 20.40 26.80 5.00 11.17
1989 @ GP 7.00 35.20 3.40 5.60 7.20 19.60 6.00 12.00
1990 @ Bel 2.40 26.40 4.20 7.60 4.80 5.80 15.20 9.49
1991 @ CD 13.60 54.60 3.00 55.40 6.20 86.20 10.00 32.71
1992 @ GP 4.40 39.40 7.40 12.80 6.00 30.00 6.20 15.17
1993 @ SA 6.60 12.60 4.60 4.60 8.00 5.00 269.20 44.37
1994 @ CD 2.80 7.60 96.20 22.80 6.80 35.20 17.00 26.91
1995 @ Bel 9.00 31.00 3.60 7.10 12.40 9.00 3.40 10.79
1996 @ WO 5.20 10.00 6.80 18.90 6.80 29.40 41.70 16.97
AVERAGES 13.69 23.28 11.48 18.34 8.63 29.80 37.03 20.32
BREEDERS' CUP ENTRANTS BY YEAR
Year Total European (%)
1984 (Hol) 67 9 (13.4%)
1985 (Aqu) 83 18 (21.7%)
1986 (SA) 76 10 (13.2%)
1987 (Hol) 84 12 (14.3%)
1988 (CD) 75 12 (16.0%)
1989 (GP) 80 11 (13.8%)
1990 (Bel) 83 12 (14.5%)
1991 (CD) 90 10 (11.1%)
1992 (GP) 91 21 (23.1%)
1993 (SA) 81 19 (23.5%)
1994 (CD) 91 22 (24.2%)
1995 (Bel) 81 15 (18.5%)
1996 (WO) 82 14 (17.1%) (plus one Japanese, 18.3% foreign)
European entrants by state when Breeders' Cup was held in that state
California: 16.% (50-308)
New York: 18.2% (45-247)
Florida: 18.7% (32-171)
Kentucky: 17.2% (44-256)
Canada: 17.1% (14-82) (18.3% foreign, 15-82)
NBC SPORTS: FACTS AND FIGURES ON BREEDERS' CUP
Here are some facts and figures from NBC Sports regarding the network's
coverage of the Breeders' Cup for the 14th consecutive year:
* The on-air team will consist of: Tom Hammond (host), Tom Durkin (race
caller) and contributing analysts Mike Battaglia, Trevor Denman, Gregg
McCarron, Bob Neumeier and John Veitch.
* The telecast, airing from 1:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. EST, will be
distributed to 210 television stations and NBC research estimates that
approximately 20 million people will watch part or all of the telecast.
* Online information about NBC's coverage of the Breeders' Cup is
available at https://www.NBCSports.com.
* NBC Sports will use 24 video cameras, including two cabled mini-cams,
one "Super Slo-Mo" and one crane. They will also use five miles of
camera cable and three miles of audio cable.
* The executive producer of NBC Sports is Tom Roy. David Michaels will
produce the Breeders' Cup telecast and Bucky Gunts will direct it.
OPS SMILE OWNERS KEEP TRADITION GOING,  SMILES FLOWING
If the five-year-old colt Ops Smile should win the $2 million Breeders'
Cup Turf, he'll bring countless smiles, literally and figuratively, to
children around the world. That's because Roger and Jackie Schipke, who
maintain 50 percent ownership of the horse, will donate 10 percent of
their earnings to Operation Smile, the Norfolk, Va.-based volunteer
medical services organization that provides free reconstructive surgery
and related health care to indigent children and young adults in the
United States and 15 developing countries. For the Breeders' Cup Turf,
that donation would amount to approximately $52,000.
It will also extend a tradition that started with the colt's original
owner and breeder, Jim Ryan, the Mt. Airy, Md. home builder,
Thoroughbred owner and philanthropist. Ryan was so impressed with the
work of Dr. William Magee and his wife Kathy, the founders of Operation
Smile, that he named the Caveat-Northern Sting colt in honor of
Operation Smile and donated a portion of his earnings to the
organization.
The humanitarian aspect of the Ops Smile story attracted the attention
of the CBS News show Sunday Morning and the show aired a 10-minute
feature on the Magees, Operation Smile and the promising three-year-old
colt in February 1995-just as it began to look like he might be headed
to the Kentucky Derby.
At about that time, Ryan and the Magees sold the horse to a partnership
headed by his friend Roger Schipke, a Bel Air, Md., owner who had been a
senior vice-president of General Electric and later the chairman of the
Ryland Group (a building and development corporation started by Ryan).
Bill Boniface, who trained Ops Smile for Ryan, knew Ryan wanted to sell
the horse and when the Schipkes took his recommendation to buy him,
Boniface was able to keep the talented colt in his barn.
While the Schipkes had no previous relationship with Operation Smile,
they agreed to continue supporting it. "When we purchased the horse, we
said we would continue to support it," Schipke said. "We were influenced
by that CBS piece and we thought it was a good cause." So did the Conrad
N. Hilton Foundation; just over one year later, in July 1996, Operation
Smile received The Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize in the form of a
check for $1 million "for its efforts to alleviate human suffering."
Boniface realized early on that Ops Smile liked running on the turf and
he's been running almost exclusively on grass in recent years, winning
graded stakes races such as the Manhattan Handicap and the Dixie Stakes
and finishing second or third in several others. Ops Smile was third in
the Turf Classic at Belmont Park Oct. 18 and has now posted career
earnings of  $651,911 with seven wins, seven seconds and four thirds in
32 lifetime starts. These days, the Schipkes don't even have to wait to
hear from Boniface to know how the colt is doing; their daughter Kim,
who is married to Bill's son and assistant trainer, John, is the regular
exercise rider for Ops Smile.
On Sept. 27, Operation Smile kicked off its 15th Anniversary Celebration
with a fashion show at the Waterside Marriott in Norfolk. Among those
attending were Roger and Jackie Schipke. "They contacted us," said Kathy
Magee, who now serves as the president of Operation Smile. "And they
told us the horse had made some money since they bought it and they
wanted to keep their promise to support our work." The Schipkes
presented Operation Smile with a check for $27,000.
"That donation will allow us to perform surgery on hundreds of
children," Kathy McGee said the other day after returning from an
Operation Smile trip to the Middle East and Asia. "And these operations
really change a child's life; they can eat, they can speak and they can
face the world every day." Like the Schipkes, the Magees will be pulling
very hard for Ops Smile to win the Breeders' Cup Turf.
FOR THESE WRITERS, "TALE" (AND SALE) TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE
Tom Pedulla, a sportswriter for USA Today,  insists that he is "a very
conservative person by nature" and that it "was completely out of
character" for him when he decided to invest a good deal of his savings
from some profitable stock investments to purchase a small interest in a
Thoroughbred ownership partnership assembled by trainer John Forbes in
1995. "I'm so conservative I like to bet show parlays when I go to the
track," he says. "But when John offered me the chance to be part of this
ownership group, I had this incredibly strong feeling that it was
something I should do."
Was it ever.
With Pedulla and 11 other larger investors, Forbes raised over $1
million, named the group Phantom House Farm and purchased six yearlings
at the Keeneland September yearling sale in 1995. One of them, a Storm
Cat-Yarn colt purchased for $375,000, was subsequently named Tale of the
Cat and when the gates are loaded for the $1 million Breeders' Cup
Sprint at Hollywood Park on Nov. 8, he could very well be the betting
favorite.
His meteoric rise to prominence has amazed and delighted not only
Pedulla but his longtime friend and fellow sportswriter Bob Ehalt, to
whom he sold a small portion of his share.
Making the first start of his career, the three-year-old Tale of the Cat
won a maiden race by 11 and a half lengths May 26 at Monmouth Park and
in the five months and four starts since then, he continues to generate
excitement throughout the racing world, in victory and defeat.
He won an allowance race a month later and then challenged Touch Gold
and Free House in the third start of his career (finishing fourth,
beaten by less than four lengths).  He came back to win the King's
Bishop Stakes at Saratoga by five and a half lengths.
That victory had breeding farms clamoring for the colt and approximately
one month later, Forbes sold a 50 percent interest in him for $7.1
million to Coolmore Stud, much to the obvious delight of the ownership
group.
Tale of the Cat finished third in his next start, the Vosburgh Stakes at
Belmont Park Sept. 27, but after careful consideration, Forbes announced
on Oct. 23 that the colt will make his next start in the $1 million
Breeders' Cup Sprint.
Pedulla, who lives in Tarrytown, N.Y., and Ehalt, who lives in Shelton,
Conn.,  have been best friends since they met on the first day of high
school at Fordham Prep in the Bronx more than 25 years ago and were
thoroughly enjoying their participation in the ownership venture even
before they received that healthy return on their investment.
"Bob was already a racing fan when we met," Pedulla recalled "and he
introduced me to it." They made their initial outings to Belmont Park
and Aqueduct in 1971, until Ehalt got his driver's license and they
started trekking north to Saratoga Racecourse. "We had great fun up
there and sometimes we'd dream a little bit about owning a horse one
day," Pedulla said. "But life goes on and we couldn't really afford it,
though I always kept it in mind."
Ehalt got married and had three children. After a stint with the Norwalk
Hour, he joined the sports staff of the Stamford (CT) Advocate in 1984
and started covering racing. Pedulla, meanwhile, went to work for
Gannett's Westchester Rockland Newspapers and covered the New York
Yankees for 11 years before becoming a general assignment sports writer
covering the New York area and beyond for Gannett's USA Today two years
ago.
They tested the waters of Thoroughbred ownership with some claiming
horses in 1994 and quickly found out how painful-financially and
emotionally-the sport can be. One horse never won. One of them was once
scratched at the starting gate. Another $5,000 claimer fared so poorly
he was donated to the New Jersey State Police; and yet another one they
had just claimed fractured his sesamoids (small bones that are integral
to the functioning of the leg) in a race and had to be euthanized before
he had even run for them.
Tale of the Cat, however, has shown them the other side of the spectrum.
"When Tale of the Cat is about to run in a race, this feeling comes over
you and there's nothing to match it," says Pedulla. "It was fun with the
claimers, too, but the stakes are much higher here. It's really hard for
me to describe in words what it's like-and I'm a writer."
Ehalt says "it doesn't really matter how much of the horse you own,
because you still feel like you're part of it" and that was never more
true for him than the day Tale of the Cat ran in the Haskell
Invitational, a $1 million stakes race. "When he was leading at the
eighth pole, we realized we had a great racehorse and even though he
didn't win that race, I had tears in my eyes and I couldn't stand up,"
he said. "It took me a few minutes to collect myself I was so overcome
with emotion. It was like seeing one of your children do well."
While Ehalt covers Thoroughbred racing on a regular basis and Pedulla
covers it on occasion, neither one of them would ever cover a race that
Tale of the Cat, or any of the other horses in the partnership, was
competing in.  "I wouldn't want to tarnish my credibility or the
newspaper's," said Pedulla.
On the other hand, both of them have found the ownership experience
helpful in understanding what Thoroughbred owners and trainers go
through on a daily basis when they cover racing. "It's given me a
greater appreciation and understanding of the business and how tough it
can be," Ehalt said. "There's nothing better than living through it to
understand it as a writer. People were giving Sonny Hine a hard time
about not supplementing Skip Away to the Breeders' Cup [before he
eventually did so], but I can feel for Sonny because no one holds any
benefits for you when you're going bad." Added Pedulla, "ownership has
deepened my appreciation for the sport in general. I understand how a
trainer lives and dies with each horse and what goes into trying to make
a champion racehorse."
They may know that a little better if Tale of the Cat should win the
Breeders' Cup Sprint.
Unlike wealthy Thoroughbred owners who can drop everything to see one of
their horses run, Pedulla and Ehalt have work commitments that take
priority and have often made it difficult to attend and/or fully enjoy
the colt's races throughout the summer and fall. Pedulla, for instance,
had to run up to the press box to cover the Travers Stakes right after
Tale of the Cat won the King's Bishop Stakes at Saratoga; Ehalt has had
to rely on simulcasts to Sports Haven, the teletheatre in New Haven, to
see some of his races.
The Breeders' Cup will be no different; Pedulla is supposed to cover a
Buffalo Bills-New England Patriots game in Buffalo on Sunday, Nov. 9 and
Ehalt, who also serves as an assistant sports editor and "desk man," may
have to be in the Advocate sports office on the evening of Nov. 8. If
they can't make it to California, they are at least determined to watch
the race together, whether they're in Ehalt's or Pedulla's house, a
racetrack or a simulcast theatre. "Part of the fun of the whole thing
has been sharing the experience," said Pedulla. "It wouldn't be as much
fun to watch the Breeders' Cup while we were on separate coasts, so
we'll  watch it together. We just don't know yet if that will be at
Hollywood Park or back here."
NEWS, NAMES AND NOTES
NTRA NAMES ADVERTISING AGENCY
The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) has named the
Merkley Newman Harty advertising agency to work closely with the
organization's interim management team to develop its national marketing
and advertising strategy. The NTRA is in the final stages of completing
its business plan for a central national office designed to coordinate
and market Thoroughbred racing in North America.
The announcement was made Friday, Oct. 24, following a meeting of the
NTRA Oversight Committee in Lexington, Ky., when the recommendations of
the NTRA Advertising Search Committee were submitted.
"We are really excited about having such talent, experience and
strategic planning expertise on the board as we close in on completion
of our business plan," said D. G. Van Clief Jr., NTRA interim president
and CEO. "In Merkley Newman Harty we not only have a brilliant creative
team but we also have one of the leaders in the business of advertising
account planning.
"Their input is an integral part of our planning process in many areas
like cooperative advertising and sponsorship as well as a national media
strategy," Van Clief added. "Once the business plan has been finalized
and approved, they'll move into the second stage of implementing that
strategy."
Merkley Newman Harty is a New York-based agency with a current list of
clients that includes BellSouth, Forbes magazine, Oxford Health Plans
and Vanguard Mutual Funds. The group is owned by Omnicom, the world's
second-largest global agency network.
Marty Cooke, partner and creative director of the agency, called the
NTRA "a wonderful opportunity to create a focal point for fan interest
in the sport of Thoroughbred racing."
"Sports leagues have become powerful brands that intensify rooting
interests and create real value around the sport and the televised
viewing of that sport," he said. "Thoroughbred racing is a sleeping
giant. It has a large existing fan base, which we believe can be built
substantially. We're delighted to have been chosen by the NTRA."
Three other agencies made presentations to the NTRA Advertising Agency
Selection Committee: BBDO, also owned by Omnicom, DMB&B; and The Richards
Group. Committee chairman Jerry Brown, of Brown & Martin, praised the
quality of all the presentations.
"The agencies did a lot of interviewing, focus groups and probing but
the most remarkable thing we saw was that they all reached strategic
positions that were remarkably similar," Brown commented. "Those
positions related to the participatory nature of the sport. That's what
makes racing unique among all other spectator sports. The Merkley Newman
Harty presentation was particularly strong and original in this area."
Rick Baedeker, Hollywood Park vice president for marketing and public
relations, a member of the Selection Committee and chairman of the NTRA
Cooperative Advertising Task Force, was also enthusiastic about the
choice.
"Although all the presentations were strong, I was particularly
impressed by the strength of creativity and energy coming from the
Merkley Newman Harty Team and the way they were prepared to deliver the
image that has been lacking from everything we've been used to," he
said. "Naturally that's important from a national point of view, but the
real value will be that local tracks are going to be able to capitalize
on the riches of a national campaign."
The NTRA goal is to open a central national office for Thoroughbred
racing early in the New Year.
TRAINER BUDDY HIRSCH DEAD AT AGE 88
Hall of Fame trainer William J. "Buddy" Hirsch, the son of Hall of Fame
trainer Max Hirsch, died Oct. 25 in Bal Harbour, Fla., after a long
illness. He was 88 years old.
The San Francisco native served as an officer in the U.S. Army during
World War II and was awarded the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. He later
graduated from Georgetown University and worked on Wall Street before he
started training with four horses his father gave him.
He spent nearly 60 years in Thoroughbred racing and trained more than
150 stakes winners, including Gallant Bloom, the champion filly of 1969
and-for part of his career-Canonero II, the champion three-year-old colt
of 1971.
Hirsch is survived by his wife Sandy and children William J. Hirsch Jr.
(a former trainer), Michael Maxmillion Hirsch and Marilyn Hirsch.
A private burial was held at the Hirsch family plot at Holy Rood
Cemetery in Westbury, N.Y., and a memorial service will be offered
sometime this winter in Bal Harbour, Fla. The family requests that in
lieu of flowers, donations be made to the National Museum of Racing and
Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; the Thoroughbred Retirement
Foundation in Albertson, N.Y.; or the Alzheimer's Foundation in Bay
Harbour, Fla.
NOTES: CBS News' Sunday Morning show will include a retrospective
feature on the gelding Forego when it airs, Sunday, Nov. 8, (check local
listings). The segment, produced by Bud Lamoreaux, will include
interviews with Martha Gerry and Frank Whiteley as well as  several of
Forego's races...Churchill Downs, Louisville, Ky., was ranked 108th in
sales growth on Forbes' list of the top 200 small, publicly traded
companies in America, which appeared in the Nov. 3 issue of the
magazine. The track was also ranked in three other categories...Ed
Schuyler Jr., who covers Thoroughbred racing and boxing for The
Associated Press, will wear both hats Saturday, Nov. 8. "Fast Eddie"
will start the day reporting on the seven Breeders' Cup races at
Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif., before making a round-trip flight
to Las Vegas to cover the Evander Holyfield-Michael Moorer heavyweight
bout that evening...Neil A. Campbell, a sports columnist and former
Thoroughbred racing writer for the Toronto Globe & Mail, has been named
sports editor of the Globe & Mail. "Unfortunately, it will cost me my
trip to the Breeders' Cup because we're busy reorganizing the sports
section," he said, "but now that I'm sports editor I can do anything I
want and I'm going to resume writing my weekly horse racing column."
FEATURES
KIDS BECOME PONY PALS AT MARYLAND JOCKEY CLUB TRACKS
Members of the Pony Pals Kids Club met at Laurel Park racetrack, Laurel,
Md., on Saturday, Oct. 25 and enjoyed a fun and educational day at the
races. The Pony Pals Club, created by the Maryland Jockey Club to
educate children and their families about Thoroughbred racing, made its
debut at Pimlico's successful Summerfest program Aug. 2. Since then,
more than 400 children have signed up for it. Both Laurel and Pimlico
will participate in the program and hold regular monthly events geared
toward youngsters.
At the Oct. 25 outing, a group of about 30 parents and youngsters
started the day at Laurel Park's track kitchen, followed by a
demonstration of racing equipment, jockey tack, horse grooming tools and
a close-up view of morning workouts. The group also visited trainer
Larry Murray's barn to learn about the care and training of a
Thoroughbred racehorse.
In the afternoon, the club members were treated to activities which
included pumpkin decorating, pony rides and an opportunity to become
jockeys aboard a miniature version of an Equicizer, a jockey exercise
machine that looks like a horse.
"We are so thrilled with the level of interest the community has
expressed, and delighted that both parents and kids are eager to be a
part of Pony Pals," said Karin De Francis, senior vice president of
public relations and marketing for the Maryland Jockey Club. "We look
forward to continuing to provide families with many fun and interactive
opportunities."
Members of Pony Pals also receive newsletters and personal membership
cards, and can participate in contests throughout the year. Birthday
party packages are also available.
RACING TO HISTORY
Oct. 29, 1948: Calumet Farm's three-year-old Citation entered the
Pimlico Invitational Special Stakes unopposed and won in a walkover,
earning $10,000 for galloping the 1 3/16 mile course in 1:59 4/5.
Another great Calumet runner, Whirlaway, also won the Special in a
walkover in 1942.
Oct. 29, 1955: Charlie Whittingham and Bill Shoemaker scored their first
stakes victory as a trainer-rider team with Mister Gus in the William P.
Kyne Handicap at Bay Meadows.
Oct. 30, 1937: Sir Barton, the first American Triple Crown winner, died
at age 21.
Oct. 31, 1944: The saddle cloth numbers of the first five race winners
at Jamaica corresponded to the number of the race in which each horse
started.
Oct. 31, 1964: Seven-year-old Kelso won his fifth consecutive Jockey
Club Gold Cup, a record. In each of those races, Kelso was the odds-on
favorite.
Oct. 31, 1987: Jockey Chris Antley became the first rider to win nine
races in a single day. He rode four winners from six mounts at Aqueduct
and five winners from eight tries during The Meadowlands' evening
program.
Oct. 31, 1992: Past-performance data supplied by Equibase Company was
used for the first time for the official track program for the Breeders'
Cup Championship Day, held at Gulfstream Park.
Nov. 1, 1944: Racing returned to Hollywood Park after a three-year
hiatus, which followed the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Nov. 1, 1938: Before a crowd of 40,000 spectators, Seabiscuit, under
jockey George Woolf, defeated odds-on favorite War Admiral in the
Pimlico Special, run as a winner-take-all match race with a purse of
$15,000.
Nov. 1, 1947: Man o' War died at Faraway Farm, Lexington, Ky. He lay in
state for three days before being ceremoniously buried on Nov. 4.
Nov. 2, 1968: John Nerud-trained Dr. Fager, carrying 139 pounds, won the
last race of his career, the seven-furlong Vosburgh Handicap at
Aqueduct, by six lengths. Dr. Fager was subsequently named champion
handicap horse, champion sprinter, turf champion and Horse of the Year.
Nov. 2, 1985: Trainer D. Wayne Lukas won his first Breeders' Cup race,
the Juvenile Fillies, with Twilight Ridge, whose entrymates Family Style
and Arewehavingfunyet finished second and eighth, respectively.
Nov. 2, 1991: Dance Smartly won the Breeders' Cup Distaff and passed
Lady's Secret as North American racing's all-time leading female
Thoroughbred money-earner, with $3,083,456.
Nov. 2, 1991: The Breeders' Cup Pick 7, a wager linking the seven
Breeders' Cup races, was inaugurated. Wagering on the Pick 7 alone,
excluding wagers made on the individual Breeders' Cup races, was
$8,526,985.
Nov. 3, 1923: Tanforan, in suburban San Francisco, opened for a 25-day,
non-betting meet.
Nov. 4, 1927: Bateau was disqualified from her third-place finish in the
Pimlico Futurity after her jockey, Earl Sande, used the filly to ram the
future Kentucky Derby winner, Reigh Count, into the rail. Sande
subsequently was suspended for his action.
Nov. 5, 1988: Miesque became the first horse to win two consecutive
Breeders' Cup Championship races when she won the Breeders' Cup Mile at
Churchill Downs.
Nov. 5, 1988: Julie Krone became the first female jockey to compete in
the Breeders' Cup when she rode Darby Shuffle to a second-place finish
in the Juvenile Fillies race.
Nov. 5, 1988: Ogden Phipps' four-year-old filly Personal Ensign
concluded her racing career with a 13-for-13 lifetime record when she
edged Winning Colors by a nose to win the Breeders' Cup Distaff at
Churchill Downs. She was the first American racehorse to retire
undefeated in major competition since Colin in 1908.
Nov. 6, 1946: Three fillies from Argentina arrived at Newark Airport,
having made a journey of 8,250 miles, the then-longest flight ever for
horses.
Nov. 6, 1973: Secretariat was paraded before 33,000 fans at Aqueduct, as
his final appearance at a racetrack before retirement to stud at
Claiborne Farm.
Nov. 6, 1993: The Breeders' Cup was simulcast to England for wagering
purposes for the first time.
Nov. 9, 1957: Wheatley Stable's Bold Ruler, with Eddie Arcaro aboard,
won the Trenton Handicap in a wire-to-wire victory over Gallant Man and
Round Table in a three-horse race. Bold Ruler was subsequently named
Horse of the Year off this performance.
Nov. 9, 1972: Secretariat worked seven furlongs in 1:25 4/5 at Garden
State Park in preparation for the final race of his two-year-old season,
the Garden State Stakes on Nov. 18.
Nov. 9, 1988: Laffit Pincay Jr. became the second jockey in history to
win 7,000 races when he won the seventh race at Hollywood Park aboard
Phone Bid.
Nov. 10, 1984: The inaugural Breeders' Cup was run at Hollywood Park.
The highlight of the seven Breeders' Cup races, the Classic, pitted Wild
Again, Gate Dancer and Slew o' Gold, who was the odds-on favorite
despite having a well-publicized hoof injury. After a furious drive to
the wire, which involved considerable bumping among the three horses,
Wild Again prevailed, but Gate Dancer was disqualified from his
second-place finish for interference and was placed third, behind Slew
o' Gold.
Nov. 11, 1973: Secretariat was flown to Claiborne Farm to begin his stud
career.
Nov. 11, 1978: At age four, 1977 Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew won
his last race, the Stuyvesant Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack, by 3 1/4
lengths.
Nov. 12, 1904: Four-year-old Machine Gun carried 159 pounds, believed to
be the highest impost in a winning effort on the flat, at Riccarton in
New Zealand. Time for the five-furlong race was :58.
BIRTHDAYS: Hall of Fame jockey Angel Cordero Jr., now a trainer, turns
55.
RACING ON THE AIR
THOROUGHBRED WORLD IN NOVEMBER
Thoroughbred World is produced by PHoenix Communications in association
with Thoroughbred Racing Communications and is available on many
regional sports cable networks. During the month of November on
Thoroughbred World: A visit with Monty Roberts, author of The Man Who
Listens to Horses; a look at how trainer Keith Sirota got connected to a
new owner half a world away; and Caton Bredar hosts "The Equibasics of
Racing" segment.
Air times will be available from TRC on Thursday, Oct. 30, and will
appear in the next issue of Media Update.
UPCOMING NATIONALLY TELEVISED RACING (All times Eastern)
 Oct. 30 Racehorse Digest 3:30-4:00 a.m. ESPN
 Nov. 1 Racehorse Digest 5:30-6:00 a.m. ESPN
 Nov. 5 Racing to the Breeders' Cup 2:30-3:30 p.m. ESPN
  Breeders' Cup Special
 Nov. 5 Racehorse Digest 3:30-4:00 p.m. ESPN
 Nov. 6 Racehorse Digest 3:30-4:00 a.m. ESPN
 Nov. 8 Racehorse Digest 5:30-6:00 a.m. ESPN
 Nov. 8 Breeders' Cup, Hollywood Park 1:30-6:00 p.m. NBC
 Nov. 12 Racehorse Digest 3:30-4:00 p.m. ESPN
 Nov. 13 Racehorse Digest 3:30-4:00 a.m. ESPN
 Nov. 15 Racehorse Digest 5:00-5:30 a.m. ESPN

Week 35 of the 1997 TRC NATIONAL THOROUGHBRED POLL, based on the votes of sports and Thoroughbred racing media. The Top Ten are listed in the following expanded chart each week in TRC Media Update. (Statistics courtesy of The Jockey Club Information Systems' Equine Line(tm).)

 POLL 1997 RECORD
 HORSE Pts,1st Owner Sts-1-2-3 LAST START (Finish, Field size)
 Pedigree Last Week Trainer Earnings (Date, Distance, Track)
 1-GENTLEMEN (ARG) 197,12 Andrea E. Stable & R.D. Hubbard 6-4-0-1
Woodbine Mile (5th, 12)
 5H by Robin des Bois-Elegant Glance 1st Richard Mandella $2,125,300
(9/20, 1 MT, WO)
 2-FORMAL GOLD 166,5 John Murphy Sr. 9-4-2-1 Woodward S. (1st, 5)
 4C by Black Tie Affair (IRE)-Ingoldsby 2nd William Perry $1,198,500
(9/20, 1 1/16 M, Bel)
 3-SILVER CHARM 140,4 Bob & Beverly Lewis 6-3-3-0 Belmont S. (2nd, 7)
 3C by Silver Buck-Bonnie's Poker 4th Bob Baffert $1,598,750 (6/7, 1 1/2
M, Bel)
 4-TOUCH GOLD 134,0 Frank Stronach & Stonerside Farm 6-4-0-0 Buick
Pegasus S. (4th, 4)
 3C by Deputy Minister-Passing Mood 3rd David Hofmans $1,522,313 (9/20,
1 1/8 M, Med)
 5-SKIP AWAY 118,0 Carolyn Hine 10-3-5-2 Jockey Club Gold Cup (1st, 7)
 4C by Skip Trial-Ingot Way 5th Sonny Hine $1,801,000 (10/18, 1 1/4 M,
Bel)
 6-HIDDEN LAKE 93,0 Robert Clay 8-4-1-1 Beldame S. (1st, 8)
 4F by Quiet American-Friendly Circle 6th John Kimmel $697,600 (10/18, 1
1/8 M, Bel)
7-DEPUTY COMMANDER 69,0 Horizon Stbl., Jarvis & Mandyland 9-4-1-1 Super
Derby (1st, 6)
 3C by Deputy Minister-Anka Germania (IRE) 7th Wallace Dollase $969,440
(9/28, 1 1/4 M, LaD)
 8-FAVORITE TRICK 67,0 Lacombe Stables 7-7-0-0 Breeders' Futurity (1st,
5)
 2C by Phone Trick-Evil Elaine 8th Patrick Byrne $711,998 (10/18, 1 1/16
M, Kee)
 9-BEHRENS 61,0 Rudlein Stable & William Clifton Jr. 6-4-1-0 Buick
Pegasus S. (1st, 4)
 3C by Pleasant Colony-Hot Novel 9th H. James Bond $894,000 (9/20, 1 1/8
M, Med)
10-INFLUENT 20,0 Turfnpaddock Farm 7-5-1-0 Man o' War S. (1st, 10)
 6G by Ascot Knight-Katerina Key 10th Howard Tesher $754,876 (9/21, 1
3/8 MT, Bel)
OTHER HORSES RECEIVING VOTES
Siphon (BRZ)-17, Free House-15, Sharp Cat-14, Marlin-11, Countess
Diana-9, Richter Scale-6, Rainbow Dancer (FR)-5, Twice the Vice-4, Grand
Slam-3, Silver Maiden-3, Blushing K.D.-2, Sandpit (BRZ)-1

RACETRACK ABBREVIATION KEY
Bel-Belmont Park; Kee-Keeneland; LaD-Louisiana Downs, Med-The Meadowlands; WO-Woodbine

GREEN RULER


 

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