4th of July Notes

- Bluegrass Cat was back on the track with a leisurely half mile in 51.93. Pletcher told the Daily News that the Haskell is “most likely” for him, while Sunriver will head for the Jim Dandy.

Pletcher has Keyed Entry going in the Dwyer today. It appears as if he’s gotten the colt to relax in the mornings, as he’s turned in some moderate breezes, so it will be interesting to see how he races in a field loaded with speed. Look for Rafael Bejarano to try and rate 15-1 Regent Spirit behind the leaders, and be along in time for the big upset for Zito.

- There have been a lot of fatal breakdowns at the current Arlington meeting; 17 in total, after two this past weekend. The Chicago Tribune reports that the situation is causing some owners Monday to consider pulling their horses from the venerable track. The track was shut down last week for an inspection of the turn for home, where all of the injuries have happened.

Workers scraped away the top layer of dirt to examine the hard-packed pad of sand, clay and silt that lay beneath. An outside consultant looked for holes or other irregularities in the pad, but found none, said track supervisor Javier Barajas.

"The layer was perfect," he said. [Chicago Tribune]

Some state officials, according to the paper, have suggested that a shortage of horses has created pressure for trainers to run, but a spokesman for the horsemen asserted that it’s always the trainer’s decision. "It's not like Arlington Park calls the trainer and says, `You need to run this horse or we'll kick you out.' It doesn't happen."

Arlington will add pine bark shavings to the track on Wednesday to try and stem the rash of incidents.

"The pine bark shavings will help the track retain moisture as the weather heats up this summer and will also add a little extra bounce to the racing surface......Other tracks such as Louisiana Downs and the King Abdul Aziz racetrack in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, have had success with this." [Thoroughbred Times]

- Empire Racing Associates’ CEO Jeff Perlee thinks that the large number of declared bidders for the New York franchise will help distinguish the group as a New York-based group with the interests of New York horsemen as a top priority from the far-flung group of competitors. Included is an Australian bookmaker, the Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts group, Canada’s Magna, and one group, WNY Gaming Associates which, despite the fact that they’re based in New York, nobody knows a thing about.

Excelsior Racing Associates is headed up by Steve Swindal, a son-in-law of George Steinbrenner and a partner in the Yankees. The NY Daily News reports that the group is making an all-out push for the franchise.

"My family cares a great deal about racing and a great deal about New York....and we are committed to restoring New York racing to greatness."

- Been meaning to mention Chance Rollins, the jockey who was not breathing, and in full cardiac arrest when reached by medics after a spill at Bay Meadows on June 11. He had bleeding at the base of his brain, and a doctor said a day after the accident, “He could have just minimal memory loss, or he could be in a vegetative state.”

Rollins was discharged from the hospital on June 28, and his wife told the SF Chronicle "He still has some outpatient therapy to work on his short-term memory.....The doctors are expecting a 100 percent full recovery." The racetrack physician called it “an extraordinarily remarkable recovery.”

So on that bit of good news, I take my leave for what will be a somewhat shortened day at Belmont. I’ll miss the Dwyer to return home for a Head Chef BBQ feast. Here’s hoping for a safe and happy holiday day for eveyone.