Director's cut: "The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved": An annotated look back at one of Hunter S. Thompson's greatest hits. [more inside]
posted by AceRock on May 6, 2013 - 11 comments

Luck was a David Milch-created show on HBO last year. It was cancelled after one season. Some of you might have dug it. If so, you might also dig Out of Luck: "The following blog is the writer’s depiction of an imagined racetrack-based story, an ongoing saga, which includes some of the characters depicted in the ill-fated Luck series." It's written by John Perrotta who was a writer/producer/story editor on the show.
posted by dobbs on Feb 19, 2013 - 15 comments

After three horses used in the production of Luck had to be euthanized due to injury, HBO decided to pull the plug on the horse racing drama. Perhaps for the first time since Eight Belles broke down following the running of the Kentucky Derby in 2008, the deaths and subsequent decision to cancel the show have again cast a national spotlight on the darker side of the US horse racing industry, a business “still mired in a culture of drugs and lax regulation and a fatal breakdown rate that remains far worse than in most of the world.”
posted by lovermont on Mar 26, 2012 - 41 comments

Daily Racing Form: from nags to doping! Horse racing is one of the oldest pastimes, with wagering on the nags following closely after. Betting intelligently requires either a good eye or an available record of past performance. Originally a Chicago newspaper, this periodical gives the tout the inside scoop on past performances. The monumental digitization of this paper brings a new light on racing sport. And they're off and running...
posted by mfoight on Oct 24, 2011 - 19 comments

Zenyata may be the greatest mare ever. Even if your not normally into race horses, it's worth seeing this one, there may not be another like her. Laura Hillenbrand, who wrote Seabiscuit, explains why (NPR 6min). [more inside]
posted by stbalbach on Jul 17, 2010 - 44 comments

Zenyatta, a six-year-old mare, won her seventeenth consecutive race (out of seventeen starts) to take the record from Cigar, Citation and Mr. Frisky. [more inside]
posted by annathea on Jun 13, 2010 - 19 comments

Poison Dart Machine Hidden at Hong Kong Race Track No good explanation for why and how someone dug up the turf at a Hong Kong racetrack and installed a machine capable of blowing poison darts at the horses. The Triads? (First link NYT)
posted by RandlePatrickMcMurphy on Mar 27, 2007 - 26 comments

The king of the sport of kings. Official teletimer finish line photo - 8th race, Belmont Park, June 9th 1973. And here's the race itself [Windows Media file].
posted by e-man on Dec 10, 2004 - 8 comments

The Name Game Valley Creek Farms "solicits help from clever people each year to help name their young horses." If you consider yourself a gifted wordsmith with a knack for penning equine monikers that will get the bugs a buzzin' and make the farrier smile, this is your chance to take the reins. But it's not easy. The rules are extensive and your choice may already be taken. But with luck, you may one day hear your literary masterpiece of 18 letters or less roll off the caller's tongue and become part of thoroughbred history.
posted by snez on Feb 27, 2003 - 13 comments

So, I guess, everyone is now ready for the greatest competition on Earth? It sure took long enough to get here and everyone has been intensively jockeying for position. It looks like it's going to be a exciting event. The whole world will be watching.
What, the election? No, of course not, I'm talking about the one and only Melbourne Cup. Needless to say, I'm backing Diatribe (9 to 1). Oh, and here's one more election story.
posted by lagado on Nov 6, 2000 - 10 comments