On the morning of the Travers Stakes two weeks ago, I was in the midst of the most difficult writing I had ever had to complete. With the deadline for my Columbia masters project fast approaching, I was frantically arranging thousands of words in the hopes of making a coherent narrative. Then my phone went off.
In the span of a half hour that Saturday morning, I received five texts about the upcoming Travers Stakes. Specifically, people were asking me why they hadn’t been asked to contribute for the race on Paddy’s Picks. Proud and racked by guilt all at once, I hesitantly put aside my own writing and rounded up as many guests as I could. Their picks and my reviews are below.