Race of the Day: 2024 Kris Kringle Stakes

My hopes for the Queens County Stakes at Aqueduct over the weekend were completely dashed when five horses scratched. The field quickly morphed from interesting to embarrassingly short-staffed. Then, I spied this ridiculously named stakes race on the Tuesday card at Parx and a few questions were answered.

The Kris Kringle Stakes seems to be the event some trainers considered a backup to the Queens County. Two horses I really liked over the weekend, Surface to Air and Repo Rocks, were entered in both fields and seemed to scratch at Aqueduct when that field came up tough on a sloppy track. It’s a practical move by the trainers, but it was a little disappointing as a fan. I shouldn’t have to chase these cool horses all over the country, and yet, that seems to be exactly what I’m doing. read more

Pick Six Challenge: Guests Take On The Pennsylvania Derby

I think I like this idea. I hope you do too. But before I tell you about it, we need to talk about horse racing in Pennsylvania.

New York racing fans have a habit of disrespecting Parx Racetrack in Bensalem, a small town just outside Philadelphia. As one such fan, I believe that we often have good reason. In comparison to even the slowest day at Aqueduct Racetrack in the dead of January, racing at Parx is simply a step below in most cases. Fields rarely offer value, the facility itself is in need of a freshening and the track is often heavily biased and unhelpful for handicapping. read more