Washington State racing

At 78 years of age, Dana Halvorson is looking to move out of Washington State and live permanently at his farm in Ocala, Florida. He leaves behind a decades-long, storied career in the bloodstock world in Washington. He also leaves behind a state breeding industry in free-fall. Between 2005 and 2025, the number of mares bred dropped 94%, from 1214 to 70. Only two major farms remain in the whole state. "The West Coast has just taken a beating," said Halvorson, president of the Washington Thoroughbred Breeders & Owners Association...

Horse racing is a sport genetically programmed in high emotion. It's hardly surprising then that the vet scratch-the ultimate sucker-punch after weeks and months of best laid plans-should prove such a test of nerves. The problem is, diagnosing subtle lameness can be such a subjective venture. And where there's uncertainty, doubt can quickly escalate to condemnation. A recent TDN compendium of data collected from around the country, however, shows that scratched horses run a much higher than average risk of harboring an injury. Numbers from California, Florida, New York, Kentucky...

Emerald Downs 52-day meet will feature 23 stakes worth $1,240,000 in purses for its 2023 live racing season that begins Saturday, May 6 and ends Sunday, Sept. 17. The 88th running of the $150,000 Longacres Mile will anchor the Aug. 13 stakes quadruple-header, which includes three $50,000 races: Emerald Distaff, Muckleshoot Derby and Washington Oaks. The track's premier event for 3-year-olds and up, the Longacres Mile was won last year by KD Thoroughbreds Slew's Tiz Whiz (Slew's Tiznow) over Lusk Racing's Papa's Golden Boy (Harbor the Gold). Click here, for...