Author Archives: Todd Engel
Derby Fantasy Contest for a Cause
My friend, Teresa Genaro, a wonderful equine writer and educator, has a blog called Brooklyn Backstretch where she writes about thoroughbred racing. It’s one of my favorite horse racing reads and you can follow her posts on her Facebook page too. Every year Teresa holds a charity fantasy league for the Kentucky Derby. This league is … Continue reading
New Alliance for New York: Here is one hope that it works
A group of New York stakeholders in horse racing announced on February 6th that an alliance of industry groups is being formed to be able to meet with the leaders in Albany to protect the industry from the advances of casino gaming. Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced that he wants to put a full casino on the … Continue reading
Racing Commissioners Are Not Looking for the Welfare of Horses
My friend, Ray Paulick has brought the story of Star Plus to light. The first thing I want to say is thank you to Earle Mack for trying to do the right thing by the horses. By making sure there is a covenant in the bill of sale, Earle did what was responsible and expected to … Continue reading
Will the Breeder’s Cup come back to New York?
On Monday, NBC TV and the Breeder’s Cup announced that starting in 2012 the Breeder’s Cup will return to NBC for the first time in six years. This ends the relationship between the Breeder’s Cup and ESPN. One of the more intriguing aspects of this new relationship is the fact that NBC will be airing the … Continue reading
Would you dress for the races?
Royal Ascot, Great Brittan’s premier horse racing meet, has set a heightened dress code for this year’s meeting beginning in June. Fascinators, the small hats that became the fashion rage after Prince William and Princess Katherine (ok, Kate) were married last summer are no longer allowed in the Royal Enclosure. Additionally women can only wear … Continue reading
Breeder’s Cup
It is that time of year when the Sport of Kings comes together over the next two days to see who is the best of the best. It is an exciting time as a racing fan and owner. I enjoy watching those friends of mine with horses in the event It will be fun to … Continue reading
Dutrow License Revoked
NY TRAINER HAD HIS LICENSE SUSPENDED FOR 10 YEARS Rick Dutrow, 52, trainer of 2009 Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Big Brown had his training license revoked for ten years by the New York State Racing and Wagering Board. In determining that Dutrow was a detriment to racing, the Board went far beyond the initial … Continue reading
Onondaga County Votes Down OTB
On June 7, the Onondaga County Legislature rejected Off Track Betting for the second time in a year. Is Off Track Betting dead for Onondaga County? No, not necessarily. The door is open for the City of Syracuse to seek special legislation to be the beneficiary of the revenue from an off track betting parlor … Continue reading
TRF: Good work being done
On Wednesday, Joe Drape wrote an article in the New York Times highlighting the alleged difficulties of the Thoroughbred Retirement Fund. In the article, Drape claims that TRF has not taken care of the horses that are under its care and has run at a financial deficit for the last two years. I have no … Continue reading
Rick Dutrow: Should he be shown the door?
On February 16, the New York State Racing and Wagering Board suspended trainer Rick Dutrow for 90 days for various violations. These include a 30 day suspension for a positive for painkillers and 60 days for finding hypodermic needles in his barn at Aqueduct. Dutrow has consistently trained with a patent disregard for the rules … Continue reading


