The New York Racing Association has canceled Thursday's eight-race card at Aqueduct due to a winter storm scheduled to impact the New York area throughout the day.
The National Weather Service has placed New York City under a winter storm watch beginning Thursday morning and extending through Friday afternoon. The NWS forecast, which aligns with NYRA's independent weather services, is calling for up to eight inches of snow causing hazardous conditions throughout the region.
Live racing at Aqueduct will resume Friday, Feb. 19 with an eight-race card. First post is 1:20 p.m.
Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner and 2020 Champion 2-year-old Essential Quality remains on target for Oaklawn's delayed running of the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes, reigning champion trainer Brad Cox told the Paulick Report.
Hot Springs, Ak. has been beset by extreme winter weather since it last held racing on Feb. 11. The track has seen several inches of snow and sub-zero temperatures over the past week, and is forecast to receive an additional 10-plus inches of snow in the coming days. Races were cancelled this weekend, and all graded stakes were rescheduled.
The $750,000 Southwest, which offers 10 points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby to the winner, was originally scheduled to be run on Feb. 15, and is now expected to be rescheduled to the week of Feb. 25-28. That puts the Southwest just two weeks before Oaklawn's next prep race, the G2 Rebel on March 14.
Essential Quality remains stabled at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans, La., where temperatures have dipped below freezing overnight but are not nearly as cold as in Arkansas. The Godolphin-owned 3-year-old son of Tapit put in a workout at Fair Grounds on Feb. 14, covering five furlongs in 1:02.40.
Also remaining on target for her 2021 debut at Oaklawn is dual champion Monomoy Girl. The now 6-year-old daughter of Tapizar was scheduled to run in the G3 Bayakoa Stakes on Feb. 15, and will still make her next start in that race when it's rescheduled to the week of Feb. 25-28. Monomoy Girl is also stabled at the Fair Grounds, and worked five furlongs there in 1:01.40 on Feb. 14.
“It hasn't really affected the training for both Essential Quality and Monomoy Girl,” Cox told bloodhorse.com. “They have been working steadily and are ready to run. We worked them this weekend when they were supposed to race and we'll breeze them again this weekend to prep for the races next weekend. They are ready to run. We'll ship them up when the weather clears.”
Visibility became an issue during a snowstorm Saturday evening at Turfway Park in Florence, Ky. Track announcer Jimmy McNerney was unable to see the horses rounding the far turn in the fourth race due to the snow, and got a little bit creative with his race call.
“They continue to race around the turn, and your guess as good as mine with about a quarter mile to go,” McNerney said on the live feed. “Up top it's somebody who just leads somebody there in second, and a couple lengths back somebody is coming after a quarter in 1:13 and four. They run to the top of the stretch, it's absolutely wide open!”
Watch the race from far turn through the stretch run here:
McNerney laughed about the call when reached by phone on Monday, saying he'd received a lot of positive feedback from racing participants and fans.
“You just try to pick them out, relay what you see, and when you can't see you just don't want dead air,” said McNerney. “I've always had some things in my head, especially if it was football or baseball season or something, but obviously there's nothing going on right now because of COVID, so that's just what came out!”
McNerney is also a jockey's agent, representing Turfway-based riders DeShawn Parker and Rafael Hernandez.
Saturday's race reminded McNerney of a similar issue with visibility at Turfway under retired track announcer Mike Battaglia. On Jan. 22, 2012, a dense fog covered the backstretch of the track, and Battaglia used the time to make up an advertisement for the track's gift shop.
Many horse owners have walked into snow-covered fields and been startled to find what looks like blood in areas where horses urinate. When the health of the turned out horses is assessed, however, everyone seems fine.
Though a call to the vet may be tempting, red-colored urine in the snow isn't unusual—it's a chemical reaction that occurs when urine hits cold snow: Proteins in the urine oxidize in low temperatures. This can cause a range of colors, from light pink to red, brown and orange. The same reaction takes place when a urine sample is left unrefrigerated.
If a horse's health is still in question, it's worthwhile to collect a urine sample to see if it's bloody as it is excreted before it hits the snow. This can be done by taping a large can to a stick and waiting patiently until a horse urinates, and catching some of his stream. If it's not red, the horse is most likely just fine.
