Author Archives: John Wilkinson

While clustered chaos was the order of opening day at the 2018 World Equestrian Games, the Indoor Arena offered sweet respite to patrons in search of conditioned air, a dry...

Like any top level equestrian event, the Palm Beach Masters is a bustling ecosystem of equine professionals and practitioners moving in methodical bursts from one job to the next. The...

Two days, 13 races, hundreds of the world's top thoroughbreds, jockeys and trainers in one place with $28 million up for grabs. It's a battle of bloodlines. American stars versus...

Humans have been breeding and racing thoroughbreds all over the world for centuries, and each year, the best of the best converge at the Breeders' Cup for a weekend of...

In 1982, 40% of all horses registered with the USEF were Thoroughbred. By 2010, that figure had diminished to just 10%. This drastic decline underscored a widening rift between the...

They have come seeking help in an unfamiliar place. Six young men and women who, at least on the surface, reflect a picture of courage and strength. But like so...

Travers Day at Saratoga has always served as one of the sport’s grandest stages; a Vegas-esque buffet complete with delectable appetizers culminating in the main course: The Travers Stakes. Back...

If it takes a village to raise a child, then getting a horse ready for the races certainly requires an equal measure of collaborative nurturing. No one has to teach...

How do you measure a horse's will to win? Past performances are the logical starting point, but statistics only tell part of the story. Horses can amass a heap of...

Here's a handy little trivia nugget for you... What is the longest continuously run horse race in North America? Kentucky Derby? Belmont Stakes? Preakness? Travers? Nope. If you read the...

On the evening of September 17, 1962, dozens of horsemen gathered just outside Toronto for the annual thoroughbred yearling sale at Windfields Farm. The farm's owner, Canadian business tycoon E.P....

Ascot Racecourse has been staging horse races since its establishment in 1711 by Queen Anne. Her Majesty was enjoying a ride near Windsor Castle, so the story goes, when she...

The Belmont Stakes might own the marquee, but the main attractions Saturday in New York are found on one of tastiest undercards outside of the Breeders' Cup. A total of...

The ultimate target for any brand is to become synonymous with a certain experience. For a runny nose there's Kleenex. Q-Tips keep your ears clean, Chap Stick helps maintain smooth,...

The Preakness would like you to know that it’s not just the Triple Crown’s middle child. While few things in sports can compete with the pageantry and magnitude of the Kentucky...

What a difference a year can make. Back in April of 2015, Olympian Will Coleman finished 6th overall at the Rolex Kentucky CCI4* on his then 12-year-old Irish Sport Horse...

The First Saturday in May could not have come soon enough for Todd Pletcher. The venerable trainer who has won (*cue the Eagles*) everything, all the time, brought his usual...

As horse people, we invariably get asked the same question this time of year: "Who's your Derby horse?" Whether or not you actually follow thoroughbred racing, or once taught an...

Women in dresses and flats...men in suits and loafers...browbands bedazzled and hooves polished...dust flying and the temperature rising, eyeballs prying... Inspection Day #1, Rolex Kentucky. The unofficial “FIRST-first” day of...

The sport of timber racing was profiled in last night's episode of 60 Minutes, bringing one of America's oldest, and perhaps unsung horse sports into the mainstream. Timber racing is...