The traditional call “And they’re going in Saratoga” may come from a new voice, but the excitement that the first race of Racecourse Saratoga The generated response is more vibrant than ever.
The 160th season at Spa kicked off in typical fashion on July 13, with the one-mile and one-eighth race kicking off in front of the grandstand, and loud cheers from the apron packed crowd. echo the words of race broadcaster Frank Mirahmadi as the horses burst out of the gate.
On the ropes, finishing was also a familiar thing, as Linda Rice, the winner of the last four coaching titles at the New York Racing Association meeting, rose to the top of the Saratoga leaderboard, beating out Victory Move Stable’s Bustin’s Bay to a 1 and a half victory over Klaravich Stables’ virtual reality .
“It’s exciting,” Rice said. “There were a lot of people. It was opening day and it was fun to win opening day, especially the first race. I hope it is a harbinger of good things to come. I’m thinking yes We may have run out of ammo at Belmont and the Aqueduct, but hopefully we can keep going.”
In addition to Mirahmadi’s debut in front of the microphone, the race also created the first rewards for NYRA’s new program, offering a 30% increase in purses for New York State hybrids competing in open races.
Raised by Robert and Peter Rosenthal and Martin Greenberg in New York, the 5-year-old daughter of Bustin’s Stone contested with a purse of $149,500 in the open tier one option claim race, as opposed to the $115,000 for three starters in the six-man field bred outside the Empire State.
The Move win pocketed $82,225 in prize money, up $18,975 from the original $115,000, which should have paid out $63,250 to a winner born outside of New York.
30% added also benefit Star Cane Bea a New York hybrid finished third and received $17,940 and an additional $4,140 through a state-bred incentive to run in an open race. Cryptocurrency (Friday) get $4,485, plus $1,035.
“It’s a great program. It’s going to be great for New York breeders. It’s going to get people more invested in breeding New York mares,” Rice said. “I’m so excited about the NYRA and (CEO and president) Dave O’Rourke and others involved for coming up with this. I think it’s amazing.”
Bustin Bay, who won his 10th time in 33 starts (most of which were in state hybrid races), covered 1 1/8 mile at 1:53.90 and pay $5.40 to win 8-5. She was ridden by Belmont Park equestrian champion Jose Ortiz.
Videotapes: Race 1 (AOC) at SAR on 13/7/23
