Birmingham (AL) Turf Club

[pmayjr]

Originally Posted by rgustafson

Hi CJ, I was at Canterbury that day for the St. Paul Derby, part of a huge crowd to witness one of the greatest races ever run at the track, I believe it was 1986. Wish I could tell you that I bet on Cheapskate( dont recall, did he pay over $70 for the win) but like most in the crowd, my money was on Broad Brush. The other race at Canterbury that I put on equal footing for excitement was the 1988 Chaucer Cup when Don's Irish Melody who shipped in from California hooked up with the midwest legend Who Doctor Who and ran lapped onto to each other from start to finish to set the track record for 6 1/2 furlongd in 1:14 flat with Don's Irish Melody winning the photo by a nose.
Alas those days for Canterbury are long gone.

I'm only 30.... and didn't get taken to the track in my teens by my parent's until CBY re-opened in the mid-90s. I heard when it was open in the 80s there was some great racing there. But Broad Brush actually ran at Canterbury at one point!? Crazy.

Originally Posted by rgustafson

I was there on the first day the track opened for business and have been present on every opening day since then. Still a regular weekend warrior, but I do miss the caliber of racing that existed the first few years the place was open.

Amen to that... I barely bet live racing anymore when I'm there anymore... just has really gone sour in recent years.