[caption id="attachment_11900" align="aligncenter" width="1000"] Judge George Schilling (right) with Scotty Kennedy[/caption] by Bob Gates George Schilling was a senior racing official in Mexico, the United States and Canada and among the most respected figures in the sport. Schilling had a keen mind, was scrupulously honest and stern but fair. He was born on January 17,…
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Stars of the Western Canada Handicap
[caption id="attachment_10418" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] Possibly the best of the best, Light Dust won the Western Canada Handicap in 1954 and 1956. Shown here setting a new track record on February 5, 1957 at Sunshine Park.[/caption] by Bob Gates Polo Park racetrack played host to some of the most historic races in Western Canada including the…
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They knew how to win
[caption id="attachment_9223" align="alignright" width="1024"] Navy Days and Major Action hold the record for most wins in a live Assiniboia Downs racing season with 11, but Navy Days accomplished the feat at a shorter meet.[/caption] by Bob Gates Horses that know how to win are the most revered in the sport of horse racing. Every owner,…
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The Curious Case of Just Cost, Grand Little Gelding or Racing’s Bad Boy?
by Bob Gates To coin a phrase from Charles Dickens' Great Expectations, "Let's put the case." The case, that is, of Just Cost, a thoroughbred runner from the dirty thirties. Today you are not only readers; you are also the jurists in the case of The People vs Just Cost. Men and women of…
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When Hollywood came to Winnipeg to race, those were the days!
[caption id="attachment_5736" align="alignnone" width="780"] Well Caught wins for Don Carlos. June 29, 1951. Polo Park.[/caption] by Bob Gates [caption id="attachment_5734" align="alignright" width="218"] Anita King[/caption] Who knew? Once upon a long time ago Whittier Park and Polo Park race tracks were playgrounds for the rich and famous. Hollywood types from the early to mid-1900s made regular…
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Psst, Hey Mister, Wanna Buy a Horse?
by Bob [caption id="attachment_14940" align="alignright" width="270"] Omar's Gift wins 1942 Winnipeg Futurity at Polo Park.[/caption] The story of Omar’s Gift is the stuff that legends are made of! There was a time when most everyone knew the story of Omar’s Gift, but not so much any more, and as your historian, that’s where I…
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Polo Park, “America’s finest racing plant”
[caption id="attachment_424" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Victory Gift in the Polo Park Winner's Circle"][/caption] by Bob Polo Park, the “father” in our family tree analogy, was a 6 furlong oval that opened on June 12, 1925. R. James Speers was given credit for building Polo Park, but he was not the driving force behind the idea to…
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