SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame — in partnership with the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, Therapeutic Horses of Saratoga, and Old Friends at Cabin Creek — will present Celebrating Sanctuary: Saratoga’s Thoroughbred Aftercare, on Saturday, June 17, from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The Museum will offer free admission throughout the day. Celebrating Sanctuary will bring awareness to therapy horses, thoroughbred retirement, and the organizations that lead these efforts. The day’s family-friendly activities will take place in an open house setting and visitors will get to meet thoroughbreds in person.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame is partnering with six Saratoga County farms for exclusive behind-the-scenes tours. The Museum’s farm tour series begins Saturday, May 27 at the Bond family’s Song Hill Thoroughbreds in Mechanicville. There will be one farm featured per month through October.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — Eight new members have been elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. The class of 2023 is comprised of jockey Corey Nakatani and the racehorses Arrogate (KY), California Chrome (CA), and Songbird (KY) in the contemporary category; jockey Fernando Toro via the Historic Review Committee; and Pillars of the Turf selections John W. Hanes II, Leonard W. Jerome, and Stella F. Thayer. Arrogate, California Chrome, and Songbird were all elected in their first year of eligibility. The 2023 Hall of Fame class will be enshrined on Friday, Aug. 4, at the Fasig-Tipton sales pavilion in Saratoga Springs at 10:30 a.m. The ceremony will be broadcast live on the Museum website at www.racingmuseum.org. The event is open to the public and free to attend.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Secretariat’s historic 1973 Triple Crown sweep, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will present traveling and onsite exhibitions honoring the accomplishments and enduring legacy of the famed Meadow Stable colt from May through October. The exhibitions are underwritten by Churchill Downs, Inc., the Maryland Jockey Club, the New York Racing Association, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, the Virginia Equine Alliance, Dean Dorton Equine, and Godolphin.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will present its annual Kentucky Derby preview program on Saturday, April 29 at 12 p.m. in the Museum’s Hall of Fame Gallery. Racing experts Tom Amello and Michael Veitch will be on hand to offer analysis and predictions for the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby and answer questions from the audience about the upcoming Triple Crown series. The program is open to the public and included with paid Museum admission. Following the Derby discussion, there will be a special presentation of the 33-minute documentary film Mill Reef: A Legacy of Heart.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. —Win, Place, Show: The Annual Student Art Exhibition of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will open to the public Saturday, March 4. The exhibit, which features more than 30 works of art from students throughout the Capital Region in grades 3-7, will run through April 2 in the Museum’s von Stade Gallery.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — Nine racehorses, six trainers, and one jockey account for the 16 finalists that will comprise the National Museum of Racing’s 2023 Hall of Fame ballot, as chosen by the Museum’s Hall of Fame Nominating Committee. The finalists are racehorses Arrogate, Blind Luck, California Chrome, Game On Dude, Havre de Grace, Kona Gold, Lady Eli, Rags to Riches, and Songbird; trainers Christophe Clement, Kiaran McLaughlin, Graham Motion, Doug O’Neill, John Sadler, and John Shirreffs; and jockey Corey Nakatani.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. — The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame is accepting applications for the 2023 Rodion Cantacuzene Scholarship, an annual award recognizing young leaders and volunteers throughout Saratoga County. The scholarship, awarded in a one-time amount of $1,000, will be presented in May to a high school senior from Saratoga County who has demonstrated a record of academic excellence and exemplary service to the community along with a strong interest in pursuing future studies in history and/or the arts.
In partnership with the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame and the Oak Spring Garden Foundation, Tampa Bay Downs will present a screening of the documentary film Mill Reef: A Legacy of Heart on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 6:30 p.m. at the racetrack in Tampa, Fla.
SARATOGA SPINGS, N.Y. — The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will open a new exhibition, At the Races with Saul Steinberg, in the Link Gallery on Jan. 18. Made possible by the generous donation of the artwork to the Museum’s permanent collection by the Saul Steinberg Foundation, the drawings featured in this exhibition span the period of 1955 to 1959. Three were published in his book The Labyrinth in 1960. One was later published in the 1963 Sports Illustrated article “Steinberg at the Races” that featured scenes at racetracks from Paris to Los Angeles.