Saturday

2:41 p.m.: Giant Surprise was lame in his right front and was vanned back to the barn. Walked onto and off of the van under his own power. Diagnostics are currently being worked on back at the barn. NYRA communications staff says that since Pletcher's private vets are the ones doing the diagnostics, NYRA won't have any further statements; any information will have to come from Pletcher or Repole.

2:11 p.m.: A very, very fit Wine Police made a terrific impression while schooling in the paddock for the second time this week. He goes in Monday's Amsterdam.

1:40 p.m.: Trainer Todd Pletcher and owner Mike Repole just scored in the second race with the regally-bred juvenile Giant Surprise. Start of a good day, perhaps? They'll send out Stay Thirsty in the Jim Dandy later.

Update: Well, maybe not a great day. Giant Surprise pulled up on the clubhouse turn and was vanned off the course without coming back to the winner's circle. He did walk onto the ambulance under his own power. Will provide more as it becomes available.

12:50 p.m.: After yesterday's deluge, the sun is shining and the crowd is growing at Saratoga as we welcome you back for today's marquee card - featuring the Grade 2 Jim Dandy, the local Travers prep, and the Grade 1 Diana. The track is rated fast and the turf is good.
We took an inside look at the Jim Dandy and Mike Veitch broke down the race's history on today's Pink Sheet Insider.
Another reminder that today's two graded stakes will be nationally televised on Versus.

Friday

6:08 p.m.: Turbo Compressor led wire-to-wire to post the win in the Curlin - giving trainer Todd Pletcher two starters for the Travers, assuming Stay Thirsty emerges from tomorrow's Travers in good order.

They got the feature off before the worst of the rain came down. Pouring so hard now and so dark that, sitting in the press box, we can hardly see across the track to the backstretch.

4:59 p.m: Getting darker at Saratoga, prompting accelerated post times in hopes of beating the worst of the weather. Next race now set to go off at 5:09, as opposed to 5:15.

3:45 p.m.: Convocation, trained by Jimmy Jerkens, dueled early with Ice Box (!!!) before pulling away late to score an easy win in the third race, an allowance featuring several stakes-seasoned competitors. The Woodward could be next.

Ice Box, the 2010 Derby runner-up, was returning from a layoff of over nine months and looking for his first win since last year's Florida Derby. The colt, who was on the muscle in the paddock, showed uncharacteristic speed early, prompting loud exclamations from several onlookers at the rail. Even track announcer Tom Durkin noted that the colt has probably never seen the lead in his life, as the late closer "usually runs the first quarter in about :27." The colt faded late to finish third. Hall of Fame trainer Nick Zito was pleased the colt showed some speed; the effort seems to set Ice Box up for success later this year.

3:30 p.m.: Bill Mott indeed made it a happy birthday, sending out Reach A Decision to win the second race at a big price.

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2:41 p.m.: Another note on the second race. Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott turns 58 today. He's won a race on his birthday at the Spa 12 times in the last 19 years. Twice, the day day fell on this birthday. The first of Mott's three starters, Reach A Decision, goes out in the second.

2:35 p.m.: Some very interesting pedigrees to be found today, beginning in today's second race.

Imaging is out of the Danzig mare Gaze, making him a half brother to graded winner Air Support. Out of the Damascus mare Laughing Look, Gaze is a half sister to Travers winner Coronado's Quest and stakes winners Warning Glance and Military Look. The next dam, Laughter, produced Grade 1 winner and top sire Private Terms, along with a few other stakes winners. Laughter's dam, the Native Dancer mare Shenanigans, is best known for producing the great Ruffian, considered by many to be the best filly of all time. Shenanigans also produced Icecapade, sire of inaugural Breeders' Cup Classic winner Wild Again.

2:08 p.m.: Up here getting set for our first race of the day, and we're expecting rain to begin falling in earnest around 3 p.m. Some sprinkles currently.

A little bit of news on the breeding end of the game. Word is circulating that WinStar Farm has bought an interest in Pauls Mill Farm stallions Summer Bird, Bellamy Road, Artie Schiller and US Ranger and will be relocating them to WinStar. Not much of a stretch to imagine this deal - Pauls Mill operator Ben Walden is the brother of WinStar president and racing manager Elliott Walden. Summer Bird, of course, won the Belmont, Travers and Gold Cup to lock up an Eclipse in 2009. Bellamy Road is the sire of two Saratoga graded winners - Position Limit (2010 Adirondack) and Georgie's Angel (2011 Schuylerville). Really a boost for WinStar to lock up these nice young sires.

11:30 a.m.: Welcome to a super-sized edition of the Hoofbeats live blog, bringing you all the updates from July 29-31: the big weekend of Travers preps.
This evening, Saratoga cards the Curlin Stakes, a nine-furlong affair that features some interesting 3-year-olds who haven't quite cracked the big time yet. Tomorrow afternoon is the local prep, the Grade 2 Jim Dandy, featuring the Belmont second and third-place finishers, Stay Thirsty and Brilliant Speed. And Sunday, we'll update you on the Grade 1 Haskell down at Monmouth, where Preakness winner Shackleford clashes with Belmont winner Ruler on Ice.
With the race for the 3-year-old championship still wide open, this weekend will go a long way toward sorting out the Travers picture, as well as helping to determine the front-runners for the title.
In between, we've got some other great racing happening at Saratoga, with three other graded stakes from the Spa on tap: The Grade 1 Diana, Grade 1 Ruffian and Grade 2 Fourstardave.
Today, Friday, is the first of Saratoga's two twilight racing cards. First post is 2:30 p.m., and the weather has turned threatening. The forecast calls for thunderstorms this afternoon and into tomorrow, turning a wide-open weekend of racing even more in flux.
Check in in a few hours from the press box! In the meantime, don't forget to check out today's Pink Sheet Insider for more on the Curlin.

5:14 p.m.: Versus has started their broadcast, and we are about half an hour from an outstanding edition of the CCA Oaks! I am heading down to the paddock for the race. I will be unable to update this blog during that time - but check out our Twitter feed (@thepinksheet), as I'll be posting live photos there.

4:31 p.m.: Here's NBC gearing up for their broadcast (on Versus) of the CCA Oaks:

4:20 p.m.: So much for pedigree handicapping! In the fifth race, Dynafortwo won. Gold Trader was fifth. Unbridled Ocean dropped his rider during the warmup, jumped the rail on the backstretch and ran off into the stabling area. He was safely apprehended and returned to his barn. In the sixth, Tahoe Lake made a dazzling late move up the rail, just missing pacesetter Capital Market by a whisker - about as close as you can get to a dead heat. Liston was sixth, Quiet Account ninth and Arnell 10th. In the seventh race, R King of the Road set a wicked early pace but still opened up down the lane to win easily. Birdway was third, with Fact and Next Page both unplaced.

Pardon the fact that some of the photos are facing in an incorrect direction - Blogger is acting up on me. If anyone has any tech tips, leave a comment!

(Gold Trader, whose dam, Educated Risk, is a half sibling to Hall of Famer Inside Information)

(Arnell, a half sibling to Eclipse champion Stevie Wonderboy)

(Fact, by AP Indy out of Grade 1 winner Sharp Cat)

(R King of the Road wins the seventh)

3:39 p.m.: Corey Nakatani is off his mounts for the rest of the day citing dizziness; possibly due to the heat.

2:24 p.m.: Some very interesting pedigrees coming up in the next few races...

Fifth race: The Phipps Stables' Gold Trader is out of multiple Grade 1 winner and stakes producer Educated Risk. That mare is a half-sister to Hall of Famer and Eclipse champion Inside Information, as well as stakes-placed stakes-producer Hidden Reserve. Unbridled Ocean is out of the multiple stakes winner Ocean Drive, a half-sister to the classy and consistent Sun King.

Sixth race: Liston, by Storm Cat, is out of Rings a Chime, a Grade 1 winner who produced Grade 1 winner Country Star. Arnell, out of Heat Lightning, is a half sibling to Eclipse champion Stevie Wonderboy. Clear Attempt, by AP Indy, is out of Grade 1 winner Silent Sighs.

Seventh race: Darley Stables' Fact is by AP Indy, out of multiple Grade 1 winner Sharp Cat. Entrymate Next Page is out of Jinni, a stakes-placed daughter of Breeders' Cup Distaff winner Ajina. Birdway, who goes out for Marylou Whitney and Nick Zito, is out of Bird Harbor, a granddaughter of Dear Birdie; that mare produced Belmont and Travers winner Birdstone and Kentucky Oaks and Alabama winner Bird Town.

2:19 p.m.: Bob Baffert and Martin Garcia, hoping to win the CCA Oaks with Plum Pretty later on, got their day off to a good start, winning the third race with Saddleranch.

1:49 p.m.: Sad news. Was just announced in the press box that Rockettes Escapade suffered a condylar fracture of her right hind ankle and was euthanized. Thoughts go out to her connections....

1:41 p.m.: Laurie's Rocket wore down Whinston - who set a blistering early pace - to win the day's second race, a classy maiden special weight event.

Also, a belated note: Mechanicville native Chad Brown, who struggled yesterday, sent out his first winner of the meet, Deanaallen'skitten, in the day's first race.

(Laurie's Rocket coasts by for the win)

1:05 p.m.: Welcome to the first Saturday of the 2011 Saratoga meet! Of course, that means the meet's first Grade 1, the Coaching Club American Oaks. A small but incredibly strong field has lined up for the historic event: Kentucky Oaks winner Plum Pretty; Grade 1 winners It's Tricky and Buster's Ready; and graded winners Joyful Victory and Royal Delta. We previewed the Coaching Club on today's Pink Sheet Insider, and Mike Veitch takes a closer look at It's Tricky in the Pink Sheet today. You can also "fan" us on Facebook to weigh in on our poll with your pick.

NBC Sports is on hand to broadcast on Versus; the banners are hanging near the finish line and their set is stationed on the clubhouse turn. Will be great to see the Spa back in the spotlight. Beautiful sunny day; some rain fell overnight, so cooler than yesterday; and definitely not as much humidity.

Unfortunately, we started the day on a sour note. In the first race, Rockettes Escapade, trained by Bill Mott, went wide on both turns, and appeared to take a funny step on the second turn. Have not seen a clear reply myself yet, so can't speculate any more than that. She was stopped nearly immediately by Johnny Velazquez and walked onto the ambulance under her own power. Will keep you updated as I hear more. Thinking of Rockettes Escapade, and here's hoping everyone else has a safe trip today.

7:04 p.m.: Sitting in the press box as the sun starts to go down, wrapping up a great first day at the Spa. A few quick notes:

--The heat was not as bad as some were anticipating. There were a few horses who clearly weren't happy; we had a few instances of runners wanting no part of exerting themselves and being outdistanced by the field. But plenty of cooling stations (hoses, ice, etc) were set up; vets were on hand monitoring the activity; most trainers chose to saddle in the paddock stalls in the shade rather than under the trees; and post parades were shortened. Happily, there were no catastrophic incidents involving the weather.

--It was fun to watch the NBC crews setting up their equipment and shooting b-roll. Tomorrow's Coaching Club American Oaks broadcast on Versus marks the first time since the 2009 Travers that a Saratoga race will be televised nationally; the network is producing eight (!!) shows from the track this year. Spotted: commentator Tom Hammond and Hall of Fame rider Gary Stevens doing a set/sound check on the clubhouse turn.

--Julien Leparoux pulled off a double on Opening Day.

--Mechanicville native Chad Brown's day was a comedy of errors. Not only was he shut out with several live horses, he also had two runners claimed from him.

Stakes recap: New York Yankee fans rejoice! Georgie's Angel - named for the late team owner - gave last year's leaders, Todd Pletcher and Johnny Velazquez, their first winner of the year in the Grade 3 Schuylerville.

(Georgie's Angel prior to her win)

In the listed James Marvin - which drew a graded-quality field - the gritty Jackson Bend scored his first win in nearly two years.

(Jackson Bend wins the James Marvin)

2:43 p.m.: And it's a good-looking return for Valiant Passion - in her first start for trainer Graham Motion - drawing away late for the score under a hand ride.

2:37 p.m.: Some familiar faces from Saratoga running here today. Stand Proud was the horse Javier Castellano rode to notch his fifth consecutive winner on the July 25, 2010 card. They teamed up again but finished off the board in the third race. Valiant Passion, who broke her maiden here in impressive fashion a year ago, is making her first start of the year in the fourth race - with one minute to post.

2:16 p.m.: We are three races in and so far, knock on wood, no real problems for the horses or riders in the heat.

A quick note - some new stuff has been done to the toteboards in the infield. Larger numbers, brighter colors, no missing bulbs. Much easier to read.

12:27 p.m.: Welcome to the 2011 season at Saratoga Race Course!! We are about a half an hour away from the first race of the season, and it's great to be back here. Not a huge crowd yet, but a lively one. Music in the backyard, sunshine and some great racing on tap - what more could you as for?

The big story in the last 48 hours leading up to Opening Day has, of course, been the weather - and NYRA's decision not to cancel despite the heat. Weather.com currently has Saratoga listed as 96 degrees. Not as humid as yesterday, and there is a nice breeze. From my spot in the press box, I can see where some extra buckets of ice and hoses have been set up near the unsaddling area on the track. We'll be talking to the jockeys and trainers as the day goes on to get reactions on how they're coping.

The features took a hit with scratches. The Grade 3 Schuylerville lost three and is down to six horses, while the James Marvin lost three runners, including Grade 1 winner Jersey Town. So the $75,000 overnight stake has only two Grade 1 winners instead of three. How special is racing at Saratoga?

Stay tuned for updates....and, as Tom Durkin says, enjoy your afternoon at the Spaaaa.

Uncle Mo, last year's Eclipse champion 2-year-old colt, arrived back at Saratoga today and is bedded down in his old stall from last summer, right next to trainer Todd Pletcher's office.

Uncle Mo hasn't raced since finishing third in the Wood Memorial on April 9; he was subsequently forced to miss the Kentucky Derby due to a liver disorder. He recently resumed training at WinStar Farm in Kentucky, and is now back at Saratoga - where he dazzled the Travers day crowd while breaking his maiden last summer - to work toward a comeback, possibly in the King's Bishop Aug. 27.

Arriving along with Uncle Mo were two seasoned stakes competitors. R Heat Lightning, winner of the Spinaway last summer at Saratoga, was forced to miss this spring's Kentucky Oaks with a knee chip; she recuperated at WinStar and is now ready to begin training for her comeback. Mission Impazible won the Louisiana Derby last year and the New Orleans Handicap this year for Pletcher.

A number of WinStar's 2-year-old prospects were on the same plane, including a colt sure to be popular with local fans: Jimmer. The son of Elusive Quality is named for the Glens Falls native and top-10 NBA draft pick.