May 2020 Issue

EAST COAST EQUESTRIAN May 2020 Page 17 Remember...tell our advertisers you found them in East Coast Equestrian. NSA Reschedules Some Race Meets By Don Clippinger National Steeplechase Asso- ciation racing, its spring season decimated by the novel coronavi- rus pandemic, would run through June under a tentative schedule that was announced on April 4. NSA Director of Racing Bill Gallo developed the tentative schedule after consulting with all race meets over several weeks. In a letter to horsemen, he noted that all conditions and purses are subject to change. “Our race meets are leaders within their communities, and they have responded proactively and responsibly to this global crisis,” said the NSA’s president, Dr. Al Griffin Jr. “The health and safety of everyone—our commu- nities, our patrons, our horse- men—always come first. “Some meets have had to make the difficult decision to cancel, and they will return in the spring of 2021. Others have ten- tatively rescheduled their meets outside the anticipated time frame for the most stringent restraints on public interaction,” said Dr. Griffin, who is co-chairman of the Virginia Gold Cup. “As always, the NSA and our race meets would follow the requirements and recommenda- tions of state and federal govern- ments to assure public health and safety.” The 100th Middleburg Spring Races, which had been scheduled for Saturday, May 30, now will be run on Saturday, June 13. The Glenwood Park, VA meet would feature the Temple Gwathmey Handicap (Gr. 2) over hurdles and the Middleburg Hunt Cup over timber fences. The Fair Hill Races tenta- tively would be run Saturday, June 6, at Shawan Downs in Hunt Valley, MD. Its feature would be the Valentine Memorial, a ratings handicap hurdle. Fair Hill’s course in northern Maryland cur- rently is under construction and is expected to reopen for a spring meet next year. The Foxfield Racing Associ- ation has determined that it will be unable to run its spring meet, which had been postponed to Saturday, June 13. The Charlot- tesville, Va., meet will stage a fall meet under its new leadership. The Cheshire Point-to-Point would stage its first NSA-sanc- tioned race, the Louis Neilson III amateur apprentice timber race, on Sunday, June 14, at the Cheshire race course in Union- ville, Pa. The three-mile race honors the memory of Paddy Neilson, a highly respected and well-liked steeplechase horseman who died last year. The Virginia Gold Cup on Saturday, June 20, at Great Mead- ow Race Course in The Plains would highlight its signature race, the Virginia Gold Cup over timber fences, and the David Semmes Memorial (Gr. 2) over hurdles. The Iroquois Steeplechase would feature the Calvin Hough- land Iroquois (Gr. 1) at Nash- ville’s Percy Warner Park on Saturday, June 27. Also on the tentative Iroquois program are the Marcellus Frost Champion Hurdle for novices, the Margaret Currey Henley for fillies and mares, and the Green Pastures Ratings Handicap Hurdle. The tentative revised condi- tions for the race meets are avail- able on the NSA website, www. nationalsteeplechase.com. Remember...tell our advertisers you found them in East Coast Equestrian!