Steve Sherman

Let the record show that the very first horse to win a race at Golden Gate Fields was a mare named Skookumchuck, who won the inaugural race on Feb.1, 1941 before a crowd of 30,000. The last horse to win a race there was Adelie (Ire) (Ardad {Ire}), who got to the wire first in Sunday's eighth, the last race ever at a track. In between, there was a lot of history, a lot of memories...Citation, Russell Baze, Lost in the Fog, Noor. That's history that cannot be erased, but...

Whether someone had the biggest stable in Northern California or a two-horse operation, the news released Sunday that Golden Gate Fields, which opened in 1941, will shut down at the end of the meet in December was a punch to the gut and led to a great deal of uncertainty. Horsemen have just five months to figure out what they will do next. The possibilities are many. They could shift their operations to Santa Anita. They could stay put and hope that the California Authority of Racing Fairs (CARF) circuit...