Podcasts about Arlington Park

I get regular enquiries about the current whereabouts and activities of Michael Wrona, the young Queensland race caller I got to introduce to American  horse racing thirty six years ago.The now defunct Hollywood Park Race Club was anxious to try out the Australian style of race calling on the big on course crowds and simulcast viewers of the era. Michael and I were invited to cover a total of six race meetings in a ten day period during which time public reaction was to be closely monitored. Should the experiment prove successful, Michael was all but assured of an offer to become resident Hollywood Park broadcaster.  Two weeks later 24 year old Michael Wrona had made the quantum leap from a fair way down the “pecking order” on 4BC Brisbane to become the voice of Californian racing on one of the world's most iconic racetracks. The past 36 years have taken the Brisbane boy through many valleys and peaks- amazing highlights and devastating lows. He's  been tempted to call it quits and scurry home to Australia several times, but something has always prompted him to give it another shot.  Today he and his American wife Kathy live in Orange County where he's safely ensconced as track announcer at the Los Alamitos race track. Five years ago we presented a podcast with the man himself. Several recent emails have prompted me to give that podcast another run.  Michael was actually in the broadcast box at Los Alamitos getting ready to call a Saturday night card when we recorded this 2021 chat. We began by talking about his Aussie accent, unchanged after more than three decades in the US. He talks of his appointment as Los Alamitos track announcer in the wake of his shock dismissal by the owners of the high profile Santa Anita track.  Michael takes us through the dual breed format of Los Alamitos programming- the combination of thoroughbred and quarter horse racing. We turn back the clock to the day Michael and I arrived at Hollywood Park for a six meeting commitment. If the crowds and simulcast viewers liked the Queenslander's style, he had the job at the famous track. Michael remembers the late Marjorie Everett, the dynamic chairperson of the Hollywood Park Operating Company and some of her eccentricities. He reflects on the first big race he got to call in California featuring the clash of two top horses. Michael was stunned when offered the opportunity to share calling duties at the reopening of the legendary Agua Caliente track where Phar Lap had won his only race outside Australia. He looks  back on the first of several interruptions to his career. Marjorie Everett was deposed as Hollywood Park supremo, and the new administration preferred another caller. He was lucky to pick up a gig at Bay Meadows track in San Francisco. The Aussie commentator talks of a brief return to Hollywood Park and the opportunity to feature in an episode of the famous Seinfeld sitcom. Mike talks of his subsequent dismissal from the Bay Meadows job. Luckily he still had employment with Golden Gate Fields, another popular San Francisco venue. He looks back on an offer from an exciting new venture in Texas. Retama Park opened with a flurry but closed before the completion of its first season. By now Michael was developing an inferiority complex. Around this time Michael got to enjoy a brief stint at the famous Arlington Park track in Chicago. During this stint he called a history making performance by the champion Cigar. Life took a bizarre twist for Michael when he was reappointed by Hollywood Park after a shock resignation by Trevor Denman. He called the race in which Lafitt Pincay Jnr  broke Willie Shoemaker's long standing riding record. The much travelled Wrona talks of an exciting offer from another Texan enterprise called Lone Star Park where he would spend five years. For three years during Lone Star's off season he worked at Fairgrounds in New Orleans. Both tracks were taken over by new management and history repeated itself when Michael was finished up. Michael talks of his separation from first wife Julie whose acting career kept them apart for long periods. His spirits were lifted by the opportunity to call the 2000 Preakness Stakes. In 2005 he returned to California where he called the races for Bay Meadows and Golden Gate Fields. He talks of a quick trip to Argentina to cover South America's biggest race. Michael looks back on 2015, a helluva year for the expat Queenslander. He landed the job at Santa Anita after an exhaustive audition process, but shortly after had to deal with the trauma of being singled out by a “real live” stalker.  By now he'd become very philosophical about the lack of job security in the US. His dismissal at Santa Anita came from left field. On a lighter note Michael talks about his marriage to the delightful Kathy and the interpretation of certain expressions he's used in his race calls. Some of them caused a little confusion in the States. He talks of a whirlwind schedule through 2019 which gave him little time to think of the Santa Anita disaster. This was a lovely catch up with the kid from Brisbane who over 36 years has showcased the Aussie style of race calling on more than twenty tracks in six countries.

For more than four decades, Tom Durkin's voice was synonymous with the biggest moments in horse racing. From the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes to the Breeders' Cup and Saratoga, his soaring calls helped transform great races into unforgettable theater. But as Durkin reveals in his new memoir, "A Life's Calling: The Voice Behind the World's Greatest Horse Races," the story behind the microphone is every bit as compelling as the action on the track. In this wide-ranging conversation, Durkin reflects on an extraordinary journey that began as a horse-racing-obsessed kid riding Chicago's "L" train to Arlington Park and eventually led him to become the most recognizable race caller of his generation. Along the way, he recounts the unlikely lie that launched his career, the grind of the minor-league fair circuit, and the national breakthrough that put him on racing's biggest stages. But this episode goes beyond just racing history. Durkin offers a fascinating look inside the craft of live sports broadcasting, discussing the college theater training that shaped his style, the famous "Mayor Daley" notebook where he collected thousands of descriptive phrases, and the relentless preparation that fueled his success. He also speaks candidly about the fear of failure, self-doubt, and anxiety that shadowed his career — even at its highest peaks — and how those challenges ultimately became part of what drove him. Replete with stories about iconic races, vanished racetracks, broadcasting innovation, and a lifetime spent pursuing excellence, this conversation is both a celebration of one of sports' great voices and a revealing examination of the work, passion, and perseverance required to become one. + + +    SUPPORT THE SHOW: Buy Us a Coffee: https://ko-fi.com/goodseatsstillavailable The "Good Seats" Store: http://tee.pub/lic/RdiDZzQeHSY BUY THE BOOK:  "A Life's Calling: The Voice Behind the World's Greatest Horse Races,": https://amzn.to/435AJus SPONSOR THANKS:  Royal Retros (10% off promo code: SEATS): https://www.503-sports.com?aff=2 Old School Shirts.com (10% off promo code: GOODSEATS): https://oldschoolshirts.com/goodseats FIND AND FOLLOW: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/GoodSeatsStillAvailable Web: https://goodseatsstillavailable.com/ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/goodseatsstillavailable.com X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/GoodSeatsStill YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@goodseatsstillavailable Threads: https://www.threads.net/@goodseatsstillavailable Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goodseatsstillavailable/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GoodSeatsStillAvailable/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/good-seats-still-available/

They are as much a part of racing as the horses and the bettors. Buglers have been a track tradition for more than 140 years. Four of the best-known convene for an episode full of stories and laughs on the Ron Flatter Racing Pod. Retired New York Racing Association bugler Sam Grossman, Santa Anita's Jay Cohen, Kentucky's Steve Buttleman and former Arlington Park fixture Monica Benson compare notes about their craft, their other gigs and even some stories of betting on horses. Their challenges of playing in bad weather and trying conditions are combined in this episode with the celebrities they have met and the odd interactions they have had with racegoers and connections behind the scenes. Co-hosts John Cherwa of the Los Angeles Times and Keith Nelson of Fairmount Park also offer their anecdotes. The Ron Flatter Racing Pod via Horse Racing Nation is available via free subscription from Apple, Firefox, iHeart and Spotify as well as HorseRacingNation.com.

Yes, that was NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell getting a tour of the spacious Arlington Park property with Bears Chairman George McCaskey and President/CEO Kevin Warren over the weekend, sources close to the team's stadium project confirmed TuesdayBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/shaw-local-s-bears-insider-podcast--3098936/support.

Yes, that was NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell getting a tour of the spacious Arlington Park property with Bears Chairman George McCaskey and President/CEO Kevin Warren over the weekend, sources close to the team's stadium project confirmed TuesdayBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/shaw-local-s-bears-insider-podcast--3098936/support.

Short of approval of state legislation granting the NFL franchise a long-term property tax break at Arlington Park, Pritzker went on to say it's up to the Bears to seek help from individual taxing bodies in and around the 326-acre siteBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/shaw-local-s-bears-insider-podcast--3098936/support.

Short of approval of state legislation granting the NFL franchise a long-term property tax break at Arlington Park, Pritzker went on to say it's up to the Bears to seek help from individual taxing bodies in and around the 326-acre siteBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/shaw-local-s-bears-insider-podcast--3098936/support.

In the Best of Rahimi & Harris this week, Audacy NFL insider Brian Baldinger joined the show to discuss how Bears quarterback Caleb Williams can take a step forward in his second NFL season; Mark Grote and Dan Wiederer discussed Cubs third baseman Matt Shaw's strong performance since he was recalled to the big leagues Monday; Score callers chimed in with their opinions on Bears quarterback Caleb Williams failing to address the media following recent revelations that he initially didn't want to be drafted by Chicago in 2024; author and radio host Sarah Spain joined the show to discuss her upcoming book titled "Runs in the Family: An Incredible True Story of Football, Fatherhood and Belonging”; and Leila Rahimi, Marshall Harris and Grote shared their feelings about the Bears' pursuit of a new stadium as the organization has officially shifted its focus to Arlington Park as the site to build on.