After moving Thoroughbred Connection to San Diego's World Talk Radio, all of the interview segments from the live program are now automatically archived for on-demand listening. -- John

Click to access Thoroughbred Connection's complete archives at World Talk Radio.

Ed Bain, who publishes the popular Ed Bain's Layoffs & Claims Report, joined us to discuss how he incorporates "the human factor" into his handicapping and analysis . -- John

Click to hear Ed Bain's segment on Thoroughbred Connection July 18, 2004.

Trainer Bob Hess, Jr. was thrilled with Chandtrue's Hollywood Juvenile win. He told us the day after the race that Chandtrue would not start in Del Mar's Best Pal, but instead wait until the closing day Futurity. -- John

Click to hear Bob Hess, Jr.'s segment on Thoroughbred Connection July 18, 2004.

Jockey Kent Desormeaux, racing's newest Hall-of-Fame rider joined us on Independence Day to talk about his victory in the American Oaks, his selection to racing's Hall-of-Fame, and this year's Triple Crown near-miss by Smarty Jones. -- John

Click to hear Kent Desormeaux's segment on Thoroughbred Connection July 4, 2004.

Ticker Tape's $750,000 G1 American Oaks victory gave trainer Jim Cassidy the biggest win of his career. He joined us on the radio the morning after the race. -- John

Click to hear Jim Cassidy's segment on Thoroughbred Connection July 4, 2004.

Owners Ray and Pat Chapman selected the world-recognized Three Chimneys Farm in Lexington, KY as the future home of Smarty Jones. Three Chimneys Stallion Manager Sandy Hatfield gave us the scoop on that decision and what happens at the farm. -- John

Click to hear Sandy Hatfield's segment on Thoroughbred Connection July 4, 2004.

During my travels in the Midwest in late June, I took this picture of the abandoned grandstand at Ak-Sar-Ben in Omaha, NE. The track opened September 14, 1920 (9/14 is also MY birthday!) and went dark for good in 1995 after long career as one of the Midwest's top thoroughbred facilities. This is where Hall-of-Fame trainer Jack Van Berg got started and where 1935 Triple Crown winner Omaha is buried . -- John

The Northern California racing community lost one of the "good guys" of the game when press box veteran Dale Duspiva died June 16 at the age of 53. We honored his memory on Father's Day 2004 by remembering him with his longtime DRF colleague Steve Reed. Pictures courtesy of Dale's son David. There's an educational fund for David established in memory of his Father: The David Duspiva Educational Fund, c/o Beverly Duspiva, 3511 Longview Drive, San Bruno, CA 94066. -- John

Click to hear Steve Reed's segment on Thoroughbred Connection June 20, 2004.

Trainer Walter Bindner, Jr. saddled 62-1 Colonial Colony to a huge upset win in the G1 Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs. He joined us on the radio less than 24 hours after the biggest win of his 28-year training career. -- John

Click to hear Walter Bindner's segment on Thoroughbred Connection June 13, 2004.

Veteran track announcer and racing broadcaster Dave Johnson shared his thoughts on the just-completed Triple Crown trail. We had a "special treat" for Dave as we reminisced about his years at Santa Anita. -- John

Click to hear Dave Johnson's segment on Thoroughbred Connection June 12, 2004.

Smarty Jones trainer John Servis was as gracious in defeat as he had been in victory the day after Birdstone ended their Triple Crown bid. He held his final Belmont Park media briefing outside on a cold and rainy New York morning. His comments can be heard in our post-Belmont program posted on our home page. -- John

Click to hear John Servis On The Day After The Belmont Stakes, June 6, 2004.

Funny Cide and Sackatoga Stable co-owner Jack Knowlton joined guest host Pat Cummings and me live at our broadcast location on Belmont Saturday. He reminisced about last year's Triple Crown experience. -- John

Click to hear Jack Knowlton's segment on Thoroughbred Connection June 5, 2004.

Daily Racing Form writer and handicapper Steve Klein joined us to share his thoughts on the Triple Crown trail. Steve admitted to "being late to the party," but he's now expecting to see Smarty Jones win The Belmont. -- John

Former jockey turned trainer and broadcaster Gregg McCarron joined us at the start of Saturday's show. Gregg remembered riding many horses for John Servis, trainer of Smarty Jones, when he was still active. -- John

We had a very interesting conversation with Milton Hendry, trainer at Bridlewood Farm in Ocala, FL. Milton broke Smarty Jones when the young colt first went into training and he shared his memories of the time they spent together. -- John

Click to hear Milton Hendry's segment on Thoroughbred Connection May 29, 2004.

Los Angeles Times turf writer Bill Christine has seen first-hand how tough it is for any horse to win The Belmont Stakes to complete a Triple Crown. He says Smarty Jones will be hard to deny June 6 in New York.. -- John

TVG main anchor Todd Schrupp made a return appearance on Thoroughbred Connection this Sunday morning. He shared his thoughts and experiences on covering the Smarty Jones phenomenon. -- John

Lowell Sun (Massachusetts) turf writer Paul Daley has covered the last five Triple Crown "near misses." He talked about the five horses that missed and why this year might be different. -- John

Alan Benewitz of Thorograph was on the program with us the week after Smarty Jones scored his impressive Preakness victory. Alan told us that Smarty Jones has run the fastest eight races of any 3YO since Thorograph began making performance figures. -- John