Saratoga Race Course 2022: The Races

Vallelujah wins her first race at Saratoga with Jackie Davis onboard.

In my last post, I shared photos I’ve taken in previous years at Saratoga Race Course. In that post, I shared that I spent the summer covering the meet for Saratoga Living Magazine. In this post, I will share my favorite photos from races. After all, that is the main attraction at the track, isn’t it?

Lady Thornhill wins an allowance race on the turf with José Ortiz onboard. I used a panning technique to get this shot, captured at 500mm all the way from the back of the grandstand.
The Grade I A.P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase Stakes, won by Down Royal with Bernard Dalton onboard.
The horses come down the stretch in an allowance optional claiming race, in which Smash Ticket took the win with Kendrick Carmouche onboard. Every now and then I try a black and white treatment. Does this bring back the nostalgia of the historic Saratoga Race Course in the days of yore? I hope the answer is maybe just a little bit.
I love finding different angles to shoot the races from. This is a claiming race on the turf at Saratoga that I shot from a viewing tower in the backstretch, won by Brazillionaire with Javier Castellano onboard.
The field heads down the backstretch in an allowance race won by Union Lake with John Velázquez up.
Jane Mast wins a maiden race on the turf with John Velázquez onboard. I shot this race from the viewing stand in the infield, typically used to shoot dirt races.
Fearless captures the Birdstone Stakes with Luis Saez onboard. To get this photo, I set my camera under the rail and fired the shot with a remote shutter release attached to a 35 foot cable.
Joel Rosario rides champion sprinter Jackie’s Warrior to victory in the Grade I Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap. At that point, Jackie’s Warrior had been undefeated in 2022, but Cody’s Wish went on to best him in the Grade I Forego Stakes in a big upset on Travers Day.
Epicenter wins the Grade II Jim Dandy Stakes with Joel Rosario onboard and dramatic skies above.
The field rounds the far turn in the Grade II Bowling Green Stakes, won by Rockemperor (center back) with Flavien Prat onboard.
The field rounds the clubhouse turn in the Alydar Stakes, won by Art Collector (5) with Luis Saez onboard.
The field breaks from the gate at the new Wilson Chute in a claiming race, won by Direct Order (4) with Manny Franco onboard. The Wilson Chute was reinstated this year to allow for 1 mile races on the dirt after being gone for nearly 30 years.
Golden Pal rounds the far turn before winning the Grade III Troy Stakes on the turf with Irad Ortiz, Jr. onboard.
Saint Tapit wins an allowance race on a sloppy track after a deluge of rain with Luis Saez up. Prior to the running of this race, I got caught in the downpour out in the infield. Luckily I had a poncho and rain covers for my cameras, so nothing got damaged, and I came away with some shots I was very happy with.
Life Is Good wins the Grade I Whitney Stakes with Irad Ortiz, Jr. up. I was trying to think of something different to do with all my finish line photos, so I went with this monochrome edit to change things up.
Wudda U Think Now wins the John Morrissey Handicap with Trevor McCarthy onboard.
Tapple Cider wins a maiden claiming race on the turf with Dylan Davis onboard.
Damon’s Mound wins the Grade II Saratoga Special Stakes with Gabriel Saez onboard on a sunny day. For this shot and all the subsequent “under the rail” shots, I used two Pocket Wizard radio triggers to fire the shot. One is mounted on the camera in my hand, and when I press the shutter button, it also triggers the shutter on the camera under the rail, allowing me to shoot from two perspectives at the same time.
This ended up being my favorite shot of the summer. Vallelujah, locally owned by my friends in the East Ave. Racing Stable and Sisu Racing Stable, won her first race at Saratoga with Jackie Davis onboard. This was also Jackie’s first win at Saratoga. Vallelujah is trained by Jackie’s father Robbie Davis.
This race warrants a second shot! The Pocket Wizards allowed me to get both of these shots at once.
The horses round the Clubhouse turn in the Summer Colony Stakes, won by Leader of the Band (4) with John Velázquez onboard.
Haughty wins the Grade II Lake Placid Stakes with José Ortiz up. My 100-500mm lens lets me get right up close on a singer horse and jockey, even from a distance.
A lot of the shots in this post feature the winning horse and jockey, but sometimes there are compelling shots to be had of the other horses as well. I like this shot of Eminent Victor, who finished 5th in the Lake Placid Stakes with Flavien Prat onboard, because you can see the horse in front’s back legs and all the grass he is kicking up.
The field heads down the stretch in the Smart N Fancy Stakes on the turf.
Caravel wins the Smart N Fancy Stakes with Luis Saez onboard.
Nest wins the Grade I Alabama Stakes with Irad Ortiz, Jr. onboard. One of my most used lenses this summer was my beloved 135mm f/2 lens (used with an adapter on my new mirrorless cameras). It’s an unconventional lens for sports and action photography because it has a fixed focal length, but I love the way the fast f/2 aperture melts away the background.
Built to Last, with light blue silks and a yellow saddle towel (the colors of the Ukrainian flag) heads for the finish line in a maiden claiming race on Ukraine Day with Javier Castellano onboard. I captured this shot from the roof of the grandstand, allowing me an aerial perspective.
Jack Christopher (6) wins the Grade I H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes with José Ortiz onboard on Travers Day.
The field breaks from the gate in the Grade I Personal Ensign Stakes on Travers Day, won by Malathaat (far left) with John Velázquez onboard. Velázquez’ win gave him his 25th consecutive year with a Grade I win at Saratoga.
The field heads down the stretch in the Grade I Runhappy Travers Stakes, the biggest race of the meet.
Joel Rosario gives Epicenter a pet after crossing the finish line to win the Travers Stakes. I also made an illustration out of this.
The field rounds the far turn in the Grade I Jockey Club Gold Cup, won by Olympiad (2) with Junior Alvarado onboard.
The horses break from the gate at the backstretch in an allowance race, won by Palm Cottage with John Velázquez up.
The field heads for the far turn in the Spinaway Stakes, won by Leave No Trace (6) with José Lezcano onboard.
The field rounds the far turn in the final race of the meet in the pouring rain, won by Cupid’s Heart (1) with Flavien Prat onboard.
I made an illustration depicting all the winners of the Grade I flat races this summer. Click here to purchase products featuring this design.

While we’re at it, I’ve published the first of two videos I’ve been working on capturing the sights and scenes of the track this summer. Watch it below (email subscribers, click here to watch the video):

In my next post, I’ll share my favorite photos from morning workouts at the track.

To see more of my Saratoga area photography be sure to follow me on Instagram and Facebook. To see more of my equine illustrations, follow @togadoodles on Instagram. To see more of my videos, be sure to follow me on YouTube. All photos, illustrations and videos in this post © Samantha Decker and may not be reused without permission.

Liked this post?  Subscribe by email below to receive future posts!

Related Posts

From Saratoga (and Beyond) to the Breeders’ Cup 2024

The Magic of the Thoroughbred, Part I: The First Two Years

Saratoga Race Cours 2024: The Best of the Rest

Saratoga Race Course 2024: Portraits at the Spa

One thought on “Saratoga Race Course 2022: The Races”

Comments are closed.

Back to top
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram