Columbus' ships come to Philly

On Monday, May 24, I covered the arrival of the Nina and Pinta--replicas of two of Christopher Columbus' ships--that will be in Philly till Memorial Day.

The thing that really got to me was just how tiny these ships are. It must've been something, crossing the unknown Atlantic in a ship that is smaller than some personal pleasure boats that you see cruising up and down the Delaware.

The story and pictures appeared in the Center City Weekly Press.

To read the story, click here.

You can see two quick videos--one of Captain Joe Hopkins talking aboout the importance of the new Nina and Pinta and another one of the Pinta being docked--below.

Radnor Hunt Races a great day for the Irish

On Saturday, May 15, I covered the Radnor Hunt Races which entails 6 steeplechase races., at the Radnor Hunt Club. This year, I covered the races for the upcoming June issue of the Irish Edition here in Philly.

Food, fun, booze, sun, women wearing big hats, and placing bets on the races are all part of the fun. Since there are no paramutual betting/odds at the races, little old men with whiteboards make the odds and take the bets, scribbling your pick on a piece of paper with a pen...kinda like the horse racing scene in the Quiet Man.

Since the Irish Edition doesn't have a current website, I published the actual story below here on the Pen & Lens.

(Photos by A.N. Torres)

Radnor Hunt Races a great day for the Irish

On Saturday, May 15, the 135th Preakness Stakes took place and Irish eyes everywhere looked toward Baltimore to see if either of the two horses with Irish names-- Dublin or Paddy O’Prado-- would make them smile by ending up in the winner’s circle at Pimlico Race Track.

Dublin finished 5th. Paddy O’Prado finished 6th.

Those Irish eyes should have been looking toward Radnor, Pennsylvania.

There, at the 80th Radnor Hunt Races—a day of steeplechase racing, big hats and flowing booze at the Radnor Hunt Club—Irish born jockey Paddy Young (no relation to the horse) won two of the five races he rode in and came in second in two others.

The first of Young’s wins was the second race of the day, the Vita C. Thompson Memorial Steeplechase, a 2 3/8 miles race with a $30,000 purse. Young led the pack the entire race on top of a horse named Mabou, a name the crowd along the rail enjoyed yelling (Ma-boooooo!) every time the horse galloped by and then again when announced as the winner.

Young’s second victory of the day was the fifth race, the 2 3/8 miles James M. Moran, Jr. Steeplechase with a $25,000 purse. This time, Young was on top of a horse named Eagle Beagle, a name which the crowd did not enjoy cheering nearly as much.

Young, 34, who resides in Unionville, Pa, started riding in steeplechases back in Northern Ireland when he was 16 years old. When asked about the differences between steeplechase racing in the United States and Ireland it was the perception of the sport here in the States that he notices.

“Here in America, those who follow the sport are very knowledgeable about steeplechase racing and its history,” said Young. “But a lot of Americans associate steeplechase racing with England and think of it only as an English sport, like foxhunting. But all over Ireland, steeplechase racing is very popular. Everybody follows it like it’s our national pastime. There are lots of Irish influences in steeplechase racing.”

How much influence?

Three other riders who competed in Saturday’s six Radnor Hunt races, Darren Nagle, Ross Geraghty and Willie Dowing are all Irish-born. And eight of the horses that ran, So Amazing, Music To My Ears, Meet At Eleven, Duke of Earl, Chivite, Hourigan, The Whacker and Ballet Boy were bred in Ireland.

Young rode The Whacker to second place in the 3 ¼ miles Radnor Hunt Cup and Ballet Boy to fourth place in the 2 3/8 miles National Hunt Cup.

And even crowd favorite Mabou, “Ma-boooooo!” is a first generation Irish- American whose roots go back to the old sod.