Thursday Thoughts with Jason Beem May 21, 2026

A good Thursday morning to you all! Hope everyone’s week is going well as we lead into the Memorial Day holiday weekend. It's labeled the “unofficial start of summer,” but here in Florida, the heat and humidity have already settled in. I’m ready for the cooler skies of Richmond, Virginia, as Colonial Downs is about a month away from starting. We’ll certainly talk more about that as the big summer meet gets closer. 

But today I wanted to write about Memorial Day racing. When I was younger, it always seemed like such a big deal. The Met Mile (G1) was, of course, the national centerpiece, but even locally, back at Longacres or Emerald Downs growing up, Memorial Day was just a big weekend of racing. Holiday Monday cards were always fun, but they could also be exhausting if you’re an everyday player like I was back in my younger days. The bankroll would have to stretch another day, and just spending six or seven hours at the track from Thursday to Monday was a grind! Lone Star Park, of course, has taken the Memorial Day mantle in recent years, but unfortunately, due to the signal issues in Texas, most of us don’t get to watch or wager on the action there. 

The Met Mile has moved off Memorial Day to the Belmont Stakes card, as most big tracks have moved toward hosting one huge day instead of having the weekend feature a big race or two. I know I’m losing that fight, so I won’t wage it here. One of my favorite Met Mile editions came on Memorial Day back in 2005. The great Ghostzapper would make his 11th and final start of his career, his first start since a facile Breeders’ Cup Classic win at Lone Star Park. I remember being so excited to watch him. 

There was something about his Breeders’ Cup Classic that was awe-inspiring. He traveled so beautifully, and I had such respect for Pleasantly Perfect and Arazi and Roses in May and all the horses he beat. Before the Classic, all I really knew about Ghostzapper was that he received a crazy-high speed figure in the Iselin earlier in the year. But after his Breeders’ Cup Classic win, I began to search all over about Ghostzapper. I remember watching his replays and maybe being most wowed by his third-place finish in the King’s Bishop (G1) a year earlier. He’s so far back and doesn’t switch leads and is just rolling down the center of the course, only to fall narrowly short. His Vosburgh (G1) win that same year was another eye-catcher. I will say in both those races, he had really hot paces to run into, but still, what a horse! 

His Met Mile win on Memorial Day didn’t have nearly the flash. He was such a huge favorite and took the lead pretty early on, and opened up and won with great ease. Just a powerful specimen and with Javier Castellano in the black silks of Stronach Stables, Ghostzapper was just really the coolest. It’s always disappointing when our favorite horses retire early, but I remember being more upset about him because he just had such brilliance. The other thing was that he came along when I was really getting into racing at a true passionate level. I always liked it as a kid, but for me 2003 and 2004 were the ‘glory days’ because I just got so into it all. Great times and memories. 

Have a great holiday weekend, everyone!