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	<title>Bob's "Notes on a Program"</title>
	<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com</link>
	<description>Observations, commentary and guest columnists</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 22 Dec 2010 17:07:22 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Old racing horse is a winner with autistic boys&#8211;by Bill Dwyre, L.A. Times</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In horse racing terms, Grant and Greta Hays have had a rough trip. They have two young children, both severely autistic. &#8220;After we had Jack, we wanted to have another child,&#8221; Grant Hays says. &#8220;We thought the odds of having a second with autism were really low.&#8221; Jack is 6, Dylan 2. Neither speaks, except [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2010/12/22/old-racing-horse-is-a-winner-with-autistic-boys-by-bill-dwyre-la-times/</link>
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		<title>Spot the Diplomat finds second career soothing autistic children&#8211;by Jay Hovdey, DRF column 11/21</title>
		<description><![CDATA[On a three-acre patch of Texas ranchland, just south of the city of Austin, a 6-year-old son of Worldly Manner named Spot the Diplomat has found a home with the family of Grant and Greta Hays. Funny where horses end up. Funny what they end up doing. Spot the Diplomat was a real racehorse. He [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2010/11/24/spot-the-diplomat-finds-second-career-soothing-autistic-children-by-jay-hovdey-drf-column-1121/</link>
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		<title>Spot the Diplomat: Making a Difference&#8211;by Bob Ike</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Summit Racing LLC was only fortunate enough to own Spot the Diplomat for the final two races of his 41-race career. A career that saw him win seven races, including a stakes race as a 2-year-old, while earning more than $342,000 over five seasons. After winning a Cal-bred allowance race at Santa Anita first time [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2010/11/15/spot-the-diplomat-making-a-difference-by-bob-ike/</link>
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		<title>Zenyatta&#8217;s finale was a ride to remember&#8211;by Dick Jerardi, Philadelphia Daily News</title>
		<description><![CDATA[LOUISVILLE, Ky. &#8211; When it is so perfect that everybody at the track is looking down the stretch gauging the distance from the closing horse to the frontrunning horse to the wire and screaming for something far more significant than a horse race or history or really anything tangible, you almost want to freeze the [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2010/11/10/zenyattas-finale-was-a-ride-to-remember-by-dick-jerardi-philadelphia-daily-news/</link>
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		<title>Harper to cut back on duties at Del Mar &#8211;by Jeff Nahill, North County Times</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Joe Harper has decided to spend more mornings on horseback during the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club&#8217;s annual racing season and less time dealing with paperwork. Harper, who turns 67 on Saturday, relinquished the titles of president and general manager to Craig Fravel on Tuesday. Harper will maintain the title of chief executive officer. Fravel, 53, [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2010/03/24/harper-to-cut-back-on-duties-at-del-mar-by-jeff-nahill-north-county-times/</link>
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		<title>Santa Anita won&#8217;t scratch surface&#8211;by Art Wilson, San Gabriel Valley Tribune</title>
		<description><![CDATA[A group of about a dozen Southland trainers showed up at Santa Anita on Monday to discuss the track&#8217;s racing surface with owner Frank Stronach. After the announcement Jan. 18 that Santa Anita would replace its existing synthetic Pro-Ride track at the end of the current meet, trainers were anxious to express their feelings and [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2010/03/02/santa-anita-wont-scratch-surface-by-art-wilson-san-gabriel-valley-tribune/</link>
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		<title>Horse racing owners, trainers should join forces&#8211;by Art Wilson, San Gabriel Valley Tribune</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Â Wow, and I thought my bank account was in disarray. Raise your hand if you think the California horse racing industry could get any more messed up than it already is today. Didn&#8217;t think so. Let&#8217;s start with two of the licensed Advance Deposit Wagering companies. I&#8217;m no genius, but it seems to me [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2009/10/16/horse-racing-owners-trainers-should-join-forces-by-art-wilson-san-gabriel-valley-tribune/</link>
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		<title>Favorites finally finding the winner&#8217;s circle&#8211;by Ed Zieralski, San Diego Union-Tribune</title>
		<description><![CDATA[DEL MAR â€” As much as racing at Del Mar is about the beach atmosphere, the pageantry and the beauty of thoroughbreds racing at 40 mph, it&#8217;s really about the action. That would be the betting action. It&#8217;s the toteboard, the trip to the window and then collecting on the winning ticket or tossing the [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2009/08/14/favorites-finally-finding-the-winners-circle-by-ed-zieralski-san-diego-union-tribune/</link>
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		<title>Rachel Alexandra&#8217;s Preakness</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Okay, so maybe my Derby analysis wasn&#8217;t so great. Fortunately, I wasn&#8217;t alone. While I thought one of the four favorites (three after theÂ early morning scratch of I Want Revenge) would win, I had picked Mine That Bird to finish last. Like someone said to me later, &#8220;Turn the paper upside down and you [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2009/05/15/rachel-alexandras-preakness/</link>
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		<title>One of Four Will Win Derby</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Last year&#8217;s Derby was easy. Big Brown stood out a mile over 19 overmatched 3-year-olds. This year&#8217;s Derby, however, is another story altogether. Whether you&#8217;re betting at a racetrack, simulcast facility or online, true horseplayers are playing the Derby. Even the most casual racing fan puts at least a few bucks down on Derby Day&#8212;it&#8217;sÂ [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.bobikepicks.com/2009/05/01/one-of-four-will-win-derby/</link>
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