Rebecca's OnTrackPhoto

12/13/2025

Here is a link to a petition created by Tama Perez de Lopez which, if you haven't already seen or signed it, please do. We need as many signatures as possible in order to not be ignored over this sudden closure and breach of contract. It doesn't matter where in the world you are, as long as you have a verifiable email address. Thank you!🏇

Keep Hastings Racecourse open

12/12/2025

I'm sure most, if not all of the followers of my page are aware of the recent abrupt announcement by the city to cease the support of horseracing at Hastings racecourse; effectively shutting down an institution and industry that has been a part of Vancouver for 133 years now. Mayor Ken Sims has thrown all of his support behind the creation of a dedicated soccer stadium for the Vancouver Whitecaps team, which would also serve as a entertainment/concert venue. Hastings park, where the racetrack now sits, has been identified as a prime location for this stadium, and the City is wasting no time getting the wheels of this project in motion.
An agreement was signed today at City Hall, called a "Memorandum of Understanding", or MOU, which while not a binding contract, paves the way for deals to be explored, discussed and made, and makes the purchase of the team by a party who commits to keeping it in Vancouver, a far more attractive prospect for potential buyers. The only comments about horseracing voiced during the meeting were that it was a dying industry in N America and globally, (so I guess, why even bother trying to save it, is their attitude). To my mind, there are many reasons, and I believe it's not dying as much as it's being run into the ground and made to die by people in power who either don't understand or appreciate it, and maybe prefer development and it's potential promise of big returns, over agricultural pursuits and long standing traditions. I feel that a soccer stadium could be built a number of other places, whereas a racetrack really couldn't. I also feel with the right support, commitment, and upgrades to track and facilities for horsemen and the public, racing in Vancouver could regain the popularity it enjoyed as recently as even 10 years ago.
I have lots more to say on the topic, and I will in other posts, but for now, I want to share the link to the youtube video of today's meeting. There were some good questions asked by some of the reporters; the answers were in many cases, vague. Mayor Sims noted that building this stadium and entertainment complex would create "a heck of a lot of jobs". Not sure what that equates to in numbers, but it made me wonder if he had any idea how many jobs would be wiped out by closing the racetrack, and if the number of jobs created would be more than the number of jobs lost. Something to look into.... Here is the link: bit.ly/4pzGJ8j
Also, if you'd like to contact and share your views and feelings about keeping horseracing with the new potential owners of the land Hastings sits on, the Tsleil-Waututh band, they have a website, which is https://twnation.ca/ Also, in addition to contacting your MLA's, you can also contact City Council members through the following site" https://vancouver.ca/your-government/contact-council.aspx
Hoping if we all pull together we can stop this takeover of the track and bring horseracing back to it's former glory, and keep it going for the next generation to enjoy. 🍀🏇💪🏼🤞🏼🙏

11/12/2025

Thinking of Agnes today. Such an incredible lady--still sharp as a tack at 101 years old in these shots, celebrating with Chuck at the Sylvia after a whirlwind afternoon of parties and honors. Her father was a military man and she told me that all the kids (11, I believe she said) had to leave their shined shoes outside their bedroom doors before bed for inspection by their father the next morning. It was only natural for her to enlist once she became of age. She served in the British army in the truck division and none other than Princess Elizabeth served under her. She was the oldest member of the HRC, and was there to bid adieu to Square Dancer; HRC's first horse, on his retirement. It brought tears to her eyes. What a remarkable lady she was. We thank her and her fellow Veteran, Chuck for their service, and also thank all the veterans who served and continue to serve Canada and Great Britain, and remember and appreciate them every day, especially today 💜🎖🌺

10/22/2025

OCT. 18, 2025- CLOSING DAY! 😥🏇
The last day of the season is always bittersweet. For sure everyone needs a rest after all the early mornings, crazy hours and hard work that goes into bringing racing to the public. I always have so much fun when I go, and love laughing and catching up with friends and meeting new people, and from year to year one never knows who will be back or if they'll go to another track or retire, and who will return or what new people/horses will be there. For me, next year will be my 17th coming there taking pictures, and I've met some awesome people along the way. Have a safe, peaceful, break and I'll look forward to seeing you in 2026. For now, here are my shots from last Sat. Man, did it POUR! lol All but a few were taken from a little covered cubby I found to keep my cameras from getting drenched, so not a lot of different angles or paddock shots. I caught only races 3 thru 10 due to crazy traffic, but congrats to all who won top spots in the 1st & 2nd. Without further blabbing, here are the pics!

09/17/2025

2025-SEPT. 13-BC DERBY/OAKS
Hi All, boy, what a day last Saturday! 11 of the 12 races was all I could manage before my feet gave out, and my pics of the last one are very grainy. But it was as usual a super fun day with perfect weather, surprises, triumphs, disappointments, loads of fans, a huge handle of over a million dollars, lots of laughs, excitement and yummy ice cream 🍦😋 I pared down the # of pics I took to 550 keepers, but will be whittling it down by at least another 150 once I go thru them more carefully. For now, here are 49 from the Oaks and Derby only. Thanks for your patience while I go thru the others and pull together shots from the 1st thru 5th and the 8th thru 11th. For now, hope you enjoy these 😊🏇💖

07/12/2025

Heading out to Hastings for the Memorial race for Ermon Mclaughlin jr. Here he is in this paddock shot from 2020, masked up and doing his part to keep it going during the covid restrictions that kept all but essential workers from entering the frontside. I look forward to joining his many friends and family in honoring his memory today 🌈🏇

05/08/2025

2025/5/3-Opening day at Hastings and Kentucky Derby day. It's been a while! People came out in droves in creative outfits and hats. The horses looked sleek and ready to run, and it was wonderful to see old friends. I missed the first due to accidenty spilling water all over my computer table--luckily not the keyboard. And I forgot my stool, but luckily remembered more or less how to work my cameras after a 5 month hiatus, lol. Hope you like the pics, and I look forward to taking and posting many more over the 2025 season.....📸🏇🌹

09/26/2024

Derby/Oaks/Futurities 2024 album 2; beginning with Derby winner's circle shots :-)

09/26/2024

Derby/Oaks/Futurity Day pics! Heading out of town (again) tomorrow and won't be there for this weekend's races but will definitely be there for the last race days of the season, and with any luck the 5th or 6th. What a fun day this was, and I wanted to share it before I go. I caught 7 races but can only put 80 pics in one post so this is the first post and I'll put the rest in another post. Hope you enjoy the pics