• Philly Park Changes Name to Parx Racing•
The Bensalem, Pa.-based Philadelphia Park has changed its name to Parx Racing, according to the company’s website. While the change was not officially announced to the media, the transition was made on the racetrack and casino’s website Aug. 30.
Racetrack officials could not be immediately reached for comment on the change. Parx Racing is the same title of a casino located on the racetrack’s property that opened in 2006. The name was officially given to the casino during the summer of 2009.
The Pennsylvania track has been called Philadelphia Park since 1984, when it was acquired by ITB Inc. Previously abbreviated in past performance charts as “Pha,” it is currently unknown what the new abbreviation for the track will be.
Before 1984, the track was named Keystone Racetrack. A company called Greenwood bought the property in 1990.

• Horses Now Second in Kentucky; Poultry on Top•
Poultry and eggs were Kentucky’s leading farm commodity in 2009, with cash receipts of $911.6 million, ending the equine industry’s 10-year reign at the top of the list. According to a release Aug. 31 from state agriculture commissioner Richie Farmer, the equine sector was responsible for $780 million of the state’s total $4 billion.
Kentucky farm cash receipts in 2009 totaled $4.26 billion, down 9.6% from the adjusted record 2008 total of $4.71 billion, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. The 2009 total was the third-highest on record.
Soybeans were the leading crop with cash receipts of $527 million on the strength of a 51% increase from 2008, edging out corn at $524 million. Cattle and calves generated $484.6 million in cash receipts in 2009. Tobacco receipts were up for the fourth year in a row at $382.8 million.
Crops accounted for 43% of total Kentucky receipts at nearly $1.83 billion, 43.4% higher than crop receipts for 2005, the first year after the federal tobacco quota and price support system ended.

• Grade III Winner American Lion Retired•
American Lion, winner of this year’s Illinois Derby (gr. III) and the 2009 Hollywood Prevue Stakes (gr. III) has been retired from racing, it was announced Sept. 3. The 3-year-old son of Tiznow , who had not run since finishing 11th in the May 1 Kentucky Derby Presented By Yum! Brands (gr. I), carried the colors of Bill Casner and Kenny Troutt’s WinStar Farm, which bred him in partnership with Dr. William Lockridge.
“American Lion had a setback after the Derby that has prevented him from getting back to his best form and fulfilling his great potential, so we felt it was best to allow him to move on to his second career,” said Elliott Walden, WinStar’s vice president and racing manager.
Produced from the winning Storm Cat mare Storm Tide, Kentucky-bred American Lion won three of his seven career races while earning $413,600. His efforts included a third-place finish in the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (gr. II) in February.
“American Lion is a magnificent specimen with remarkable speed for such a big horse,” Eoin Harty, who trained the bay colt, siad in a release. “His considerable talent was always apparent, and his potential was never fully realized. He could have easily been a Travers (gr. I) horse had he not been sidelined. His promise as a sire is equally exciting and will hopefully be fulfilled.” Stud career plans have not been determined.