MIAMI –When talking about the old Calder Race Course, one of the first names that comes to mind is Plesa. That’s both Eddie Plesa Sr., a pioneer and among the first to call the place home when it opened for business 50 years ago, and his son Eddie Jr., among the all-time leading trainers at the track who became a member of the Calder Hall of Fame in 2007. Racing will end at Calder, known as Gulfstream Park West since being leased by The Stronach Group from Churchill Downs Inc. six years ago, following the conclusion of Saturday’s program. It’s the end of an era, which Plesa sadly reflected upon earlier this week. “It’s like losing somebody who was a good friend of yours for so many years, somebody that played a prominent role and had such a profound effect on your life,” Plesa said. “My father was the second trainer, the second outfit, to go through the gate when they opened, and needless to say I was there with him when he did. Fred Hooper gave him 20 horses to train, and that’s how it all began here for him. For us. It allowed him to settle his family down in one particular area for the rest of his life. And it ultimately allowed me to do the same thing, and as a result to become a better father to my family in the process.” :: Click to learn about our DRF's Free Past Performance program. Plesa, who has won more than 2,400 races and purses totaling in excess of $59 million since taking out his first trainer’s license 40 years ago, said he credits all of his accomplishments to having raced at Calder. “We all had access to and became dependent on the 2-year-olds, and the rest is history,” Plesa said. “Any success I ever had in horse racing I owe to Calder Race Course.” Plesa mentioned multiple stakes winners Best of the Rest and Three Ring and their accomplishments among his fondest memories of Calder. “Best of the Rest was such a hard-knocking horse, and sweeping the Stallion Stakes with Three Ring was one of the highlights of my career,” Plesa recalled. “And the people who race around here back then were amazing. Like Barry Schwartz, who owned Three Ring, and owners like the Oxenbergs, Bernie and his wife, Bea. And so many other great names – the owner-breeders who raced down through the years at Calder, like Tartan Farm, Harry Mangurian, Fred Hooper and the Genters, just to name a few. It was like being part of one big happy and very special family.” Needless to say, Saturday will be an emotional one for Plesa and all the others who called Calder home for so many years. “The demise of Calder hurts a lot of people in a lot of ways,” Plesa said. “Anybody that’s been there like I have can only feel remorse, as well as contempt for the people who allowed it to have come to this. The final day at Calder will be bittersweet to say the least. I’m not happy about it, but I’m glad I’ll be here to witness it.” :: Start earning weekly cashback on your wagering today. Click to learn more. Plesa tries to add one more Plesa will have a chance to win one more feature race at the old Calder when he sends out his versatile stakes winner Itsmyluckycharm against just four rivals in Friday’s $44,000 main event, carded at a mile under allowance conditions for fillies and mares on the main track. Itsmyluckycharm, a 4-year-old daughter of Itsmyluckyday bred by Plesa and his wife, Laurie, will make her second start following an eight-month layoff while returning to dirt for the first time since winning the Azalea Stakes at Gulfstream Park in June of 2019. “I think she can run equally as well on turf or dirt,” Plesa said. “This race came up, so that’s why she’s back on the main track. Unfortunately, she’s had little issues we’ve had to deal with over the last couple of years, but she’s training well, has a race under her, and I’m looking for a big effort on Friday.” Itsmyluckycharm will likely go postward the second choice behind heavy favorite Dream Marie, who was graded stakes-placed twice earlier this season and exits a second-place finish behind the red-hot Bajan Girl under similar conditions here earlier this month.