Hoofprints
by Peter Watts
April 15, 2008
Is It Time For a Match Race in Calgary?
The talk around the backstretch at Stampede Park in Calgary on Sunday morning was all about Teague’s Fight and Footprint and when the two horses are going to go head to head. Both won last Saturday in exactly the same time: 1:11.1 for 6 furlongs. Footprint, Alberta’s Horse of the Year in 2007, carried 121 lbs in beating a field of older horses in a six furlong allowance test. Teague’s Fight carried 123 lbs in winning the colts division of the Sales Stakes for the fourth straight year. The $30,000 winning share of the purse has him within $3,500 of $400,000 in career earnings, every penny of that in Alberta. But the weight he’d have to carry in his next start has his trainer concerned.
“I’m not sure what I’m going to do with him next,” trainer Doug MacDonald told me. “That was a lot of weight last Saturday for the first start of the year. And yet he carried it really well.”
Over in H-barn, Footprint’s trainer, Joan Petrowski, is a tad concerned about weights too, although she’s just worried her horse might have to tack as much weight as Teague’s Fight.
“He carried that weight in a stakes race,” she noted with a bit of a smile. My horse “only” raced in allowance company.”
The challenge racing secretary, Russ Armstrong, faces is to give both horses a credible weight while still making it fair for each of them. The challenge both trainers face is to decide what they can live with, without hurting their horse. The challenge the rest of us face is waiting patiently for all the circumstances to be right, so that we can see a matchup that would be really fun to watch.
Bunching Up on the 3 Year Old Trail
Dave Nicholson has a 3 year old maiden named Oh Who Knows, which has drawn the rail in Wednesday night’s opening race at Stampede Park. The field of 20 has split into two divisions, the second of which will be run as the fifth race. All 20 3 year olds are maidens and each trainer is wondering: is this a Derby contender, or is he going to settle into the claiming ranks. Hence the answer: Oh Who Knows!
Three trainers have horses in each division. R.K. “Red” Smith will send out Mandarin in the first race and follow up with Part Pirate in the second division. Monica Russell has Half Mine and Mr. Slate in the opening race and Wood Be Charming in the follow-up. Ron Grieves will saddle Papa Time in the first race and Stellar Lad in the second.
The guy who’s hoping he’ll be lucky this time out is Dale Greenwood, who will saddle $205,000 yearling buy Bearrock N Roll for Dany Dion’s Bear Stables.
“He’s fit and he raced well, losing to a good horse at Laurel Maryland in his last start,” Greenwood told me. “But I think they put him tenth on the outside for this race and then drew post positions for the rest of the field. Seriously though, I’m hoping he’ll show me something good.”
Fifteen other trainers are hoping for exactly the same message.
Collecting the Bear Facts
Speaking of Mr. Dion, his dream of a place in the Kentucky Derby appears to be on hold, at least for this year. Chief Bear did not race well and finished fifth in last Saturday’s Holy Bull Stakes at Gulfstream Park in Florida. Kentucky Bear raced very well to be third in the Bluegrass Stakes at Lexington Ky last Saturday. That third place finish was worth $75,000. But it won’t be anywhere near enough money to earn a favoured preference among the maximum starting 20 at Churchill Downs on May 3rd.
The question now, is, what now? Obviously there are lots of good races for 3 year olds in the US the rest of the season. There’s the Queen’s Plate in Toronto in June. There’s even a couple of Derbies in Alberta this summer. The first order of business is to see how the horses respond after tough races last weekend.
Bear Stables did have one 3 year old winner last Saturday when Fatal Bullet came through in a 5 furlong sprint at the $62,500 claiming level at Woodbine in Toronto.
Another Graduating Class
I had the pleasure of attending the latest graduation ceremonies for students in the groom and exercise rider programs on Monday afternoon. Nine students from each program got their certificates to salute 12 weeks of intensive work including classroom and practicum. Most are now working in the industry.
“In addition to growing a much needed labour force, this program is a small part of growing the professionalism of the industry,” says Horse Racing Alberta’s Jim Hagan, who serves as co-ordinator of sports services. “These people are enthusiastic and dedicated and will take that spirit into the backstretch.”
More than 60 members of the Alberta racing and breeding industry contribute time, horses, and equipment to the programs. The students take part in a series of field trips in order to see all aspects of the racing and breeding business. I was impressed with how much material is covered in each program. The breed groups as well as Horse Racing Alberta and Olds College have more information on both programs including how to register for next year’s courses which begin in November.
Congratulations to Kim Scott, Robyn Fletcher, Julia Cutter, Tori Creelman, Lani Brathwaite, Tracy Spotswood, Krista Hawley, Saho Miyoshi and Janeen Morley who graduated from the grooms program…..and to Robyn McKay, Genki Haruki, Lisa Law, Becky Kapuch, Kaylan McCarty, Laura Crysler, Amy Boyd, Jenna Reid, and Stefanie Erickson who are now working as exercise riders. The students come from four different provinces and 3 different countries, an indication of the interest and the opportunities students have.
The programs are a partnership of Horse Racing Alberta, Olds College, and the breed associations.
News from ASHA
Neil Malloch of Wetaskiwin has been acclaimed to the position of President of Alberta Standardbred. He’ll lead a team of 18 people who will serve on the executive and on a series of committees. The group was elected at ASHA’s annual general meeting held last Saturday at Northlands Park in Edmonton.
“I think our people are maturing as a group,” ASHA executive director, Ted Billo, told me. “There was lots of discussion and an acknowledgement that we face some difficult circumstances for the next year or so. But I don’t think any of this came as a shock to our members. I was pleased to see we had about 135 voting members at the meeting, which is a better turnout than we have had in the recent past.”
Finalizing dates for the Grande Prairie summer meet remains a work in progress. All the members are looking forward to seeing what the 2009 calendar will look like. That’s all predicated on how construction goes on the new racetrack at Balzac.
ASHA reminds all breeders and owners that the deadline for receipt of yearling entries for this year’s sale is May 1st. The sale itself will be conducted at the Agricom at Northlands Park in Edmonton on Oct. 12th.
Meanwhile at the Races……
I don’t remember the last time Gerry Hudon won the drivers’ title at Northlands Park, but he’s making a determined effort to do just that this spring. Through Sunday, Gerry had 37 driving wins, two more than perennial leader, Keith Clark. Included in those wins was career win #2,100 which came last Saturday in the 7th race when he guided Rossridge Dynamo to the finish line in an elimination of the Yukon Trail for 3 year old Alberta sired colts.
GT’s Triple J and driver Bill Tainsh won the first elimination in 1:55.4. The final for the Yukon Trail goes on Saturday afternoon.
Silver Princess and APs Money Maker lead the field into Friday night’s final of the Golden Garter series for 3 year old fillies at Northlands.
On the program last Saturday, Trust The Artist blistered a fine field in the Open Pace in 1:51.2 which is a new lifetime mark and a really quick trip for this time of the season. Kelly Hoerdt was the guide.
And in Calgary on Sunday, it was a day of longshots coming in on a drying out racetrack. Koloa Victor in the second race ($55.60) Chief Shaheen in the third ($29.80), Alameda Slim in the fourth ($45.10) and Timetoteeitup in the eighth ($55.90) paid out nice returns for a $2 win ticket.
On the Community Circuit…..
Less than 3 weeks to go until Kentucky Derby Day, which also doubles as the Opening Day for the Alberta community racing circuit. Some 325 horses are currently in training at Rocky Mountain Turf Club in Lethbridge and more are being prepped on nearby farms.
The community circuit will honour its top achievers for 2007 Saturday night at 6 PM in the grandstand at Exhibition Park in Lethbridge.
Questions, comments & corrections to peter.watts@corusent.com
2008 Archives - Apr 1 | Apr 8 |
Mar 3 | Mar 10 | Mar 18 | Mar 25
Jan 11 | Jan 28 | Feb 7 | Feb 272007 Archives - Dec 6 | Dec 11 | Dec 18
Nov 6 | Nov 13 | Nov 22 | Nov 27 |
Oct 2 | Oct 10 | Oct 16 | Oct 23 | Oct 30 |
Sept 5 | Sept 12 | Sept 18 | Sept 25
August 14 | August 21 | August 28
July 3 | July 10 | July 17 | July 24 | July 31
June 5 | June 12 | June 19 | June 26
May 1 | May 8 | May 15 | May 22 | May 29 |
April 4 | April 10 | April 18 | April 24 |
March 6 | March 14 | March 21 | March 27 |
February 20 | February 28
2006 Hoofprints Archive - click here
2005 Hoofprints Archive - click here
2004 Hoofprints Archive - click here
