THIS DREAM WORKS.
First crop trotting stallion DREAM VACATION sent out two
baby race winners at Pocono launching what could be the
start of a very exciting career. One of them COLOR SCHEMES
(Dream Vacation-Paisley Yankee breezed home by open lengths
in 2:06.2 last quarter :30.2 for Syl King was purchased
by famed bargain hunter John Wagner for $2,300, Previously
John had purchased Elegant Man from the first crop of Malabar
Man for $4,000 and Mr. Muscleman from the first crop of
Muscles Yankee for $2,000. Guess we’d better pay some
attention to Color Schemes.
Dream’s other debut winner was Willow Run Hottie a
$3,500 yearling purchase from Vanessa Lobell.
By Pine Chip from a full sister to Victory Dream, Dream
Vacation has every license to be a sire.
More Dream Vacations started in the opening round of The
Meadowlands baby races including Jack Parker’s heralded
WILDWOOD DAYS (Dream Vacation-Flash Of Dignity) who won
impressively in 2:04.1
TOTE PROBLEMS
Woodbine was forced to cancel the balance of the Saturday
program last week due to totalizator problems that occurred
after the 3rd race.
Did notice the appropriate and highly commendable accommodations
offered to the fans inconvenienced that night though unfortunately
similar there are no make ups for the lost racing opportunities
especially for those destined for Classic or Burlington
competition the week thereafter.
The lesson here is that regardless of the sentiments expressed
by that “thoroughbred trainer”, we cannot just
race for slot monies alone, therefore we will always be
dependent upon betting handle. Thus it is incumbent on all
of us to ensure that the prevailing show is something exciting
and pleasing to the prevailing masses.
Huge kudos to Frank Stronach and Bobby Frankel for running
2004 thoroughbred horse of the year Ghostzapper as a 5-year-old
in 2005, when he obviously could have retired to stud this
year. Should make for an interesting Breeders Cup Classic
later on this year.
HE DONE DID IT
It was WHODUNIT (Artiscape-Nadia Lobell) who wound up winning
what seemed like the “Artiscape” fast class
feature at The Meadowlands holding off The One Night Pan
in 1:51.2 over a rain slicked surface. Perhaps that was
something of an omen as shortly thereafter Nadia Lobell
delivered a truly spectacular colt by McArdle.
Artiscape’s own RAINBOW BLUE and MALTESE ARTIST still
1-2 in the HRC Polls were Woodbine bound for the Classics
following impressive preps at The Meadowlands last week.
THE FORCE WAS WITH HIM
Commissioner Scotty Tickets’ call on TRUE FORCE was
more of a proclamation rather than a mere prediction as
the Perretti bred Falcon Seelster-Kravis Center colt scorched
Freehold winning the Windshield Wiper final by some dozen
lengths in 1:52.4. Unfortunately The Ken Rucker trainee
has very limited stake engagements this year and will have
raced after this is posted in the Mountain Skipper at Rockingham..
Speaking of FORCES, Giant Touchdown a son of Giant Force
wound up second behind Steinlager in the Elitlopp last week.
Giant Force, originally named Murray Plumstead was that
Meadow Road yearling who was clocked “trotting to
pony” at a near 2:00 clip by Tom Merriman, Anne Schlictig
and Pat Waldo in one of our pastures some 15 years ago.
Word got around and a modest colt that should have brought
maybe $15,000 at auction wound up bringing $65,000 from
Per Eriksson and Ted Gewertz and the rest you know. He earned
about $1.5million, won the Roosevelt International at Yonkers
and now has a son Elitlopp placed.
After all these years it still seems strange typing Roosevelt
International at Yonkers.
Stan Bergstein’s TRACK TOPICS had this item describing
the lawsuit brewing over the rejection of the name SALLY
HEMMINGS by the thoroughbred Jockey Club brought upon by
the breeder Garrett Redmond of Ballycapple Farms…
Seems the horse in question is out of Jefferson’s
Secret by Colonial Affair. Sally Hemmings was the slave
widely believed to be the mistress of Thomas Jefferson.
The name seems logical to us!
Muscles Yankee fillies won two of the three Casual Breeze
eliminations at Woodbine with BLUR looking very impressive
in 1:55.2. We’ll be consigning an Andover
Hall brother to Harrisburg named DON’T BLINK TWICE.
More next week
Bob Marks
