THIRSTY THURSDAY
The temperature has dropped and the rains and storms are headin to T.O. for the weekend. Nice.
Thursday was overcast for the most part, the track had been abuzz all morning with the news that someone in the barn area, reportedly in the barn of trainer Malcolm Pierce barn 39, had been stabbed and rushed to hospital.
TORONTO SUN REPORT EXCERPT
A 45-year-old man is fighting for his life after he was stabbed, allegedly by a co-worker, in the stables at Woodbine Racetrack.
Toronto Police say they went to the barn area on the south side of the track — located at Hwy. 27 and Rexdale Blvd. — after receiving a 911 call from security guards around 7:30 a.m. yesterday.
“It looks like these two guys got into some sort of dispute and it escalated,” Const. Wendy Drummond said, adding the victim was stabbed twice.
TRAUMA CENTRE
The badly hurt man was whisked away by ambulance to the trauma centre at Sunnybrook hospital, where he underwent surgery.
“His condition has begun to stabilize,” Drummond said. ” But he’s not out of the woods yet.”
A 27-year-old man was taken into custody at the scene.
Ricardo Jackson, of Toronto, is facing assault and weapons charges.
It was initially thought the victim may have been stabbed with a pitchfork. But investigators now believe the older man was actually armed with the farm tool and the accused allegedly had a knife.
BACKSTRETCH
Jane Holmes, a spokesman for Woodbine Entertainment Group, confirmed both men work at the track.
“They are ORC (Ontario Racing Commission) licencees who work in the backstretch, but they are not our employees,” she said.
http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2009/08/28/10646371-sun.html
On track, race 1 went to the 2yo Florida bred EVIL COMMANDER, a flashy chestnut by the young sire PEACE RULES that is owned and bred by Valerie Dailey in Florida. Corey Fraser rode a beautiful race, yet another one for
trainer Mark Casse.
It was a Deputy Commander filly in the 2nd – DIVA DAWN, who won for the No, I Stable of the Shaddock family and trainer Dan Vella. The dark grey was claimed by Ray Pion for $32K. It was her 2nd win in her 12th race.
One of the most impressive moves by a 2yo this season came from the first timer VELVET MOSS yesterday at Woodbine. By that superstar runner SHAMARDAL, who went from wobbler to Group 1 winner overseas, the filly was inside and hopelessly without room into the stretch and then was sharply angled out late in the stretch before somehow getting up to win.
From THOROUGHBRED DAILY NEWS:
+VELVET MOSS (f, 2, Shamardal–Maysville {SP}, by
Notebook) sported only a moderate morning worktab,
but was well-backed into 2-1 from her morning line of
4-1. Never far from the front though rated along in the
second half of a compact field, the Stronach homebred
was buried inside and in need of room in the stretch.
Shifted out dramatically by Jim McAleney leaving the
eighth pole, the chestnut dug in gamely and outfinished
Tasha’s Alibi (Closing Argument) to take it by a head.
Velvet Moss is the first North American winner and
11th overall for her freshman sire (by Giant’s Causeway).
O-Stronach Stables. B-Adena Springs (ON). T-Reade Baker.
Congrats to trainer PAUL NIELSEN who won his first race with the 5yo LIFES NOT A BREEZE, who won his maiden in his 17th career start in race 3, a $20K maiden claimer. The Cozzene gelding is a homebred for Hopefield Farm.
And also congrats to CONRAD BELAIRE, a longtime trainer at Woodbine who won his first race of the meeting with his 11th starter, MY ANNA. The filly won the finale for $12,500 claiming with a wide rally.
The offspring of WHERE’S THE RING looked good yesterday. Firster ABOGADO came from at least 10 lengths back to be 2nd in the 1st race with a big run. In race 6 RING MY SURPRISE won his maiden in his 2nd career strat for $20K claiming with 1st time Lasix. He was bred by Danny Zita and is trained by Greg de Gannes for Anthony Kowlesser.
WOOD ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT
CAPTAIN RAUCOUS is a wonderful fellow. He won for the 9th time in only 29 races on Wed. night for the C E C
Farm and he was dropping down to $50K claiming. He has won on the grass this year too. Scott Fairlie trains.
The son of Subodination came from last place over a track that was on the slower side than usual and favouring outside closers.
Race 2 was an allowance race omn the grass and even with a couple of scratches, the result was impressive since GRAND ADVENTURE came off a long layoff to win his 3yo debut over older horses in the 6 1/2 furlogn dash. The Sam-Son team perfectly prepared this colt for his 4th career race and first since he bombed in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf last fall.
More turf in race 3 and the suddenly hot Fieldstone Farms and trainer Analisa Delmas came to life with VENGANZA, who made her grass debut in her last race – was 3rd at 72 to 2 and won Wed. night at only 3 to 1`.
Wow. There was another example of the same betting wildness later in the card.
meanwhile VENGANZA led all the way through slow fractions and became yet another grass winner for the sire Compadre.
Robert Harvey and A. Wortzman’s homebred ALKMAAR finally won her maidenin her 9th career start in race 4, a maiden allowance at 8 1/2 furlongs. The daughter of Monsahee Mountainee had been 2nd or 3rd in 3 previous races
for trainer Brian Lynch.
PUT UPON is a favourite horse in the Scott Fairlie barn. Claimed last summer for $50K, the dark bay son of Put It Back now races for just $20K byt he won on the pace under apprentice Michele Rainford – her 2nd win since her comeback. Put Upon is a 6yo with 10 wins from just 36 races.
THE KING IS HONOURED
One of Canada’s all time great sprinters, PLAY THE KING, obscurely bred who showed little at the outset of his early trained before going on to be a Grade 1 performer, will be honored again tomorrow at Woodbine with the PLAY THE KING STAKES, a Grade 2 turf dash that will set up some horses for the WOODBINE MILE next month.
Who can forget his bid to the lead in the 1988 Breeders’ Cup Sprint? Yours truly stood trackside and watched the champ miss my 3/4 of a length on a miserable day and after the race, jockey Donny Seymour was white as a ghost and over the moon with the Kinghaven gelding’s performance.
Watch The King here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fiU1fkvee0Y
Tomorrow’s race is an intriguing one and adds to an unusually exciting stakes weekend for the middle of August at Woodbine.
The fast rising JUNGLE WAVE might be favoured, JUST RUSHING is 8-years-old but is stil sharp and he won this race last year, CROSS EVERY BRIDGE is a young guy who is 2 for 2 in his career and REBELLION comes in from the US off a good outing.
FIELD COMMISSION is coming up to a good one, WISE RIVER might get soft turf he won’t like and JIMMY SIMS is a Roger Attfield trainee on the way up.
PLAY THE KING S.-GII, $200,000, 3yo/up, 7fT
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Cross Every Bridge Giant’s Causeway Landry Frostad 115
2 Rebellion (GB) Mozart (Ire) Husbands Motion 121
3 Field Commission Service Stripe Pizarro Vella 121
4 Wise River Belong to Me Lanerie Hanna 119
5 Jimmy Simms Lost Soldier Jones Attfield 115
6 Fifteen Love Point Given Contreras Frankel 117
7 Jungle Wave Hold That Tiger Kabel Attard 115
8 Just Rushing Wild Rush Wilson Attard 121
Can anybody beat JUNGLE WAVE?
He could be favoured in the Play the King Stakes.
Terence Dulay photo.
TRAVERS TOMORROW!
QUALITY ROAD.
photo by Sarah K. Andrew
FIELD BOX COURTESY THROUGHBRED DAILY NEWS…
SHADWELL TRAVERS S.-GI, $1,000,000, 3yo, 1 1/4m
PP HORSE SIRE ODDS
1 Hold Me Back Giant’s Causeway 15-1
($400,000 yrl >07 KEESEP)
O-WinStar Farm; B-Haras Santa Maria de Araras &
WinStar Farm LLC (KY); T-Bill Mott; J-J Leparoux.
Lifetime Record: 7-3-1-0, $508,874.
Last Start: 5th GII Virginia Derby at CNL July 18
2 Charitable Man Lemon Drop Kid 8-1
($200,000 yrl >07 KEESEP)
O-Mr & Mrs W K Warren Jr; B-Edward P Evans (VA);
T-Kiaran McLaughlin; J-R Dominguez. Lifetime Record:
6-3-0-1, $417,200.
Last Start: 3rd GII Jim Dandy S. at SAR Aug. 1
3 Warrior=s Reward Medaglia d’Oro 8-1
($180,000 yrl >07 KEESEP)
O-A Stevens Miles Jr; B-Jayeff AB@ Stables (KY); T-Ian
Wilkes; J-C Borel. Lifetime Record: 7-2-3-1, $200,542.
Last Start: 2nd GII Jim Dandy S. at SAR Aug. 1
4 Quality Road Elusive Quality 8-5
($110,000 RNA >07 KEESEP)
O/B-Edward P Evans (VA); T-Todd Pletcher;
J-J Velazquez. Lifetime Record: 5-4-1-0, $722,830.
Last Start: 1st GII Amsterdam S. at SAR Aug. 3
5 Our Edge The Cliff’s Edge 15-1
($25,000 wnl >06 KEENOV; $130,000 yrl >07 KEESEP)
O-Robert V LaPenta; B-Terrapin Stables Inc & Phillip
& Marcia Cohen (FL); T-Nick Zito; J-A Garcia.
Lifetime Record: 5-3-1-0, $162,500.
Last Start: 1st GIII Barbaro S. at DEL July 19
6 Summer Bird Birdstone 3-1
O/B-Dr Kalarikkal & Vilasini Jayaraman (KY); T-Tim
Ice; J-K Desormeaux. Lifetime Record: 6-2-1-1,
$973,040.
Last Start: 2nd GI Haskell Invitational at MTH Aug. 2
7 Kensei Mr. Greeley 7-2
($300,000 2yo >08 BESMAY)
O-Stonestreet Stables; B-Gulf Coast Farms LLC (KY);
T-Steve Asmussen; J-E Prado. Lifetime Record:
7-4-1-1, $528,628.
Last Start: 1st GII Jim Dandy S. at SAR Aug. 1
HORSES IN GEORGETOWN IN NEED…
from Barnmice.com
These horses are from South Dakota and are now in Georgetown, Ontario. they are destined to be slaughtered for meat if they do not find regular owners. Most of them are young and not in great condition, but nothing that a little TLC won’t fix. If you are interested PLEASE email at jessica@meadowlarkestables.com or anthea@meadowlarkestables.com. These horses are priced from $300 to $600 depending to the size/weight according to the owner of all these horses. There are about 89 horses there, some has already been sold to meat guys
http://www.barnmice.com/photo/albums/horses-are-in-need-of-saving
