The historic SARATOGA summer meeting opens on July 14 and the opening day feature, the Grade 3 Schuylerville Stakes, has attracted two Canadian/Ontario-bred juvenile fillies, ADORA, owned by Tracy Farmer, and ME AND MY SHADOW, owned by D.J. Stable. Both fillies are trained by Woodbine’s leading conditioner, Mark Casse.
Inaugurated in 1918, the Schuylerville honors a neighboring town located just 12 miles east of Saratoga Springs. The Schuylerville is carded as Race 9 in the 10-race Opening Day program at the Spa, which also will include the $135,000 Wilton for sophomore fillies going one mile out of the revitalized Wilson Chute in Race 7. First post is 1:05 p.m. Eastern.
It has been a long time since a Canadian-bred filly has won the Schuylerville. Two gals owned by Jean Louis Levesque won in the 1970s; L’ALEZANE (1977) and champion LA PREVOYANTE (1972) took the prestigious race.
Adora, a $450,000 purchase at last year’s Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Yearling Sale, graduated at first asking on May 14 over Woodbine’s Tapeta surface. The Into Mischief bay captured her debut outing by 4 3/4 lengths, defeating next-out winning stablemate Cahira’s Blessing.
Boasting a rich pedigree, Adora was bred in Ontario by Sam-Son Farm and is out of the dual stakes-winning Speightstown mare Southern Ring. Her fourth dam Radiant Ring was a graded stakes winner and 2003 Canadian Broodmare of the Year.
“She was bought at Saratoga for a large amount of money,” said Casse, who won the 2018 Schuylerville with Catherinethegreat. “She trained really well into her first race and ran really well. The question for her is going to be how she handles the dirt. Her pedigree has some grass influences which always works well on the Tapeta.”
Me and My Shadow, purchased for $185,000 at the 2021 Keeneland September Sale, was bred by Hill ‘n’ Dale Equine Holdings and NETP and was a debut four-length winner on May 28 over the Tapeta at Woodbine. The daughter of Violence produced a field-best 78 Beyer from her last out win. She is the first offspring out of the Smart Strike mare Silhouette, whose fourth dam, Passing Mood, produced 1997 Belmont Stakes winner Touch Gold and 1993 Canadian Triple Crown winner With Approval.
“With both her and Adora, it’s going to be a matter of how they can take their form to the next level,” Casse said.
Casse also sends out the lone maiden in the field in Gary Barber’s Janis Joplin. The daughter of California Chrome was a late-closing third in a restricted maiden special weight on June 29 at Churchill Downs after breaking a step slow from the gate.
Dylan Davis will pilot Adora from post 3, while Tyler Gaffalione has been tasked aboard Me and My Shadow from post 6. Flavien Prat will ride Janis Joplin from post 5.
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