CONTEST! WIN MURIEL LENNOX’S NEW BOOK!
The Sovereign Awards are coming up on April 1, the evening before the 2011 racing season gets underway.
THOROUGHBLOG wants to see if you can guess the winner’s of the (racing) horse awards?
Whoever gets the most right will a copy of THE HORSE AND THE TIGER, the story if the great Nijinsky’s impact in Ireland.
Send your entry, one per person, through the COMMENT BUTTON on the ‘Blog, and list your predictions for
2yo colt
2yo filly
3yo colt
3yo filly
older mare
older male
turf male
turf female
sprinter
female sprinter
Horse of the Year
entries close March 31. *Emails to me or the magazine will not be accepted – sign up very easy, just need an email!
NEED SOME INFO ON THE NOMINEES? Then go to www.jockeyclubcanada.com and look for the press release!
QUEEN’S PLATE/CANADIAN 3YO UPDATE
It’s crunch time for the KITTEN. The slight fellow is making his stakes debut in the Grade 3 PALM BEACH STAKES on the grass at Gulfstream Park on Saturday and it is not an easy field. He has sped to run at, but this Canadian-bred son of Kitten’s Joy, rumoured to be a $500,000 sale by breeders Ken and Sarah Ramsey to Mill House, has the likes of MASTER DUNKER to worry about (stablemate PLUCK is apparently going to be scratched)
Pletcher said Queen’splatekitten could be pointed for the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (gr. I) next month at Keeneland with the ultimate goal being the Queen’s Plate on June 26 at Woodbine.
HOTHERSAL, an impressive 3yo for Eugene Melnyk, has hit the sidelines and it is not certain if the sleek Smart Strike fellow will make the Plate. He is trained by Seth Benzel.
THOROUGHBLOG’S QUEEN’S PLATE TOP TEN CONTENDERS!
1. Bowman’s Causeway
2. Elite Alex
3. Queen’splatekitten
4. Sensational Slam
5. Pender Harbour
6. Inglorious
7. Strike Oil
8. Roxy Gap
9. Enduring Star
10. Bear’s Chill
ELITE ALEX, bred by ALISON REGISTER, is a hot Canadian-bred on the road to the Kentucky Derby and/or the Queen’s Plate – photo from his trainer Tim Ritchey’s website!
Saturday, Gulfstream Park, post time: 4:55 p.m. EDT
PALM BEACH S.-GIII, $150,000, 3yo, 1 1/8mT
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 East of Danzig Langfuhr Bravo Matz 116
2 Ari C K Stormy Atlantic Castellano Pletcher 116
3 Joes Blazing Aaron Graeme Hall Bocachica Hunter Jr. 116
4 Artful Run K Artie Schiller Desormeaux Romans 116
5 Queen’splatekitten Kitten’s Joy Velazquez Pletcher 116
6 Newsdad K Arch Castanon Mott 116
7 Liberty Cap Street Cry (Ire) Lezcano McLaughlin 116
SCRATCHED8 Pluck More Than Ready Maragh Motion 120
9 Master Dunker Imperialism Saez Fawkes 120
10 Rafe Anabaa Trujillo Stewart 120
NO MO AT TAMPA, BUT GULFSTREAM!
The highly anticipated season debut of UNCLE MO, the star 2yo of last year, champion and Facebook junkie, will take place SATURDAY, but not in the Tampa Bay Derby but in the little Timely Writer Stakes at Gulfstream. The son of Indian Charlie, unbeaten in 3 races, is meeting a weak group although the presence of probable 2yo Canadian champion Madman Diairies makes for an interesting pace set up. Debut winner RATTLESNAKE BRIDGE is an interesting opponent.
Saturday, Gulfstream Park, post time: 4:25 p.m. EST
TIMELY WRITER S., $100,000, 3yo, 1m
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Uncle Mo Indian Charlie Velazquez Pletcher 123
2 Gallant Dreams Bernardini Castellano Albertrani 117
3 Madman Diaries Bring the Heat Sanchez Ward 121
4 Rocking Out Include Leparoux Dutrow Jr 117
5 Schoolyard Cat Catienus Curatolo Martin 117
6 Rattlesnake Bridge Tapit Lezcano McLaughlin 117
Saturday, Tampa Bay Downs, post time: 5:20 p.m. EDT
TAMPA BAY DERBY-GII, $350,000, 3yo, 1 1/16m
PP HORSE SIRE JOCKEY TRAINER WT
1 Striding Ahead Empire Maker Solis Mott 116
2 Economic Summit K Malibu Moon Solis Violette Jr. 116
3 Beamer Vindication Goncalves Nafzger 116
4 Uncle Mo K Indian Charlie Velazquez Pletcher 122
5 Too Experience Drewman Centeno Passley 120
6 Crimson Knight Leroidsanimux (Brz) Allen Jr. Bennett 116
7 Free Entry K Tale of the Cat Garcia Brown 116
8 Moonhanger K Malibu Moon Marquez Jr. Alexander 116
9 Watch Me Go West Acre Garcia O’Connell 116
10 Brethren Distorted Humor Dominguez Pletcher 120
GIMME FEVER…
NINA FEVER, a Borrego filly who won a 5 furlong turf dash at Gulfstream yesterday in 55 second flat is headed to the April 9 STAR SHOOT STAKES at Woodbine according to THOROUGHBRED DAILY NEWS.
Owned by Gatewood Bell and Wesley ward, the 3yo filly was 2nd in the Glorious Song Stakes last year to ISABELLA BAY. anne’s beauty!!
DID YOU READ THIS?
The Ontario Racing Commission, who recently have made the cellphone numbers of stewards available, is launching the Ontario Racing Program framework. Did you read Rod Seilings letter?
if you did, what do you think?
Send us your comments.
Read the letter by clicking:
CANADIAN STUFF
GOLDEN MOKA finished last of 5 in his comeback race yesterday at Gulfstream, beaten 7 lengths in an allowance/optional claiming race. He earned an 86 Beyer Figure despite the loss.
The Prince of Wales winner has been 5th in all 3 races since his upset score in the big Fort Erie race last summer.
JOCKS IN 2011:
269 Eurico Rosa Da Silva 77 8 20 10 $307,095 10% 38 49%
351 Emma-Jayne Wilson 52 5 9 12 $196,961 10% 26 50%
TRAINERS
34 Robertino Diodoro 101 25 16 10 $218,341 25% 51 50%
178 Malcolm Pierce 33 4 5 3 $171,480 12% 12 36%
185 Mark E. Casse 51 8 2 5 $165,547 16% 15 29%
174 Josie Carroll 25 4 5 2 $175,580 16% 11 44%
290 Mark R. Frostad 17 3 0 4 $114,510 18% 7 41%
214 Scott H. Fairlie 36 5 3 8 $149,120 14% 16 44%
GUESS WHAT??
Last year’s sale-topping yearling in Canada, a Stormy Atlantic filly out of Theatre Fan, by Theatrical, has been named LARBOARD LADY. The $130,000 purchase is owned by Harlequin Ranches.
The highest priced yearling in Canada last year – LARBOARD LADY! Dave Landry photo
COOL FOR SCHOOL
Melnyk’s Provdence is expanding
“Teach Me Goodness, Knowledge, Discipline”
That is the motto for Providence School,a school in St. Goerge, Barbados that Eugene Melnyk helped establish several years ago.
Providence School is governed by a Board of Trustees (Eugene Melnyk – Chair, Phillip Goddard and Sir David Seale) who have empowered a Board of Management (Laura Melnyk – Chair, Tom Sheedy, Eugene Melnyk and Greg Hook) to operate the School.
Providence School is a Not for Profit Registered Charity under the Barbadian Tax Law.
from Barbados Advocate
Providence opening secondary school
3/5/2011
Providence Elementary School, located at Francia House, St. George, will be expanding with the opening of a secondary school this September, which will be located on the same 37 1/2-acre plantation that houses the elementary school.
This was announced by Principal, Tom Steedy, on Friday as Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Eugene Melnyk, broke ground for the new addition to Providence.
With an estimated cost of $15 million, Steedy pointed out that the secondary school has evolved from the primary school, as six years ago they started out with a student roll of 33 and currently it has grown impressively to 248.
Already expanding their educational offerings from last year September with the introduction of Form One, Steedy acknowledged that continuing studies at the secondary school will be a choice, as some students still decide to move onto the government schools.
http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=local&NewsID=16186
DUBAI DOINGS
Thursday’s ZABELL MILE (gII) at one mile on the grass went to a Godolphin runner, not a surprise, but this one paid more than 15 to 1.
The 5yo RILEYKEEPINGFAITH (Hunting Love) was the winner and it is interesting that this gelding was making his first ever start at 1 mile.
For such a large stable as Godolphin, it is bizarre that this horse, after 29 STARTS had only raced at 6 and 7 furlongs.
Guess he likes 1 mile distances too!
