“Whipping must go” – Ray Paulick, Nov. 20 2016 at Woodbine
JOCKEY CLUB OF CANADA YEAR END MEETING
Ray Paulick speaks to members and media
The Jockey Club of Canada met for the final time in 2016 at Woodbine on Sunday morning with several announcements.
The SOVEREIGN AWARDS, currently set for Thursday April 6 2017, will now include a Groom of the Year Award and a sponsor for the awards has signed on and will be announced soon. The Jockey Club is also offered sponsorship packages from $1,000 to $15,000 which will get the buyer a litany of features including tickets, program ad, etc. This is an attempt to raise funds
The 2016 champion will be honoured at the Palais Royale, the first time the awards has been held away from Woodbine in several years.
RAY PAULICK of the www.paulickreport.com and former editor of the Blood-Horse and writer for Daily Racing Form, was the guest speaker and he intrigued the audience with stories of his foray into horse racing and how he began the Paulick Report in 2008.
“We investigate and expose wrong doing in horse racing,” said Ray, who has built the site into one of the top go-to pages in horse racing.
A number of issues that Paulick says are critical to racing today include drugs, wagering and whips.
“Young people do not watch racing, or see racing, like we did years ago. We need to take care of the animal: whipping must go.”
Ray said the new generation of horse racing lovers are going to be turned off by whipping in a race.
He also said handle has not grown in the last decade, in fact it has dropped by one-third. “There is too much emphasis placed on jackpot bets creating the illusion that people can get rich betting the races. What you end up with are people emptying out by chasing these bets.
The thrill of cashing a win ticket on a horse is gone.”
And drugs in racing is always an issue today in racing with Ray saying “Clenbuterol is a vastly abused drug in racing.”
Ray Paulick and yours truly and trainer Catherine Day Phillips (far right) at the Jockey Club of Canada meeting at Woodbine on Sunday – MR WILL WONG PHOTO
WOODBINE WRAP UP FROM SATURDAY AND SUNDAY
strong outside bias/deep rail bias on the weekend
Sunday was cut short after race 6 as the strong winds led to a few of the jockeys leading to a vote that ended up discontinuing the card. The Grade 2 Kennedy Road Stakes will be held on Friday.
Trainer Cathy McEwin sent out GYPSY JAZZ to win race 3 on the day in a wild battle to the wire. The $40,000 maiden claiming event was the 11th race for the Mast Track 4yo who was bred by Box Arrow Farm and is owned by Bob Watson. It was the first win of the meeting for McEwin. Simon Husbands rode.
The amazing 9-year-old gelding GENTLEMAN JACKSON won for the 17th time in his career in race 5, taking a $6,250 claiming race in his 60th career start. The gelding has had 10 different listed trainers but he has had most of his success with Martin Drexler, who has trained him for several different owners. Drexler has won 10 races with the gelding who is a son of Alert.
Gentleman Jackson won this 6 1/2 furlong race in 1:16.03 and once again he has been claimed, this time by the recently returned trainer Mike Wright Jr.
GENTLEMAN JACKSON – 17 wins in 60 races and he is a 9-year-old warrior. Claimed on Sunday from Deborah Fletcher and trainer Marty Drexler. MR WILL WONG PHOTO
On Saturday – Trainer Mike Doyle is just 2 wins away from matching his best season by wins since 1993. SILENT FLASH won race 1 for owner and breeder Scott Abbott and he was the 30th winner for the Doyle stable in 2016.The 2yo colt won his maiden in this Ontario sired allowance in his 8th career race and he was stakes placed earlier this season. He is a son of Silent Name (Jpn)
SIMPLE AS THAT won her 4th race of the season in race 4 for Waccamaw Stable, R Patterson and Katerina Vassilieva. The lovely Langfuhr mare won for $6,,250 and she has taken 3 of her wins this year for her current owners. Alan Garcia rode the 7yo who has won 9 of 50 races.
ELLAN VANNIN, a first time starting 2-year-old filly and the first horse owned by Jon Lee, rallied wide from post 12 in a 5 furlong maiden allowance and tilted the tote in race 5. The daughter of Spring at Last – Vulcan Rose by Fusaichi Pegasus, bred in Ontario by Phoenix Rising Farm of Barry and Deborah Holmes who hail from B.C.
Trained by Tony Gattellero, Ellan Vannin was bought back from last year’s Canadian Premier Yearling Sale after she failed to reach her reserve of $20,000 but she was bought for that following the sale. The filly is from the immediate family of graded stakes winner Tiz a Slam.
“My mother and I were born in “the Isle of Man”, a small island in the Irish Sea, Ellan Vannin means ‘Isle of Man’, “said Lee. “The unnamed anthem of the island is “Ellan Vannin” sung by the Bee Gees. My Mom died of cancer 8 yrs ago and the filly is named in honour of my late great Mom.”
Ellan Vannin was ridden by Jeff Alderson and she earned a 66 Beyer Figure.
The 6th race was the 36th GLORIOUS SONG STAKES and LET IT RIDE MOM won her first stakes race and became the 3rd juvenile stakes winner for Live Oak Plantation at Woodbine this year. This 2yo filly, ridden by Rafael Hernandez, was a $375,000 2yo purchase and she is by Into Mischief from the Marlin mare Golden Marlin. The winning Beyer Figure was 76 for 7 furlongs on the very fast surface of 1:22.69.
PHIL IN THE BLANK won the 4th time this year off the claim by trainer Krista Cole and owner Sean Kissoon. The dark bay speedster by Philanthropist won the allowance race at 5 furlongs after winning for $8,000 claiming. It was the 4th win of the season for young trainer Cole. The winner almost beat the track record as he won in 56.70
Trainer CATHERINE DAY PHILLIPS’ 20th winner of the meeting, FLASHINTHEPANTS, won race 10 for maidens. The Anderson – Eskudt homebred added blinkers. Day Phillips’ previous best year by wins was 19 in 2005.
RIVER MAID brave in Bessarabian, favourite to win Sovereign Award for Female Sprinter 2016
88 Beyer Speed Figure in victory
MR WILL WONG grabbed this cool shot of the speed and determination of RIVER MAID (4) yesterday at Woodbine
The Very Dry Stable’s River Maid, patiently handled by birthday boy Gary Boulanger, arrived in the final stride to win Saturday’s $233,200 Grade 2 Bessarabian Stakes, at Woodbine.
Trained by Robert Tiller, the four-year-old daughter of Where’s the Ring came into the seven furlong Tapeta sprint from a third-place run in the Grade 3 Ontario Fashion, a six furlong sprint won by Bessarabian rival Southern Ring.
The added furlong made all the difference for River Maid in the Bessarabian as Boulanger, celebrating his 49th birthday, watched from fourth position as favoured Midnight Miley led through splits of :23.35 and :45.74 under pressure from Southern Ring.
Midnight Miley maintained a precarious lead through the turn before Southern Ring took over, but there was no denying the tremendous turn of foot from River Maid as the dark bay surged past her rival to secure a neck win. Southern Ring held place by a nose over Minks Aprise. River Maid stopped the clock in 1:21.85.
“She’s a hard trying mare,” said Boulanger. “She always shows up and gives you everything she has. A couple times this year, three-quarters might have been a little bit short for her but she always gave everything.”
Boulanger had great confidence in his mare heading into the event.
“She worked really well going into this race and she put me in a good position,” said Boulanger. “When I was that close at the five-sixteenths pole, I thought I could have a big piece of it if not all of it. She really dug in down the lane.”
Tiller, who was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2008, was keen to see River Maid stretch out after four straight starts travelling six furlongs.
“The difference is the distance. Six furlongs is too short for this filly. We’ve been waiting for a seven-eighths stake and we got the perfect trip,” said Tiller. “She’s game. She wants to win. We’ve been very careful with her aiming to this race and we really thought that seven-eighths was her distance.”
River Maid, bred in Ontario by Jay Cochlin, banked $144,000 in victory while improving her record to 7-3-2 from 14 starts.
FINAL ONTARIO RACING CONSULTATION MEETING ON TUESDAY
All industry members who have not attended urged to do so in Milton
Port Perry meeting – Photo by Darryl Kaplan
“What do horsepeople do when they earn some money in the industry? They spend it! New fencing, trucks, barns…”
There was a very large crowd of about 100 people at the Ontario Racing Consultation meeting in Port Perry, ON on Saturday afternoon and plenty of heartfelt, emotional comments and questions from the crowd of Quarter Horse, Thoroughbred and Standardbred horsepoeple.
The comment above was from Bernard McCormack from Cara Bloodstock, one of the bigger breeders of Thoroughbreds in Ontario, and McCormack was one of several people who talked about the framework that will be put together, from horsepeople’s wishes and comments, and presented to the Ontario government in January.
There is one meeting left, in Milton on Tuesday, and it is important that everyone with a stake in the industry attend at least one of these meetings.
At Saturday’s meeting, Rob Cool, executive director of OR said, “The government is saying right now that $93.4 million is on the table [for the next 17 years],” said Cook. “Do you want it or not? We’ll take back any answer you give us but we have to be prepared with an alternative. Right now we have an opportunity to get a government commitment but we don’t know that commitment will be there months from now.
Standardbred Canada summarized the meeting:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/news/11-19-16/strong-turnout-sixth-consultation.html
The OR presentation can be read here:
http://www.standardbredcanada.ca/files/or-long-term-funding-webinar-v2.pdf
BOLD N’ FLASHY – 1989 – 2016
Track record setter, world traveler and multiple stakes winning stallion BOLD N’ FLASHY has passed away. He was 27 and died of natural causes.
Standing at T C Westmeath Stud since 1996, this wonderful son of Bold Ruckus won 10 of 41 races and over $360,000 in an era when purses were not very high. Bred and co-owned by Rom Romeo’s Terra Farms, also co-owned by Rocco Marcello, Bold n’ Flashy was a rapid fellow who ran at 9 tracks in his career including overseas. He was trained by Debbie England.
“Bold N Flashy was a super cool horse and could run a hole in wind,”, said Mike Romeo, grandson of Dom Romeo. “He broke the track record at the Meadowlands in the Mercer Raceabout S. covering 5 Furlongs in 55.70 then we shipped him to France to run on Arc weekend in the Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp where he finished 6th on a yielding turf. He ran in stakes at Woodbine, Meadowlands, Hollywood Park, Pimlico, Monmouth, Arlington, Churchill Downs, Calder, and in France (Longchamp), England (York), and Brazil (Gavea). He loved 5 Furlongs on a firm turf. Unfortunately back in the early 1990’s there wasn’t much opportunity or money for those type of runners. Today he probably could have made $1,000,000 running in the races he did.”
“As a stallion he had his fair share of stake winners in Paso Doble, Miss Crissy, Devastating, Whistling Maid, Dressed For Action, Bold Thunder, Flashy Margaritta and of course our homebred Marco Be Good. It’s also interesting he’s the 2nd dam sire on both 2016 Coronation Futurity winner King and His Court and 2015 champion Strut the Course.”
Here’s the video of his Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp and Nunthorpe
Bold n’ Flashy will be remembered as one of the fastest horses this province has produced in the last few decades and a reliable stallion who gave us plenty of winners.
