Make Out Artist Wins Canterbury Derby

By JIM WELLS

The quarter horse world uses a simple measuring stick for evaluating racehorses. There is fast, faster and fastest and the Ed Ross Hardy barn had a corner on the last two heading into Sunday’s Canterbury Park $39,850 Quarter Horse Derby.

Make Out Artist was the swiftest of all in the 10-horse field, qualifying with a time of 20.454. His stable-mate, Mighty Fast Man, was second on the list of qualifiers with a time of 20.498.
Third quickest was Shake Em Diva out of the Vic Hanson barn (20.638). In Hanson’s view, the race boiled down to this:
“We only have to outrun two of them and we’ll be in pretty good shape,’’ he deadpanned.

Sometimes it’s as simple as that.

Other times it’s not.

Make Out Artist, a son of Make It Anywhere, simply refused to cooperate with Hanson’s hopes and flew to victory in a time of 20.107, beating Shake Em Diva in a photo finish that most observers didn’t require to determine the winner.

Make Out Artist didn’t break as sharply as usual but regained his feet 50 yards out of the gate and turned on the afterburners. “I don’t know what it was,’’ said winning rider Ry Eikleberry. “The No. 4 horse (Shake Em Diva) came out of there pretty quick.’’

Third was Sixes Battleship, trained by Joe Merrick and ridden by Terry Bennett.

Hardy’s barn has been handled primarily by his wife, Kari, throughout the meet while he tends to other matters. “I’ve been running trials down south,’’ he said. “But this race fit my schedule.’’
So, Hardy made the trip from Austin, Texas. He had a third horse in the race, Alikazam, ridden by Scott Stevens, that didn’t figure in the money.

Make Out Artist and Mighty Fast Man were the horses to beat.

“Well, you beat one of them,’’ a bystander said to Hanson in the winner’s circle. “Yes, we tried,’’ Hanson replied.

Hardy has been Canterbury’s champion quarter horse trainer seven years running and is firmly in command to make it eight straight. His barn is loaded with runners.

He liked his chances before the race was run on Sunday.
“These two horses are doing as good as I’ve ever seen him,’’ he said. “Make Out Artist is very much on the muscle and looks great. The other one, Might Fast Man, had a couple of good races earlier this year and is even better now.’’

Shake Em Diva was Hardy’s chief concern before the race and validated that concern. He was just a jump short of taking it all, and that was good news to the winner’s owners: Baudelio Mena of Brooklyn Park, Craig Meschke of Andover and Bruce Scheuing of Chaska.

Hardy expected Make Out Artist to assume his normal demeanor once he returned to the barn Sunday evening. “He’s really easy going, laid back and quiet,’’ he said. “But once you take him out of that stall, that’s when he comes to life.’’

As he did once again on Sunday, winning for the fourth time in 11 career starts.

Last Call Was The First For Canterbury Fans

By JIM WELLS

Clyde Peterson and Tim Fella, a couple of friendly guys from Chicago, have known each other for 20 years and have been involved in racing for the past 10.

About 2 ½ years ago they teamed up as horse owners and called the collaboration “Last Call Racing Partnership.”

“We were getting kicked out of a lot of places at closing time,’’ Peterson explained.

One of them was on Friday night in Shakopee. “Yeah, they were there for last call,’’ said Richie Scherer, who trains their horse Mizzcan’tbewrong.

Last call became first call for a number of Canterbury Park patrons Saturday afternoon.
Jockey Paul Nolan was named Canterbury Classic jockey on Saturday’s card, meaning that if he won two races beer and pop would be reduced to 1985 prices.

Nolan won Saturday’s seventh race on a 5-year-old gelding named Tytus for Web Gems Stable of Bloomington. Then, in the feature race, the eighth, Nolan rated Mizzcan’tbewrong for a stretch run and easily beat seven rivals in the $50,000 HBPA Mile.

“She’s a nice filly,’’ Fella said while watching a replay of the race.

Mizzcan’tbewrong returned $4 as the even-money favorite in a race that had fans excited for the past week.

The race featured a full field of 12 and a winner so tough to pick that the morning line favorite, Si Si Mon Amie, was 4-1.

There was something for everyone: two local horses, ship-ins and even the defending champion in the $100,000 Lady Canterbury.

A great race--on the grass.

And it was ruined by the rain.

The race was pulled off the turf at mid morning and moved onto the main track.
The switch resulted in four scratches: Cape Cod Bay, Si Si Mon Amie, Couple Whiles and Postivelycharming.

And that turned what was anticipated to be a great race into a merely good race.
One of the scratches was Si Si Mon Amie, trained by Anthony Granitz and a winner of nearly $150,000. Also sidelined was locally stabled Couple Whiles, who has won four times and hit the board a total of nine times from 12 starts on the Canterbury turf.

Cape Cod Bay, owned by Overbrook Farm, was coming off two nice wins at Churchill Downs and Arlington Park and was also scratched.

Positivelycharming, owned by Glen Hill Farm and trained by Tom Proctor, was a 6-1 morning line choice and was the fourth scratch from the field.

So some of the speed was gone and that changed strategies for most of the runners.
Scherer and Nolan conferred and discovered they had both been thinking along similar lines. They figured Scott Stevens, riding Fabulous Babe, owned by Bob Ryan and trained by Mac Robertson, had to go to the lead.

Nolan and Scherer decided to take things as they developed. If Mizzcan’tbewrong, who likes to run on the front, got the lead and could settle into her own pace, so be it.

If not, they would go to plan B, settle into the top flight somewhere, relax and take a run at the end. The race presented plan B, with Fabulous Babe setting a hot pace and Mizzcan’tbewrong and Quiet Queen, the defending Lady Canterbury champion, stalking the lead within a couple of lengths.

Nolan wasn’t sure if he was riding a winner at the 3-8ths pole. “She wasn’t getting hold of the track. I didn’t know if I could win,’’ he said.

When he asked the Mizzen Mast filly to run, he changed his mind. “Then the racehorse in her appeared,’’ Nolan said.

Unable to grab the dirt earlier, Mizzcan’tbewrong dug in and won going away, finishing 4 ¾ lengths in front of Fabulous Babe, who had a neck on Quiet Queen.

Peterson and Fella were ecstatic. They came from Chicago and it was worth the trip.
The filly they claimed at Arlington Park last September made it worth while. And there could be more to come.

They just purchased an unraced three-year-old named Musicstreet Menance.
He’s Mizzcan’tbewrong’s little brother.

The Jogging Wheel

In the video below, Ray Hashimoto talks about the popular backside exercise tool, the jogging wheel.

Shot of Gold Stakes

This past weekend on Father's Day was the fifth running of the $35,000 Shot of Gold Stakes. Lovango rallied to win it with Derek Bell aboard. Lovango is trained by leading trainer, Mac Robertson and owned by Barry and Joni Butzow of Eden Prairie.

Quiet Queen Made Big Noise In Last Race Here

By JIM WELLS
She was bedded up to the chest in straw with her head thrust out the trailer window, absorbing a 60 mph breeze on Interstate 94 near Wisconsin Dells.

"She's as happy as a clam back there,'' Bonnie Kassen said from the front of the truck. "She simply loves it.''

The conversation involved Quiet Queen, who simply loved the Canterbury Park turf course last summer as well, cruising to victory in the $100,000 Lady Canterbury Stakes.
How appropriate!

A horse named Quiet Queen gracing the winner's circle after winning a race called the Lady Canterbury.

Kassen was in Shakopee for that race while her husband, Dave, tended to the stable at Arlington Park. She was en route to Shakopee once again during the conversation via cell phone near Wisconsin Dells on Thursday. This time, Quiet Queen was headed to Shakopee for Saturday's HBPA Mile, most likely the last race she will run before defending her title in the Lady Canterbury on July 25.

"That's the plan,'' Bonnie said.

The Kassens have been involved in racing since the 1960s, he first as a jockey and then as a trainer after outgrowing the former occupation. As a regular rider on the Kentucky circuit, Dave Kassen was familiar to many of the Kentucky bluebloods and was given an opportunity by some of them when he opened a barn in 1970.

"He rode for a lot of the bigshots in Kentucky, the prominent breeders,'' Bonnie recalled. "They helped set him up and he built his barn from there.''

Bonnie was galloping horses at the time and went to work for Dave. "I ended up marrying the boss and we've been together since 1983,'' she said.

Quiet Queen is one of a number of nice horses the Kassens have conditioned over the years. They also trained Avies Copy, who finished third in the 1987 Kentucky Derby won by Alysheba.
Nate Cole was a gallop boy for the Kassens in those days and worked Avies Copy before the Derby. On Thursday, he was occupied with his current line of work and was at the wheel of the van _ next to Bonnie _ hauling Quiet Queen to Canterbury Park.

Once they arrived in Shakopee, Kassen bedded Quiet Queen down in her stall and checked into a local motel to await Saturday's race.

A year ago, Tracy Hebert flew into Minnesota to ride for Kassen in the Lady Canterbury. He will not have far to travel for Saturday's race. He is one of the leading riders at the Canterbury meet this summer.

"He rode her just great last time,'' Bonnie said. "I'm glad he's named on her again.''
Quiet Queen collected a check for $60,000 last summer and has career earnings now of $158,208. The six-year-old daughter of Real Quiet from the Tejano mare Polkadot Princess has won six times and finished third twice from 25 career starts. Four wins have come from 12 starts on the grass.

She hasn't hit the board in three stakes starts in 2009. She finished fourth on June 6 in a five-furlong sprint at Arlington Park. "That was a tune-up for this race,'' Bonnie said. "Her best distance is a mile to a mile and 1-16th, two turns.''

Kassen described the mare as easy-going and a pleasure to train. "Quiet Queen, her name, fits perfectly,'' Bonnie said. "She's quiet but she's very confident. And on race day she'll drag you up the paddock. She's all business. A real professional.''

Kassen plans to walk Quiet Queen and nothing more before Saturday's race. "It's simply too hot, '' she said. "And she's fit, so walking is all she needs.''

News and Notes

HBPA MILE GOES HIGH DEFINITION
By Jim Wells

The Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Assn. will stage its annual awards brunch as a prelude to the running of the feature event on Saturday's race card, the $50,000 HBPA Mile for fillies and mares three years of age and older.

The annual turf race has attracted a full field of 12, including two locally stabled horses.

"And there were four more that were excluded,'' said HBPA president Tom Metzen.

The awards brunch will precede the card at Longshots in the Grandstand, beginning at 11:30 a.m. The brunch is free to all horsemen and their employees.

Awards will be presented to SEJ Stable (Curt Johnson) as the leading owner of 2009, to Mac Robertson as the leading trainer, Derek Bell as the top rider and Eagle Storm as Horse of the Year.

Cort Holten will provide an update on legislative matters and Nat Wess will talk about the upcoming Claiming Crown, scheduled for July 25. Track president/CEO Randy Sampson will provide an update on matters pertaining to the track and horsemen.

In previous years, the HBPA has given away vouchers or hats to fans as a way of marking this occasion. This year, the horsemen's group has sent out flyers and raffle cards to promote its biggest giveaway ever.

A drawing will be held after each race to determine the winners of 10 flat-screen television sets.
Metzen said he got the idea from a Hollywood Park promotion but altered it slightly for practical purposes.

"Hollywood Park gave away 52-inch sets,'' he said, "but when you think about it not many people have homes that accommodate something that large.''

So, the sets being given away on Saturday include 38-inch screens. Metzen said the HBPA said out 13,000 flyers and raffle cards. "We're hoping for a big turnout,'' he said.

AND THE FAVORITE IS?
Mark Stancato spent early Wednesday afternoon handicapping the horses entered in Saturday's HBPA Mile.

It's a competitive race with a field of 12, competitive enough that Stancato's morning-line favorite is a ship-in named Si Si Mon Amie, a career winner of $149,000 he has made 4-1.
Competitive?

Quiet Queen, with career earnings of $158,000, made $60,000 as last year's winner of the $100,000 Lady Canterbury. She is shipping in from Arlington Park for the race and is 10-1. She will have the same rider she had in the Lady Canterbury _ Tracy Hebert.

Also at 10-1 is Will Carlson and Jerry Pint's Couple Whiles, trained by Bernell Rhone with Dean Butler up and also Mast Thoroughbreds' Nijinsky Ballet. Joining Couple Whiles, the leading money earner in the field at $271,600, from the Canterbury stables is Bob Ryan's Fabulous Babe, who has won $91,192. She is trained by Mac Robertson and will be ridden by Scott Stevens.

Glen Hill Farms Positively Charming is a 6-1 morning line choice, and Mizzcan'tbewrong, winner of $186,000, is 5-1.

She just won in stakes company at Arlington Park and will be ridden by Paul Nolan.
Mike Grossman's Slide On Bye, trained by Franciso Bravo, will make her Canterbury debut at 12-1. ,

"Tough race? Absolutely,'' said Stancato. "There are several who could win.''

The field from the rail out:
1, Quiet Queen, Tracy Hebert; 2, Slide On Bye, Tommy Molina; 3, Nijinsky Ballet, Jose Ferrer; 4, Couple Whiles, Dean Butler; 5, Lindsey's Wish, Kyle Kaenel; 6,Mizzcan'tbewrong, Paul Nolan; 7,Winters Bell, Dylan Williams; 8,Cape Cod Bay, Derek Bell; 9,Royal Highland, Ry Eikleberry; 10, Si Si Mon Amie, John McKee; 11, Positively Charming, Nik Goodwin; 12, Fabulous Babe, Scott Stevens.

Bet Your Boots: What's next?

Two-year-old colt and son of Birdstone; Bet Your Boots broke his maiden last Saturday by a staggering seventeen lengths, Paul Nolan aboard. Bet Your Boots is trained by Troy A. Bethke and owned by Cheryl Sprick and Richard Bremer. Below, Bethke discusses what is next for the colt.

One Door Closes, Another Opens

By JIM WELLS

Sometimes the doors that open and those that close, the roads not taken and those that are, lead to interesting places and mysterious corners in the thoroughbred business.
Take Saturday’s second race for example. Paul Nolan rode a 2-year-old Minnesota-bred colt named Bet Your Boots to a lopsided victory in maiden open company.
Lopsided?

Ah… what do you say to 17 lengths…in 58.46 for five furlongs.

A very nice effort this son of the most celebrated sire of the 3-year-old season, none other than Birdstone.

Cheryl Sprick and Richard Bremer of Lake City went to the February Fasig-Tipton sale three years ago hoping to buy the mother to this colt’s dam, Gully who was in foal to Birdstone.
“We got outbid by the Sampsons for her mother,’’ Sprick said Sunday. “That’s the mare we were after.’’

Instead, Sprick and her husband bought Gully’s daughter, an unraced mare named Thigh High Boots who also was in foal to Birdstone.

Sometimes an opportunity lost leads to something gained just as satisfying.

The Lake City couple raise horses to sell not necessarily to race. So, they took Thigh High Boots’ foal to the MTA yearling sale last year.“We bring our horses to sale not intending to bring them home,’’ Sprick said. They did in this case, however.

Bet Your Boots had a front splint bone that wasn’t resolved. “We wanted to sell a prospect not a project,’’ Sprick added. “So we took him home.’’
He ran a close second in his maiden start on May 23 and was clearly much the best in Sunday’s race.

Thigh High Boots is by Storm Boot. “That’s where the speed (displayed by Bet Your Boots) comes from,’’ Sprick added.

The split bone clearly is no longer a problem, but Bet Your Boots also required throat surgery to get him to the form he displayed on Sunday under Paul Nolan.

Bet Your Boots was the first of two winners on the card for trainer Troy Bethke, who also saddled a winning longshot the day before.

Sprick and Bremer have a half dozen mares, five of them in foal, at their Steepwood Farm, located on the shores of Lake Pepin outside Lake City.

They call it the most beautiful paddock in the world, an idyllic setting with horses grazing and the lake in the background.

Naturally, they had a favorite horse for the Kentucky Derby this year. Birdstone was also sire to Mine that Bird.

And to Belmont Stakes winner Summer Bird.
An interesting side note to this story is that a horse named Birdstone Gulch won at Canterbury earlier this season. He was the son of Gully, the mare Steepwood Farm was outbid for by the Sampsons.
Russ Sampson recalled an interesting piece to the story. Bet Your Boots was scheduled to run in the same race won by Birdstone Gulch but scratched due to illness.
Could a match be in the offing?
Stay tuned.

LOVGANO, WALLY’S CHOICE WIN
Lovango, under Derek Bell, was a clear winner in the $35,000 stakes on Sunday’s card, but winning owner Barry Butzow was just as impressed and excited about the winning horse in the previous race, Wally’s Choice.

Butzow pointed out all the Wally has done, recovering from multiple surgeries while remaining a solid local performer who picked up his 15th career win on Sunday.
Wally’s Choice won for the fourth time in nine starts on the Canterbury lawn for his owners, Curtis Sampson and Joyce and Wally McNeil, the latter more widely known as Wally the Beerman, who is recovering from recent heart bypass surgery.

The fifth running of the Shot of Gold Stakes produced a clear winner as Lovango passed tiring horses and drew off from Bobadieu and the field over the final 16th for a commanding victory under Derek Bell.

The win was the sixth in 22 career starts for Lovango.

QUARTER HORSE FUTURITY
Oak Tree Boulevard, a son of Oak Tree Special, won his second race in two career starts on Sunday, the $15,000 Minnesota Stallion Breeders’ Quarter Horse Futurity under Ry Eikleberry.
The winner was bred by and is owned by Bob and Julie Peterson of Cokato. Ed Ross Hardy trains.
Sea N Lace, ridden by Jerry Winters, finished second for trainer Ron Winget and owners Al and Claire Lundgren.

NOLAN HAS BIG DAY
Jockey Paul Nolan rode four winners on Sunday’s card. He was on Bet Your Boots in t he second race,Denndi Moore in the third,Brook Ghazer in the fourth and Wally’s Choice in the seventh.

Reusse Column on Hebert

If you have not yet read today's Minneapolis Star Tribune, visit the sports section online for a column featuring jockey Tracy Hebert by Patrick Reusse.

Star Tribune Sports - click hear to read

Something Unique Was Bound To Happen

By JIM WELLS

You just knew that something good was going to happen, or at least something unusual, in Saturday’s third race.

The race was designated “Milly’s Memorial Race” so it couldn’t be ordinary, routine or otherwise commonplace.

The race was run in honor of Milly Otsea, a long-time employee of the track who died in April. Milly was special to a long list of folks, so the race, a six-furlong claiming sprint for maidens, had to offer something special as well.

And that it did.

Bold Ozzie, a 3-year-old gelding by Ghazi, had a reputation for not being able to finish races. “He might have something wrong, a flapper or something or he might need to go longer,’’ said Les Mertens as he watched the race on a grandstand monitor.

There didn’t seem to be much wrong this time, with Bold Ozzie or the distance.
Bold Ozzie held off Timeless Fortune, who made a determined bid to take away the lead in the closing strides, and broke out of the maiden ranks as a 12-1 longshot.

Timeless Fortune, ridden by Jose Ferrer, is trained by Todd Hoffrogge, a great nephew to Milly, who worked in the track concession and supervised a number of concession stands in the grandstand.

“You’ve got more reasons than usual to win this one,’’ a bystander said to Hoffrogge as he left the paddock. “Yeah, it would be nice. Grandma Elaine is here and so are a lot of other relatives.’’
“It would be nice to win this one for Milly,’’ said Dave Astar, who owns Timeless Fortune with his wife, Deborah.

Timeless Fortune couldn’t overtake Bold Ozzie on this day, and that was good news to the winner’s owners, Scott, 9, and Olivia Bethke, 5, whose dad, Troy, trains Bold Ozzie.

As everyone lined up for the picture in the winner’s circle, Scott gave winning rider Paul Nolan a high five and then breathed a deep sigh of relief.

Twenty minutes earlier, Troy Bethke joked with a bystander about Bold Ozzie, winless in five starts, as he left the paddock. “This horse better win today or we’re going to give him to the Amish,’’. Troy said, taking a look Scott as he spoke.

There was an obvious problem with that scenario as Bethke quickly pointed out. “They’d probably use him to transport the kids, and they’d always be late for school,’’ he said.
Not Saturday. Not during Milly’s race.

The winner’s circle was packed afterward with members of the Otsea family, other relatives, friends and riders who knew Milly. Rider Dean Butler held up the picture briefly to grab his 2-year-old daughter Kayleigh.

Afterward, a group congregated near the spot where Milly always sat during the races, underneath the steps that lead from the grandstand apron to the horsemen’s section on the second level.

A table was set up and the area was roped off. A plant was on the table with a picture taken a few years ago of Claiming Crown boss Nat Wess, Milly, her husband, Fred, and track president/CEO Randy Sampson.

Plans are to put a plaque there inscribed with the words displayed Saturday on a temporary placard: “Forever, Milly’s Spot. Canterbury Park’s Goodwill Ambassador to Horsemen. Employee, fan, friend.’’

LATE EDITIONS RIGHT ON TIME
You didn’t need a Racing Form for a number of races Saturday. All you needed was the name of the sire.

Late Edition, a 14-year-old son of Cryptoclearance from the Storm Bird mare Starlet Storm, had six starters on the card and they had an excellent day.

Six starters, two of them in the same race, produced three wins and a second.
Two days ago, a 2-year-old daughter of Late Edition named Cinder Ellie ran third in her debut for trainer Doug Oliver.

Late Edition stands at Osborne Farm, three miles west of Cambridge. The farm is managed by Rick and Joyce Osborne.

Late Edition’s starters performed like this on Saturday:

Wide Ide, a 3-year-old gelding from the Ide mare Ide Tyme, won the first race under Ry Eikleberry. He is trained by Oliver.

Late Edition scored again in the second race. Bauble Boy won that race for Scott Stevens and trainer Bernell Rhone.

Timeless Fortune was just beaten by Bold Ozzie in the third race.

Brother O Mine, from Betsy Lite, is a four-year-old gelding who didn’t light the board in the fifth race. But Lumpsinmyoatmeal, ridden by Dylan Williams and trained by Coty Rosin, gave Late Edition his third winner on the card in race six.

He's No Dog on The Racetrack, Though

By JIM WELLS

Hands Off Buddy cracks 'em up in the Ed Ross Hardy barn. The 2-year-old son of Sixes Royal keeps just about everyone within sight shakin' their heads in disbelief.

Sometimes he simply stands in his stall with his tongue hanging out the side of his mouth, waiting for a reaction of some kind. Other times, he chases his tail, as if he were part of the canine family as opposed to the equine branch.

"I simply didn't believe it when Kari told me about it,'' said trainer Ed Ross Hardy. "I didn't believe it, thought it must be somethin' else.''

Ed Ross discovered his wife was right. "First he chases the tail to the left and catches it,'' he said. "Then he'll try it going to his right, just like a dog. He's a real clown.''

Hands Off Buddy is a clown everywhere but the racetrack, where he is beginning to make a serious impression _ on his connections as well as the opposition.

Hands Off Buddy clocked the fastest time in the quarter horse trials, 18.121, for the Northlands Futurity and will be one of the top two favorites for that Grade III race on July 6.
Hardy isn't taking anything for granted, though, not with trainer Amber Blair loaded for bear, having qualified four horses for the Northlands Futurity including Cedar Creek for the Tom Maher stable and A Sweet Gamble for herself.

"Amber does a good job,'' said Hardy. "Anytime you put Maher in Amber and Jason's barn, that horse becomes a big time factor.''

So, too, are some other qualifiers for the Northlands, including Babblin Brook, owned by Bruce Lunderborg and trained by Blair. The Brookstone Bay filly clocked an 18.155 in the trials, just behind Hands Off Buddy.

A Sweet Gamble, a filly by Sweet First Down, was clocked in 18.174, followed by Cedar Creek's 18.188.

Hands Off Buddy caught the eye of trainer Jerry Livingston, who likes the horse's chances in the Futurity. "I like him in there,'' said Livingston. "He ran a pretty good race in the trials _ and in the race before that.''

Hardy also qualified Stolis Cool Chick by Stoli for the Futurity. "I like that horse, too,'' said Livingston, "as well as Cedar Creek and Babblin Brook.''

"The rest of them are just horses like mine is,'' said Livingston. "About all you can say is that they're in the race.''

The Livingston-trained Jess Blue Bye, owned by Jim Olson and Terry Reed, was the final qualifier with a time of 18.408.

"He's never run like I thought he would. I expected more out of him,'' Livingston said.
Livingston then added the time-honored trainer's qualifier about how horses who don't appear to belong in a race wind up winning nonetheless.
Hardy put it this way:
"I'm real excited about this race, but there's nothing certain for sure. This isn't a gimme.''

MILLY WAS ONE OF THE FAMILY
Milly Otsea was familiar to anyone who frequented the track kitchen, not only for her banana bread but her welcoming demeanor with the horsemen and anyone else who stopped at the cash register to pay for breakfast or a piece of her freshly-made bread.
It wasn't only horsemen, however.'

"I got to be good friends with Milly and considered her as one of the Canterbury family,'' said track president/CEO Randy Sampson. "She always wanted to talk to me about what was going on in the kitchen.''

When Milly died in April, Sampson sent out an email referring to her as the track's "good will ambassador on the backside.''

Milly will be honored after the third race on Saturday's card.

"She felt it was her job to make the horsemen welcome, to feel like they were coming back home each spring,'' Sampson added. "She had the unique ability to do that with horsemen from all over the country. She made them feel comfortable.''

Milly worked with some of the youngsters in the grandstand concession stands at times, teaching them the ropes. "She took them under her wing,'' Sampson added, "and was like a grandma to them.''

Not only to the young employees.

"It became part of our family tradition to see Milly on the backside when my kids were at the track,'' Sampson added. "Our first stop was in the kitchen to have pancakes and see Milly.''

MILLY HAD A SYSTEM
When it came to handicapping the horses, Milly had a system many of her relatives knew about, including Elaine Hoffrogge, who was married to Milly's brother, Bill.

"Milly was born on January 13, 1931,'' Elaine said. "She liked to play the numbers 3-1.

Whenever an exacta came in as 3-1 or 1-3, family members would stop for a moment and then say, "Milly did that.''

WALLY THE BEERMAN ON THE MEND

NTRA Thoroughbred Notebook

News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by NTRA Communications.

WARD LAUNCHES SUCCESSFUL ASSAULT ON ROYAL ASCOT
Many American observers were skeptical when they heard the news that American trainer Wesley Ward would be shipping six horses from the U.S. to compete in England’s Royal Ascot meeting this week. After all, no American-trained horse had ever won at the highly prestigious meeting.
No one is skeptical any longer.
On Tuesday’s opening day of Royal Ascot, Ward gave a leg up to American jockey John Velazquez aboard 2-year-old Strike the Tiger, who was coming off a maiden claiming win at Churchill Downs. Together the pair combined to win the Windsor Castle Stakes at odds of 33-1, defeating 21 other 2-year-olds in the process.
On Thursday, Ward showed the Brits that the Tuesday success was not simply a case of beginner’s luck when he sent out the 2-year-old filly Jealous Again to an impressive wire-to-wire tally in the Group II $147,000 Queen Mary Stakes. John Velazquez was again in the irons for the triumph, by five lengths at odds of 13-2.
It hasn’t all been child’s play for Ward. On Tuesday, he saddled Cannonball to a sixth-place finish in the Group I King’s Stand Stakes, and today Yogaroo could do no better than ninth in the Group II Norfolk Stakes. But Ward is not out of Royal Ascot bullets. Tomorrow he will send out Honor in Peace in the Chesham Stakes, and on Saturday, Cannonball could see action again in the Group I Golden Jubilee Stakes and Aegean, who beat Jealous Again last time out at Churchill Downs, will be a top contender in the Group III Albany Stakes.
“It’s great to prove that you can bring a horse over from America and be competitive here, and I hope this win will open doors,” Ward told Racenews UK. “This is a real international meet and I think trainers at home have been apprehensive about coming over but they will see they can come here, win a here and then go home ready to run. I hope this causes a lot of the better horses to come over.

CHURCHILL TO RACE AT NIGHT FOR THE FIRST TIME TOMORROW
Following the testing of temporary track lighting fixtures during early morning training hours on Monday and Tuesday, Churchill Downs officials declared the home of the Kentucky Derby ready for tomorrow’s first of three special dates of night racing billed as “Downs After Dark.”
Friday night’s premiere of “Downs After Dark” will mark the first time in the 135-year history of the racetrack that racing will be presented at night under the lights. Other “Downs After Dark” programs are scheduled for Friday, June 26 and Thursday, July 2.
A total of 104 horses have been entered to compete on Friday’s historic 11-race program. First post is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. (ET) and the final four races will be run under the stars. Sunset in Louisville is scheduled for 9:09 p.m. with Race 8 to coincide with the end of civil twilight at 9:40 p.m. The final race of the night has an 11:11 p.m. post time.
“Racing is at the core of everything we do at Churchill Downs, and it remains as important to us today as when we first opened our gates in 1875,” said Kevin Flanery, senior vice president of Churchill Downs Incorporated. “But one hundred and thirty-five years changes a lot of things, and as we seek to redefine the racetrack experience and keep our sport relevant for today’s customers, we are excited to offer the night racing experience under the Twin Spires for the very first time.”
A special $100,000 guaranteed pool for the Pick 4 on Races 4-7 highlights the wagering menu. Five allowance and maiden special weight races have been named in honor of horses whose names feature a nighttime theme. They include 1953 Kentucky Derby winner Dark Star, 1878 Kentucky Derby victor Day Star, 1991 Kentucky Oaks heroine Lite Light, 1997 Stephen Foster Handicap champ City by Night and 1958 Clark Handicap conqueror My Night Out.


MOTHER GOOSE SET AS NEXT GOAL FOR RACHEL ALEXANDRA
The connections of Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra have announced that their filly will race next on June 27 in the Grade I, $300,000 Mother Goose Stakes at Belmont Park. For Rachel Alexandra, the 1 1/8-miles dirt race restricted to 3-year-old fillies will be her first test since defeating Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird in the Preakness. The last time Rachel Alexandra competed against 3-year-old fillies, she registered a 20 1/4-length score at the Kentucky Oaks on May 1 at Churchill Downs.
“Rachel is rested, healthy and ready to run,” said co-owner Jess Jackson. “On Monday, she turned in a very strong six furlong work galloping out seven furlongs around the clubhouse turn in 1:24.80.”

Domenosky, Ferrer, Robertson Have Big Days

By JIM WELLS

Random thoughts and observations on a leisurely Sunday afternoon:
The winner of the first race on Sunday’s card brought together one of the track’s top two stables, the leading trainer and a Hall of Fame jockey.

Handicappers couldn’t overlook those factors in their analysis of the first race and give strong consideration to Carson’s Honor, a 3-year-old son of Honour and Glory, and didn’t. Jeff Maday, in his program analysis, pointed out that “(Jockey Scott) Stevens should be just off the early pace with a chance to win.’’

Stevens and Carson’s Honor did just that, and for the second straight day the rider opened the card with a win, this time for Jer-Mar Stable and trainer Mac Robertson.

The Robertson stable accounted for the daily double, in fact, after defending riding champ Derek Bell brought in Alpha Tammy for owner Joseph Novogratz of Eden Prairie.

Trainer Tammy Domenosky walked past a group of people in the grandstand Sunday afternoon when a bystander reached out to touch her to determine if she was in fact “red-hot.’’
“Don’t,’’ she said. “I don’t want it to rub off.’’

The red-hot Domenosky stable had two more winners on Sunday, including Peptalk, a 4-year-old filly owned by Alan and Beverly Kasdan of Plymouth and ridden by Jose Ferrer.

Ferrer, who had three winners on the card, was on the winner of the fourth race, too, a 4-year-old gelding named Wild Brat out of the Jamie Ness barn.

Afterward, the usually talkative Ferrer was, shall we say, at a loss for words in the winner’s circle. “I have nothing to say to you,’’ he said in response to a question. “You need to give my man here, jockey room custodian/clerk of scales Jerry Simmons, a good story.’’.

The fifth race produced some word-play from track announcer Paul Allen after Honky Tonk Slew and Playmeamelodi dueled head to head at about a mile on the turf.

Playmeamelodi and rider Ry Eikleberry were the upset winners at 7-1 for trainer Doug Oliver and owner Gordon Schuster of Edina, with Ferrer and Honky Tonk Slew next.

Ferrer was on Captain Canaveral in the sixth race, producing another winner for Domenosky and owner Scott Arlandson of Rosemount. The Captain outdueled Sax Notes, a 12-1 outsider owned in partnership by Tom Metzen and trained by David Van Winkle.

Owner Gerry Herringer was in the winner’s circle after race seven to celebrate a win by All Hallow’s Eve in her maiden start.

Herringer had high expectations for the filly and was glad the race was over. “I thought she would do well,’’ he said. “I knew she would run big.’’

Rider Dean Butler watched a replay of the race as he removed a piece of protective tape from his nose, broken in a gate incident last weekend.

“The tape keeps the goggles from putting pressure on it,’’ he explained, then turning his attention to the race. “She didn’t know quite what to do (on the turn),’’ Butler said. “But she dug in there (outside the 1-16th pole). She’s a nice filly.’’

Three Northlands Futurity Trial races concluded the card.

Tag Leggett rode the first winner, Hands Off Buddy for trainer Ed Ross Hardy, a partner in the horse.

Jason Olmstead was on A Sweet Gamble for owner/trainer Amber Blair in the second trial.
The winner of the final trial race, in a tight, tight photo, was Stolis Kool Chick, trained by Hardy and ridden by Leggett.

SOMETIMES THE FACTS ARE A LITTLE MURKY

One of the hot topics of discussion on Sunday was the big hit by Canterbury regulars the day before in the Hollywood Pick Six.

It was news to some people. Hearsay ruled the conversation in some cases. It sounded like a great retirement investment to others.

“Can you imagine that,’’ said public handicapper Kevin Gorg. “If you took that kind of money and invested it, a person could have a nice retirement nest egg.’’

That “kind of money” was nothing to sneeze at. There was a carry over of $86,000 heading into Saturday’s play and another $469,000 was added to that amount at the windows.

One ticket at Canterbury had all six winners and claimed a return of $344,646.

“A woman on the first level of the grandstand professed to have inside knowledge of the winning bet.

“Yeah, it was one ticket,’’ she said, “but there were 20 to 30 people on it and they pooled several thousand dollars.’’

The truth of the matter is there were two investors on the ticket and they pooled a few hundred dollars.

The local partners had the winning ticket to themselves after the favorite failed to come through in the final race of the pick six. They had two horses in the final race, the favorite and another named Coatcheck Girl, who returned $11.60 as the winner.

WHERE’S THE CHAPLAIN?
Quarter horse official Jim Olson was trying to track down Canterbury Park chaplain Tommy Bartram Sunday afternoon.

Olson received a check for $2,000 from Vivian Zimmerman, the window of Skip Zimmerman, for whom the Memorial Stakes on June 7 was named.

“Vivian said to use the money for whatever the new chapel needs,’’ said Olson. “I went back there and took a look in the window. There isn’t much back there. It seems as if they can use a lot of things. Maybe a pulpit or something.’’

Bartram was galloping horses in the morning and working on the gate crew earlier this season. His whereabouts on Sunday afternoon were open to conjecture.

Olson was assured that the money will be put to good use, and that best way to reach Bartram might be through prayer.

Locals Hit Hollywood Pick Six for $344K

The Hollywood Pick Six pool was swept yesterday by Canterbury regulars. With a carryover of $83,000 going into the day, an additional $469,000 was wagered. One ticket, played at Canterbury, was still standing when the dust settled in race 10, returning $344,646.

Going into race 10, the locals had two live numbers. A win by the favorite would have resulted in a split of the pool. They also had #5 Coatcheck Girl to themselves. She drew off to win by three lengths.

In the six race series, just one favorite prevailed.
Race 5: $12.00
Race 6: $15.60
Race 7: $10.00
Race 8: $5.00
Race 9: $30.20
Race 10: $11.60

Budding Rivalry Produces A Spine Tingler

By JIM WELLS

Every so often a race without any fanfare _ without much discussion outside of professional handicapping circles, without much attention other than from the owners of the horses running _ will produce a Hollywood finish.

The kind of result that makes horse racing the thrilling sport it can be.

Take Saturday’s third race, a starter allowance with a $12,000 purse. Nothing there to call home about. Nothing to start the adrenaline pumping.

Yet, moments before the race, veteran trainer Bernell Rhone stood on the cement steps outside the paddock and, despite pointing out the modest conditions of the 5 ½ furlong event, stopped just short of predicting a barnburner.

Rhone thus cast himself as someone to consult in the future before placing a wager of any size.
Moralist, ridden by Jose Ferrer, got a head in front of Talk Circuit, with Juan Rivera up, for the second consecutive time, in a thrilling, pulsating stretch dual.

“I was shaking,’’ said winning trainer Tammy Domenosky.

“I wasn’t sure he had it,’’ said Bill Kroska, one of three partners in the winning stable, Miracle Logistics, Inc. “It was another heart attack.’’

“Best race on the dirt I’ve seen all year,’’ said America’s favorite public handicapper Kevin Gorg.
Indeed, as he delivered his analysis of the fourth race, Gorg referred to Moralist and Talk Circuit as having “traded punches’’ for the length of the stretch.

Kroska, Greg Peterson and Stan Krupke are Miracle Logistics and watched their horse win by the same margin over Talk Circuit as he did on Memorial Day.

As exciting as this race was for the fans and connections of the top two horses, that enthusiasm couldn’t match the glee felt by Claiming Crown coordinator Nat Wess.

The two horses are nominated to the Claiming Crown on July 25. Wess was unable to loiter and revel in the excitement of the moment, however. He immediately headed for the upper levels of the grandstand to watch a race in Chicago involving another Claiming Crown nominee owned by Gordy Bredeson.

A RED-HOT DAY FOR RED
You didn’t want to stand too close to trainer Red Rarick on Saturday for fear of being singed.
Rarick saddled four horses; three were winners and the fourth finished second.

With Scott Stevens in the saddle, Rarick sent out Marina Nolan, a Slew City Slew filly and the winner of race one for owners Janie Bishop and Holly Retzer of Grantsburg, Wis..
He struck on two fronts in the fourth race, as the winning owner and trainer with Alex’s Tomcat, ridden by Adolfo Morales.

Rarick was right back in the winner’s circle after race five with Top Authority, a 6-year-old gelding owned by Tom Abrahamson and Kelly Schreurs of Wayzata and ridden by Tracy Hebert.

Rarick had a shot at a perfect day but his starter in race seven, Mister Merz, ridden by Derek Bell, finished second.

Your Wish Is Their Command

They'll breed, break, train, pinhook or race a horse for you..
Your choice. Their privilege.

By JIM WELLS

Immediately inside the door to barn D7 _ the Irwel Stable end _ is a banner that reads: Hip 168, Albacore Bob, Stakes Placed, Consigned by Steve Irlando, Agent for Bob Bambauer for Irwel Stables.

The banner was used at Barrett's 2-year-old sale. Steve Irlando and Larry Wells, the horse's trainers _ and the fellows who will breed, break, train, pinhook or race a horse for you _ keep it around as a half joke-half reminder of what didn't happen and what has happened since. They tried to sell Albacore Bob at the Barrett's sale, got a high bid of $12,500 and took him back.

"We would have let him go for $50,000 or $60,000,'' Larry said Friday morning when asked about the banner.

The horse didn't sell, but the partners' disappointment was assuaged by a statement from none other than Bob Baffert that they had a real runner in their barn.

Albacore Bob, a son of Dance Master, has gone on to make over $100,000 for Irlando and Wells, who own the horse in partnership with Bob and Sheila Bambauer of Peoria, Ariz.

After purchasing the colt for $12,500, Irlando invited the Bambauers to dinner one night to offer a stake in the new investment.

The dinner conversation revealed that Bob Bambauer had just returned from a fishing trip and had a freezer full of albacore tuna.

The colt had a name.

Wells was an assistant trainer to Crede Botts in 1986 during their first venture north from Phoenix to the year-old Canterbury Downs. Wells had hooked up with Botts after apprenticing in the business in his native Nebraska and then accompanying friends to Turf Paradise in Phoenix in 1981.

Wells was told upon arriving that Botts needed help so he approached him. "He hired me and said I was his assistant trainer,'' Wells recalled.

A year after his first trip to Minnesota, Wells and Irlando, who had worked for trainer Hoss Inman at Centennial Race Track in Colorado, returned to Shakopee as partners and raced every meet until Canterbury closed in 1992.

They returned to Shakopee this summer for the first time since after urging from local HBPA president Tom Metzen, the organization's executive officer in Phoenix.

A horse from the Wells-Irlando stable captured the fancy of Canterbury fans during the 1980s, a filly with the unforgettable name: Wave Her Bye Bye.

"She was a Minnesota-bred who won a lot of open company races for us,'' said Wells. "We dropped in her cheap one time, and (three-time champion trainer) Pat Cuccurullo claimed her from us.''

Wells and Irlando spent a few years pinhooking in Florida and Wells left the business altogether after "we got wiped out" financially. He spent the next six to seven years as a cook and restaurant manager at the Mountain Shadows resort in Phoenix.

Racing was always within arm's length, however, and Wells used a bonus check from the resort to invest in a horse named Rio Oro. The horse won eight out of 10 races, including the San Miguel at Santa Anita.

He wound up selling Rio Oro for $250,000 and _ just like that _ was back in the business.
Among the other horses in the Irwel Stable is one named Stormy Highland, an Al Ghazi son, who has earned just under $100,000, with seconds in six stakes races. He's run everything from five furlongs to a mile and 1/16th on the turf.

On a chilly morning a few weeks ago, Wells was standing outside the stable talking about the unseasonable Minnesota weather. Irlando was inside the barn helping with chores. He stopped long enough to discuss his previous sojourn in Minnesota and what he thinks will help the Minnesota industry.

"Casino games, slots,'' Irlando said. "This place should have them. They're no reason they shouldn't and they will help.''

Irlando is well spoken on the subject, knowledgeable enough that he was a frequent guest on KRGI radio in Nebraska during discussions on the topic in that state.

The Irwell Stable is still looking for it's first win of the season at Canterbury. "It's been pretty slow,'' Wells said. "We have some horses just getting ready now and we've had some disappointments. But we'll get by.''

Friday morning, Wells was seated in his office when one of the hands called to him. "Will you feed Bob?'' he asked.

Wells approached Albacore Bob with a bucket of oats and made his way into the stall.
"He's a biter and he gets more aggressive at feeding time,'' the fellow said.

Wells didn't have much trouble getting Albacore Bob to eat his breakfast.

Which raises a point. Perhaps Irwel Stable should add one more item to its list of specialties:
Will break, breed, pinhook, train, race or...feed a horse for you.

Trainer to Watch

A Labor Of Love From Phoenix

BY JIM WELLS

John Johnson keeps looking for the right spot for a four-year-old filly in his barn, but you get the feeling that Brig Tacos has special place in this stable, race or no race, win or lose.
How else do you explain the special treatment, the extra care and attention this trainer has given this particular daughter of Full Mandate since an accident in March of 2008 nearly took her life.

The incident took place at Turf Paradise in Phoenix.

There is a drainage ditch alongside the backside that carries rain runoff from the stable area
The ditch is about two feet wide and five feet deep and was protected by an old rusted fence..
Brig Tacos never saw it coming.

"She's a horse that never does anything wrong,'' Johnson said.

"It wasn't her fault.''

Brig Tacos got loose, ran down the road on the backside and got hung up on the fence. When Johnson and those assisting him tried to free the filly, the fence collapsed and she fell into the ditch.

Imagine a skittish thoroughbred trapped in a cement culvert, two feet by five feet.
In her panic, Brig Tacos nearly tore the hide off her legs. That was only the beginning.
After tranquilizing the filly, Brig's rescuers wedged chains around her body in the tight quarters and then moved a forklift machine to hoist her from the ditch.

In the process of lifting her from the culvert, Brig Tacos slipped off the folklift and wound up hanging upside down.

"It took eight hours to get her back into her stall,'' Johnson recalled.

Veterinarians advised Johnson to put her down. Johnson stalled. "I wanted to try to save her,'' he said. Meadow Brook Farm in Ocala, the horse's owner, told Johnson he could have the horse if he wanted her. "I sort of inherited her,'' he said.

The next two months became a time-consuming labor of love.
Johnson had to clean the horse's legs and re-bandage her head to toe every day. Brig Tacos was confined to her stall the entire time.

Brig Tacos is 2-for-21 after running on the Memorial Day card at Canterbury, a race in which she finished fourth. "She needed a little more ground and maybe another race under her belt,'' Johnson said.

Johnson was eyeing another out for her last week but that race didn't fill. He hopes a race that fits her next Thursday will draw enough horses and plans to enter her on Saturday.
Johnson is certain that Brig's temperament is what saved her. "She's a real sweetheart, like a puppy dog around the barn,'' he said. "That's probably the only reason she lasted.''

Brig Tacos will be taken care of even if her trainer can't get a race for her. You just know it.
"She's one of those horses that grows on you,'' he said. "She's probably more of a pet than a racehorse.''

GROOM ELITES GRADUATE

The HBPA has finished its most recent classes with the Groom Elite Program, a six-day session that was taught by Dr. Reid McClellan of Lexington, Ky.

"We started with 19 students and 17 of them completed the program,'' said HBPA executive director Patrice Underwood. The course was Thoroughbred Care 201, a follow-up to 101 which some of the students had already taken.

Seven students had already taken 101 and now have certificates from the advanced Groom Elite class. The others were given certificates of eligibility and will need to take the 101 class at some time to earn the same status.
Among those who finished the course this week were owners, trainers and a Minnesota Racing Commissioner.

Char Reuer, an owner/trainer, owner Mary Malkerson, trainer Jeremiah Johnson, Denise Bloomquist, an owner with a trainer's license, and commissioner Jesse Overton took the course.
The course included instruction in touch and hot and cold therapy, advanced bandage techniques, skin disease and horse behavior.

NTRA Thoroughbred Notebook

News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by NTRA Communications.

EINSTEIN TO MAKE RUN AT HISTORY IN SATURDAY’S GRADE I STEPHEN FOSTER

Einstein (BRZ) will carry high weight of 124 pounds and concede from 2-11 pounds to seven rivals Saturday as he attempts to become the first horse to win three consecutive Grade I races on three surfaces in the 28th running of the $600,000-added Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs in Louisville.
The Stephen Foster, which serves as the centerpiece of an 11-race program that features four other graded stakes, will be the 10th race on the card with a scheduled post time of 5:29 p.m. (ET).
Trained by Helen Pitts-Blasi, Einstein will again be ridden by Julien Leparoux who guided Einstein to victory in the March 7 Santa Anita Handicap over the synthetic Pro-Ride surface and the May 2 Woodford Reserve Turf Classic at Churchill Downs.
Only Lava Man, who retired from racing last July, has won Grade I races on three surfaces, but he did not do it consecutively.
Einstein, a 7-year-old son of 1985 Kentucky Derby winner Spend a Buck, will break from post position three in the 1 1/8-mile main track race. Boasting a career mark of 11 wins from 25 starts and earnings of $2,609,904, Einstein ran second in last year’s Stephen Foster behind 2007 and 2008 Horse of the Year Curlin.
Of Einstein’s 11 victories, seven have come in graded stakes with five being in Grade Is. No other Stephen Foster entrant boasts a Grade I victory, but the other seven starters have combined to win 14 graded stakes.
The most accomplished of those is Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum’s Asiatic Boy (ARG), who will make his United States debut under the care of trainer Kiaran McLaughlin. A winner of four graded stakes in Dubai, Asiatic Boy has captured seven of 15 starts with earnings in excess of $3 million.
McLaughlin won the 2007 Stephen Foster with Flashy Bull.
The complete field for the Stephen Foster, in post position order, is: Alphabet Magic (jockey: Tony Farina, morning line odds: 30-1); Macho Again (Robby Albarado, 10-1); Einstein (Julien Leparoux, 2-1); Arson Squad (Garrett Gomez, 4-1); Researcher (Calvin Borel, 4-1); Bullsbay (Jeremy Rose, 10-1); Asiatic Boy (Alan Garcia, 7-2); and Finallymadeit (Eduardo Nunez, 8-1).
Since achieving Grade I status in 2002, the Foster has produced three horses that went on to earn “Horse of the Year” titles later in the year: 2003 runner-up Mineshaft, 2005 winner Saint Liam and last year’s victor Curlin.
In 1998, Awesome Again and Silver Charm ran 1-2 in the Grade II Foster and then came back in less than five months to duplicate the finish in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.

TOP FILLIES TAKE UP GRADE I QUEST IN OGDEN PHIPPS AT BELMONT

The Belmont Stakes, won last Saturday by Summer Bird, represents the end of the Triple Crown trail and the three-year-olds’ stranglehold on media attention. Horses in other division are just now getting started on their campaigns, and Saturday afternoon, Belmont Park fans will be treated to a star-studded field when seven fillies and mares go to post in the 41st running of the Grade I, $300,000 Ogden Phipps Handicap at a mile and a sixteenth.
Rick Mettee, assistant to trainer Saeed bin Suroor, has entered Godolphin Stable’s Music Note and Darley Stable’s Seventh Street in the Ogden Phipps, hoping that the two fresh horses will bring their A-game to the main track.
Music Note, a daughter of 1992 Horse of the Year and Belmont Stakes winner A.P. Indy, won the Mother Goose, Coaching Club American Oaks and Gazelle at Belmont as a three-year-old last year, and just missed winning her fourth Grade I of the year when she was beaten a head by Proud Spell in Saratoga’s prestigious Alabama. After her emphatic 8½-length victory in the Gazelle, Music Note went to Santa Anita, where she ran third to champion Zenyatta in the Grade I Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic.
“It was a good race for her, but the gray filly [Zenyatta] blew right by her,” Mettee said. “It was her first start on a synthetic surface, and she was only beaten three lengths, so she was hardly embarrassed.”
Jockey Javier Castellano has the mount on Music Note, who breezed a half-mile in 48.24 on Monday morning on the fast main track. Music Note will carry top weight of 122 pounds and will break from post six.
Darley Stable’s Seventh Street has won four of six career starts. Previously trained by Kiaran McLaughlin, the Street Cry filly makes her debut on Saturday for bin Suroor.
“She won the Apple Blossom at Oaklawn Park pretty easily going wire to wire,” Mettee said. “Back in February, she ran second in the Barbara Fritchie at Laurel, but she dwelt at the start; in fact, she reared up and lost all chance. But she came back with a run. She has a lot of class.”
Rajiv Maragh has the mount on Seventh Street in the Ogden Phipps. On Monday, Seventh Street breezed a half-mile in a bullet 47.24, the fastest of 107 works at the distance. She will carry 119 pounds and will break from post three.
Music Note and Seventh Street will be joined as a three-horse entry by Darley Stable’s Sea Chanter. Trained by Todd Pletcher, the 4-year-old War Chant filly finished third in the Grade II, one-mile Shuvee here on May 16, behind fellow Phipps runners Seattle Smooth and Color Me Up. She gets in with 114 pounds and jockey John Velazquez, and will break from post seven.

SINGLE BELMONT DAY PICK 6 TICKET PAYS NEARLY $1 MILLION

There was only one person who correctly selected the winners of all six graded stakes races for the Pick 6 on Belmont Stakes Day last Saturday, resulting in a payout of $969,345.
The lone winning ticket was put together by a Youbet.com customer who spent $96 to construct the Pick 6 wager. The winning ticket used one horse in the first leg (Fabulous Strike), two horses in the second leg (Diamondrella, Raw Silk), two horses in the third leg (Munnings, Hull), two horses in the fourth leg (Gabby’s Golden Gal, Livin Lovin), three horses in the fifth leg (Gio Ponti, Cosmonaut, Wesley), and two horses in the sixth leg (Summer Bird, Charitable Man).
The New York Racing Association, Inc.’s (NYRA) mutuel department utilizes progressive scan technology, which generates a report after each leg of any multi-race wager so that all dollars can be tracked throughout the wager, ensuring no one has tampered with any ticket after the first leg of the wager. In addition, NYRA verified with Youbet the structure and cost of this wager, and the time that it was made, before authorizing its payment. The winning Pick 6 wager was placed via Youbet at 1:56 p.m. on Saturday, and the pool closed at 2:34 p.m.
The individual winners of the six races that made up the Pick 6, along with their win payouts, were: True North Handicap – Fabulous Strike ($3.80); Just A Game Stakes – Diamondrella ($21.20); Woody Stephens Stakes – Munnings ($9.00); Acorn Stakes – Gabby’s Golden Gal ($28.40); Woodford Reserve Manhattan Handicap – Gio Ponti ($9.20); and Belmont Stakes – Summer Bird ($25.80).

Whirling Cleat Wins $24,100 Skip Zimmerman Memorial Stakes

This past Sunday, Whirling Cleat won the Skip Zimmerman Memorial Stakes in a final time of 17.411 seconds, setting a new track record for 350 yards. The 5-year-old quarter horse mare is trained by David Brown for owner Manny Silva of Rockton, IL. Whirling Cleat was ridden by Helen King.

MQHRA AND MN LAKES BARREL RACE TEAM UP FOR OFF THE TRACK HORSES

The Minnesota Quarter Horse Racing Association and Minnesota Lakes Barrel Race have joined forces to offer 'off the track' Minnesota racing Quarter Horses a barrel racing purse.

In an effort to help re-home off the track horses to new positive careers and reward the owners that give these horses that opportunity the following will be implemented: At the MN Lakes Barrel Race, October 17th, 2009, held at the Red Horse Ranch in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, MQHRA will have a $1000 purse for Off The Track Minnesota Quarter Horses. The MQHRA side pot will be restricted to horses with verifiable racing past performances that have raced either at Canterbury Park in Minnesota, or are Minnesota born and have raced at another AQHA approved track. For the details and more information visit www.mnlakesfuturity.com or www.MQHRA.com.

Buying The Farm Can Be Good Thing

By JIM WELLS

Manny Silva took a trip to Oklahoma four years ago to buy a horse and ended up buying the farm.
He still has both.

Silva, a resident of Chicago, was at Canterbury Park on Sunday to see the mare win the feature event on the card..
Parkas, gloves and mufflers would not have been terribly out of order on a chilly, damp afternoon.

It’s cold. You can feel it,’’ said rider Ry Eikleberry before the start of the feature race, the 350-yard $20,000 Skip Zimmerman Memorial Stakes.

None of the autumnal weather seemed to bother rider Helen King and certainly not her mount, Whirling Cleat. Winning can sometimes make one oblivious to conditions such as Sunday’s.
King and 2-1 favorite Whirling Cleat won the race in track record time, 17.411, finishing a hair’s breadth in front of 7-1 choice Wheely Quick and Jerry Winters. Third was No Temper Here, ridden by Dylan Williams.

The winning horse shipped up from Remington Park for trainer David Brown.
Silva explained his interest in the horse he acquired as a yearling. “I’ve always liked the bloodlines with Dashing Cleat in them,’’ he said. “This one is really exceptional.’’
The win was the sixth in 17 career starts for the winner, who has six seconds.
Silva went to Oklahoma to buy a filly four years ago, but made a bigger investment than planned.

“I ended up buying a farm in Paul’s Valley,’’ he said.
He was pleased with both investments on Sunday.


TIES TO THE FIRST SATURDAY IN MAY AND CANTERBURY’S PAST

Dave Shepherd hasn’t been a regular rider at a racetrack since a horse crushed his left femur and pelvis in a 2003 accident.
But there he was Friday night, guiding a longshot named Panther Springs for trainer Joe Merrick to the winner’s circle in the seventh race .
The pressbox began buzzing. “Shepherd? When did he last ride here, 1940?’’

But there was more to the story than Shepherd’s re-appearance on the Shakopee scene. Immediately, quarter horse publicist Lori Locken began pointing out the winner’s connections _ Fourteen Enterprises LLC.

Translation?

The owners are Joe Merrick and Mark Allen, one of the owners of Mine That Bird, who won the Kentucky Derby but failed on Saturday to add the Belmont Stakes to his list of classic wins this season.

Merrick and Allen have been partners in various horses since the early 1990s. “I tell everybody that I’m a bad manager,’’ Merrick said. “We’ve been partners in about 20 horses but none of them was Mine That Bird.’’

Merrick and Shepherd consoled themselves with their $20 winner on Friday’s card.
The Merrick barn took some heat from acquaintances for not providing a heads-up on this $20 winner. “Yeah, everyone’s giving us a hard time for not warning them,’’ Merrick said. “But it surprised us, too. We figured he needed a race.’’

Panther Springs, a five-year-old son of Exploit from the Unbridled mare Most Admired, was 1-for-11 lifetime before Friday’s race.

“We bought him as a 3-year-old and figured he always had talent,’’ Merrick said. “It was just a matter of seeing what he likes and Dave and I figured that he likes to run fresh.’’
Remember that next time, patrons.

Panther Springs was plenty fresh on Friday. His previous start was last Nov. 29.

Helen King: Back in Town

Popular jockey Helen King rode here 2005-2006. She returned this weekend to ride in the Skip Zimmerman Memorial Stakes.

HOIST HER FLAG AND BROOKS FIELDS STAKES GET A CAJUN TOUCH

BY JIM WELLS

Some fans have referred to him as a Ragin’ Cajun.
Trouble is, he directs all of his mental and emotional energy into sizing up his mounts _ psycho-analyzing them if it comes to that _ and then bending them to his will.
He’s pretty much in control of everything he does on the racetrack and not inclined to do anything hotheaded or rageful.
Clearly, the Cajun moniker does not fit all that well if taken literally.
What fans in Shakopee have come to understand is that racehorses are transparent to Tracy Hebert. He can read their emotions, rate them, gauge their stamina and coax them to dig for resolve they were unaware they had all while perched on their backs _ frequently for the first time.
Riding for the first time at Canterbury Park this meet, Hebert has grabbed attention with his riding ability and knowledge of the game.
In the fourth race of a rainy, soggy Saturday, for instance: Engaged in a stretch battle with Unleash the Beast, Hebert cajoled and all but begged a final burst from Power Paws to win that race for trainer Troy Bethke and and owner Rodney Miller.,
His gem for the day came two races later, however, in the $50,000 Hoist Her Flag Stakes at six furlongs when he guided Adhsilver to a 1 ¼ length victory over Mongoose Gold, with Theycallmeladyluck another 2 ¼ lengths back.
“I just told him to let her settle where she wanted. We knew she could run them down,’’ said trainer Gary Scherer who conditions the winner for his father, Merrill, Dan Lynch and Vernon Heath.
Moments later, Scherer watched a replay of the race and shook his head in agreement with what he saw. “Look at that,’’ he said. “He’s already hitting him and switching sticks, left –handed, right-handed and now he puts it away.’’
Along with six rivals.
Hebert was back in the winner’s circle again after the seventh race, the $50,000 Brooks Fields Stakes, although this time with the second-place horse, Pursue a Dream.
Say it again?
Yes, Pursue a Dream finished second, a half length behind stablemate Spider Power and Jose Ferrer. Both horses are owned by Emerald Bay Stables of Minneapolis, a partnership of 20 owners, so the entry _ despite the rain _ made a joint appearance with their adoring owners, wives, girlfriends, friends acquaintances….
The race was run at 7 ½ furlongs on a very soggy turf course. The rain, in fact, chased four horses to the sidelines and reduced the field to eight horses and six betting interests.
The first two finishers are trained by Mike Biehler, who has one of the hottest barns on the grounds.
The stable was put together by Eric Olson of Minneapolis, who once worked in the barns at Canterbury, pursued the trade by moving to Kentucky, got homesick and returned to Minneapolis.
As he studied the race earlier Saturday, Olson thought Spider Power had a terrific shot at winning. But to finish one-two?
“I actually thought we would,’’ he said. “You gotta dream a little, don’t you. That’s what this is all about.’’
Olson said that about 15 of the 20 owners were present for the race. Two of them Sean Rein of St. Paul and Mike Gaulrapp of Plymouth approached him afterward with congratulations.
Rein asked to hold the winning trophy, handed it b ack and made a suggestion. “We gotta share this trophy like they do the Stanley Cup,’’ he said to Olson. “So we each get a turn.’’
Olson assured him that will be the case.
The horse fans who are hockey fans, too, then departed to watch the Penguins and Red Wings play for that other trophy.

Brooks Fields

BY JIM WELLS

The room, a library with cherry wood paneling, invites you to relax, ruminate, reminisce and revel in those early, giddy days of Minnesota racing. There is a wood burning fireplace in the center surrounded by paintings, plaques, photographs and memorabilia that welcomed horse racing to the state in 1985. There is a painting of Canterbury Downs above the fireplace.

The burgundy leather furniture _ the sofa, chairs and ottoman _ once occupied the executive office at the racetrack. There is a coffee table in front of the couch with racehorses painted on it. There is a porcelain horse, a gift from the NAACP. Elsewhere, there is a thoroughbred painting, a gift from the brass at Santa Anita, original partners in Canterbury Downs.

Move about the room and you will find an antique painting of a jockey, a cancelled postcard dated June 26, 1985, announcing opening day ceremonies. There are numerous mugs with the track's name or commemorating the St. Paul Derby. There are glasses with the track logo, cigarette lighters and matches bearing the track's crest. There is the plaque honoring his 1996 induction into Canterbury Park's Hall of Fame.

This is the room that Brooks Fields and his wife, Lucy, put together five years ago when they occupied their new condominium in Edina. They called it the Canterbury room.
Years after his departure from the failed Canterbury Downs, the people, the sport and his days as the first president/CEO of the track still occupied a special place in Brooks Fields' heart and memory.

"He loved Canterbury Downs,'' his daughter, Sarah Nessan said. "But his real passion was the people there. He always spoke of everyone there the same way, from a man who parked the cars to someone else who swept the floors. They were all equally important to him.''

Fields was proud of bringing racing to Minnesota and his work with minorities at Canterbury, including the mentally challenged. "He was also delighted that so many employees remembered him when he came back,'' Sarah said. "He loved the way the Sampsons (the current track owners) treated him in such a nice way whenever he was there. He was very humbled by it.''

Although he had no background in racing, Fields is arguably the father of the sport in Minnesota. He was the man at the center of the effort that created Canterbury Downs. Fields, a lover of people, of the racetrack and life in general, died on June 23, 2008.

Building Minnesota's first racetrack was an unlikely venture for a man 66 years of age and recently retired as executive vice president after 29 years with Burdick Grain Co. Fields and his nephew Brooks Hauser were majority shareholders in Scottland, Inc., a Shakopee land development company that owned the land where Canterbury Downs was built and were approached by Santa Anita executives about building a racetrack.

Fields was the right man at the right time and threw himself into the new project like a man half his age.
As time demonstrated he was truly a people person, able to work with anyone.

"That's why everybody loved him,'' Lucy said. "He was so understanding and tolerant. We all have our faults, our foibles and failings and he accepted that.''

Even when others failed him, when financial errors, misjudgments and questionable decisions forced him and the Santa Anita Operating Company along with other racetrack investors to sell Canterbury Downs in 1990, Fields was willing to move on with his life.

"If I had lost the money he lost, you'd still hear me moaning,'' Lucy said. "Not Brooks. He only remembered the good times, the celebrations. He concentrated on all the fun and the joy of bringing racing to Minnesota.''
That man will be honored today with the running of the Brooks Fields Stakes, a race he attended every year. "He was so proud and honored when Frances Genter named a horse, Brooker, after him,'' Lucy said. He was also proud of the race that honors him.

Much of that pride is reflected in the Canterbury room and in family memories. "My dad always maintained that (despite what happened) he would do it all over again,'' Sarah said.

The Minnesota sports scene, as we will remember at race time today, has been the better for it since 1985.

Should I Bet On The Red Silks or The Cute Jockey?

BY JIM WELLS

So it’s Belmont Stakes Saturday and you still haven’t decided who you like.
You’ve studied the PPs, the speed figures and the dosage indices so laboriously that you can no longer read the fine print

Your heart jumps one way, your head tugs another. You can’t make up your mind to go with the sentimental choice _ who is also a good handicapping choice and the morning line favorite _ or get off the chalk and look at something fresh, such as Charitable Man?
Or was it the other way around?

For anyone arriving late to the party, the sentiment is oozing all over those small, muscular shoulders of Kentucky Derby winner and Preakness Stakes runnerup Mine That Bird, in some instances solely because of his rider.

The Cajun fellow, Calvin Borel, has the hearts and many of the minds of horseplayers across the nation. He’s likeable, enthusiastic and can become the first jockey to win the three classic races on two different horses.

Not everyone believes that Mine That Bird can win the 1 ½ -mile Belmont, but even many of the skeptics want Borel to set racing history and won’t mind losing a bob or two if he wins.
Still…there are plenty of analysts who believe that the Bird is indeed the Word.

“Nobody is going to beat him,’’ said Canterbury’s paddock analyst Kevin Borg. “He’ll roll past the rest of them like they’re tied to a post.’’

If that’s too ambiguous for you, here are the thoughts of Canterbury racecaller Paul Allen:
“Mine That Bird can’t lose. He’s coming off two great races. If you get better than 7-5 on him it’s stealing.’’

Canterbury’s media relations director Jeff Maday is jumping right back on the Bird after considering something different.
“With everyone going to Charitable Man, with all that steam, I’m going right to the chalk,’’ he said.

Owner Cam Casby didn’t hesitate to reveal her sentiments. “I want Calvin Borel all the way,’’ she said. “He’s the only jockey we’ve never heard a single bad word about. He’s good for racing.’’
Jockey agent extraordinaire Richard Grunder agrees.

“I’ll root for Calvin,’’ he said. “He’s a great story and good for the game.’’

A patron involved in a similar debate with some buddies Friday night had this to say:
“You know that Borel horse is a late runner and those closers don’t usually win a race this long. He’ll finish up the track.’’

HBPA SCHEDULES ANNUAL FEED

The HBAP will hold its annual brunch and awards presentation on June 27 at Canterbury. The brunch is scheduled for 11 a.m. in the grandstand and will include the annual award presentation for horse of the year, owner of the year, jockey of the year and claimer of the meet.

The HBPA Mile Stakes will be run on the card that day, and the HBPA will give away 10 flat-screen television sets, one after each race.

Canterbury Riders Pull For Borel

BY JIM WELLS

Calvin Borel stands squarely on the threshold of racing history approaching Saturday's Belmont Stakes.

No rider has won all three races of the Triple Crown on different horses, and Borel has the mount on the morning line favorite for the Belmont having already ridden the winners of the first two races.

Borel rode 50-1 outsider Mine That Bird to a stunning last-to-first Kentucky Derby victory, winning by 6 3/4 lengths. One day earlier, he rode the magnificent filly Rachel Alexandra to a commanding victory in the Kentucky Oaks. He chose to ride her in the Preakness Stakes, and held off Mine That Bird by a diminishing length for the win.

Mine That Bird soared past 18 Kentucky Derby rivals in an electrifying 21 seconds in a race regarded by many analysts as a fluke, yet the Derby winner demonstrated two weeks later that there was nothing fluky about it. With another 25 yards of racetrack, he would have caught Rachel in Baltimore.

With Rachel Alexandra sitting out the Belmont, Borel will be back aboard Mine That Bird on Saturday. He'll have the bettors' backing and the support of riders across the country.
Borel is a down-home Louisiana boy who rides regularly at Churchill Downs and is one of the most liked riders in the jockeys room. Mine That Bird's trainer, Chip Woolley, who has hobbled around on crutches (he suffered a broken leg in a motorcycle accident) since he arrived at Churchill Downs after hauling the Derby winner in a trailer, has plenty of support himself.

"You have to root for Borel and Woolley. They remind you of most of the trainers and riders you'll meet at Canterbury,'' said longtime handicapper and horse player Phil Marudas. "I don't think Mine That Bird will win and I won't bet on him. But I'll be happy for them if he wins. You have to like those guys.''

Borel, who came to national attention and success at 40 years of age, is viewed as a down-to-earth, hard-working rider who deserves his time in the sunshine.

"Calvin's a good guy. He deserves to win,'' said Canterbury rider Paul Nolan. "What you see is what you get with him. He's a very hard worker without the big ego.''

Nolan is convinced that Borel's enthusiastic, emotional responses to winning the Kentucky Derby in 2007 and again this year have been good for the sport. "He's helped bring a lot of people into racing, and that's what matters,'' Nolan added.

Canterbury's defending riding champ Derek Bell is in Borel's corner as well. "I'd like to see Calvin win naturally,'' Bell said. "He's a heck of a nice guy and he deserves this. With all that happened, he's pretty lucky to get back on this horse.''

Not much has changed about Borel in Bell's estimation, except the horses he's been riding, Derby winner Street Sense in 2007 and now Mine That Bird and Racel Alexandra.

"He's always been a great rider and is finally getting the mounts he needs to get recognized.''
Bell has ridden with Borel a number of times and, like most of his colleagues, likes the man for his humility and pleasant nature. "He's a great guy and a lot of fun,'' said Bell.

Ry Eikleberry, who won the quarter horse riding title in Shakopee last summer and won the thoroughbred title at Turf Paradise in Phoenix this spring, is pulling for Borel and Mine That Bird as well.

"That horse really impressed me after winning the Kentucky Derby with a race everybody called a fluke,'' said Eikleberry. "He was flying late in the Preakness and I was hoping he would win. They all come from a blue collar background. His trainer hauls him around in a trailer and that reminds me of stuff I did growing up with my dad. Those guys come from roots like we do.''
The 1 1/2-mile distance of the Belmont does not typically set up well for closers such as Mine That Bird.

"Closers year in and year out don't win this race,'' said Marudas, "and he (Mine That Bird) has had two tough races. Dunkirk is rested and there are other good horses in there, too. It's going to be an interesting race, but I think things are against (Mine That Bird).''

Bell sees a different scenario.
"I think Mine That Bird is getting better every start, and the farther the race the better with him. He looks like a cinch to win.''

Borel has guaranteed that his horse will win the race, a prediction, Nolan says, that puts him in a category with quarterback Joe Namath, who brashly predicted his New York Jets would beat the Baltimore Colts in the 1969 Super Bowl. "Guaranteeing a horse to win is a hard thing to do in a $5,000 claiming race much less the Belmont,'' Nolan said. "But if he does, he'll be racing's Namath and he'll become the first jockey with all those women.''

NTRA Thoroughbred Notebook

News and notes from around the Thoroughbred racing world, compiled by NTRA Communications.

BOREL CAN SWEEP “PERSONAL TRIPLE CROWN” IN BELMONT STAKES

Jockey Calvin Borel has been “in the zone” of late. He has won races in bunches at Churchill Downs, charmed network television hosts and their audiences and shaken any friendly, outstretched hand or posed for any fan photograph. And Saturday he will attempt to become the first jockey to win all three Triple Crown races on multiple horses when he climbs back aboard Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird in the Grade I, $1 million Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y
.
Borel set this stage on May 2 when he shot the diminutive Mine That Bird through a narrow hole on the rail that brought him to a 6 ¾-length victory in the Kentucky Derby at 50-1. One day earlier, he guided the filly, Rachel Alexandra, to a huge victory in the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks, and Borel had the two top horses in the three-year-old division to call his own.
That changed when Jess Jackson of Stonestreet Stable purchased Rachel Alexandra and announced that she would take on colts in the Preakness on May 16. Borel, calling her “the best horse he ever sat on,” made the tough decision to take off the Derby winner and ride Rachel Alexandra at Pimlico.

She made history that day, becoming one of only five fillies ever to win the Triple Crown’s middle leg. Mine That Bird finished a length back in second.

Last week, Jackson announced that Rachel Alexandra would skip the Belmont Stakes, and now Mine That Bird will once again be ridden by Borel.

“He’ll win,” said Borel of Mine That Bird, who will break from post 7 aboard the 2-1 morning line favorite. “That’s what we’re here for. I see a Derby race, same style. He sits back there. Belmont has a long stretch and I can sit and wait.”

Mine That Bird’s trainer Chip Woolley is more than happy to have the rider known as “Bo-Rail” back on Mine That Bird.

“We understood Calvin’s situation,” Woolley said. “And we are glad to get him back for the Belmont because this is the race we’ve always felt we could win.”

Victory in the Belmont for Mine That Bird is hardly a certainty, however. The race is loaded with horses and horsemen that have strong ties to this 1½-mile race for three-year-olds known as the “Test of the Champion.” Chief among these is Charitable Man, the “now” horse of this year’s Belmont Stakes. Trained by Kiaran McLaughlin, who won the 2006 Belmont Stakes with Jazil, this son of 1999 Belmont Stakes winner Lemon Drop Kid has won three of four career starts, including the Peter Pan Stakes at Belmont on May 9.

And it may not pay to overlook Flying Private or Luv Gov, both trained by four-time Belmont Stakes winning trainer D. Wayne Lukas; or the combo of Brave Victory and Miner’s Escape who will start for trainer Nick Zito, who has won a pair of Belmonts, including last year’s renewal with Da’ Tara.

The complete field for the 141st Belmont Stakes, in post position order, is: Chocolate Candy (jockey: Garrett Gomez, morning line odds: 10-1); Dunkirk (John Velazquez, 4-1); Mr. Hot Stuff (Edgar Prado, 15-1); Summer Bird (Kent Desormeaux, 12-1); Luv Gov (Miguel Mena, 20-1); Charitable Man (Alan Garcia, 3-1); Mine That Bird (Calvin Borel, 2-1); Flying Private (Julien Leparoux, 12-1); Miner’s Escape (Jose Lezcano, 15-1); and Brave Victory (Rajiv Maragh, 15-1).

JOCKEYS ACROSS NORTH AMERICA TO RECOGNIZE RENE DOUGLAS, PDJF SATURDAY

On Saturday, riders at racetracks across the U.S. and Canada will take part in a unified show of support for recently injured jockey Rene Douglas and the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF).

Riders at Belmont Park and other racetracks will participate in a moment of tribute and support for Douglas and his fellow injured riders at approximately 3:15 p.m. (CT) All active riders are being asked to consider contributing, as a sign of unity, one losing mount fee from their Saturday earnings to Douglas.

New York Racing Association (NYRA) President and CEO Charles Hayward will make a $5,000 contribution to Triple Crown winning jockey Ron Turcotte and other riders on behalf of the PDJF during the special winner’s circle ceremony at Belmont.

Also, the PDJF and B.E.S.T. (Backstretch Employee Service Team) will be the two designated charities to benefit from the NetJets sponsorship of the riders in the Belmont Stakes.
Douglas was seriously injured on May 23 of this year during a race at Arlington Park. In 1996, he won the Belmont Stakes aboard Editor’s Note and during last year’s Belmont Stakes program, he guided Dancing Forever to victory in the Grade I Manhattan Handicap.

“We appreciate the generosity of NYRA, all the jockeys, racetracks, horse owners and the racing fans whose compassion and support make such a difference in the lives of disabled riders,” said Nancy LaSala, Executive Director of the PDJF.

Contributions in support of Rene Douglas’s recovery may be made out to Rene Douglas and mailed to: Citibank; 539 N. Michigan Avenue; Chicago, IL 60611.

The PDJF’s mission is to assist jockeys who are permanently disabled from an on-track accident and to build awareness for their needs. The PDJF has disbursed more than $2 million to assist with the living expenses of permanently disabled riders.