Of course we are all awaiting the draw for Saturday/ Sunday cards at Belmont.
The important stakes will probably feature a combination of marquee names and
short fields; hopefully some wagering opportunities exist.
On FRIDAY\'s card, the 6th and 7th races remind me of racing at Belmont before
the NY Greeders took over, before the staple of the card was the turf sprint.
Race 6 is a Saratoga/Kee quality 2YO MSW to be run at 7/8s. There is a Zito
entry, the runners sired by Tiznow and Victory Gallop. There is a William
Ichabod Mott second timer by Songandaprayer who cost 650K as a 2YO in training
and was beaten at 6/5 at the Spa. There is an Orientate firster from underrated
Scott Volk who worked 34.1 at Mth last month. There is a Dutrow FuPeg firster
who is a half to Two Item Limit, who won 4 races as a 2YO. There is a Shug
second time starter out of Country Hideaway, the second dam of BC Distaff
winner Pleasant Home. There is a Frankel second timer who is a half to Latent
Heat and Art Master. There is a TAP firster by Theatrical out of a Storm Cat
mare who comes into the race off of a best of 46 bullet work out of the gate
last Saturday; interestingly this Overbrook homebred is from a non-winning mare
who has thus far produced very little.
The 7th race is an entry level turf allowance at 1- 1/4 miles and features
runners from moss meisters Mott, Matz, Motion, Frankel and Hough. The runners
in this race last raced at Meadowlands, Monmouth, Delaware, Saratoga and
Belmont.This race is basically a NW2LT (the rail runner is a multiple winner
but has never won on turf). An unseasoned bunch of runners coming from 4 or 5
different tracks, I will lean heavily on TG #s here.
The most fascinating running line in the race is on Matz\'s English bred.
Herboriste had a troubled run at Saratoga, then ran as a 3/5 favorite at
Delaware going 1-1/16th. In the Delaware race she dawdled early and closed in a
way which would seem to give her a big chance at 10 poles, the only drawback
being a possible lack of early pace tomorrow.
Pace will be of the essence tomorrow in another way. With a 10:00 AM tee time at
the watery windblown Robert Trent Jones muni Lido Beach tomorrow, the pace of
play will have to be brisk (less than 5 hours) in order for me to get to
Belmont in time for these races. Even if the days hacking and whacking is
concluded by 3PM, some Andretti- like driving may be necessary to get from Long
Beach to Elmont on time.
richiebee Wrote:
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Even if the days
> hacking and whacking is
> concluded by 3PM, some Andretti- like driving may
> be necessary to get from Long
> Beach to Elmont on time.
We love how you say it, Richie.
Some AJ I am sure rubbed off at the picnic
if nowhere else, so I\'m down that you make it
right on time.
Still:
I am wondering if AJ Foyt still has a Derby Day picnic; it used to be set
up between Lynn Whiting\'s barn and the backstretch recreation area.
At the time, AJ\'s son Tony had a barnful of runners at CD, owned by AJ Foyt
and Calumet (this was at the time of course that JT Lundy and the older Foyt
where \"piss on yer boots\" buddies). I do not know if either Foyt is still
active in thoroughbred racing.
In a previous post you mentioned one of Bill Mott\'s great sprinters from the
1980s; my favorite Mott sprinter at the time was Shot N\' Missed, a son of
Naskra who was bred in Tennessee, one of the few quality runners produced in
the Volunteer state.
richiebee Wrote:
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> Still:
>Lynn Whiting
Lynn was a hard guy for me to catch,
and while I am not sure, (You\'re killin\' me here)
the runner you mention below might have been around
when I was in time out, at GTE directing IT.
I had several time outs, as might be expected;
with children, I guess.
Billy, I never saw until one day at the bar, (he
wasn\'t drinking, but Shug was, at KEE in the Spring
of the year TSpecial won. He shipped a spot to AP
that rang my bells in the Spring of \'85, Gerrie Singer,
who had only to run down an ILL BRED, Zentastic, at 7f,
turning back from 8f at CD.
> In a previous post you mentioned one of Bill
> Mott\'s great sprinters from the
> 1980s; my favorite Mott sprinter at the time was
> Shot N\' Missed, a son of
> Naskra who was bred in Tennessee, one of the few
> quality runners produced in
> the Volunteer state.
In a motel, that used to be a holiday inn, in Cumberland Gap
in the VOLUNTEER state, I saw a picture of Tosmah, and almost
fainted. She was gorgeous, face!
A chart quote: Tosmah and Affectionately engaged in a torrid head to head duel, from flag fall to finish, during which neither gallant mare gave way.
(That was my all time favorite chart;nose)
Tim Tam, Cosmah.
I gotta be cool here, I might like talking about horses as much as playing, spot players have time on their hands, so can seem inappropriately chatty.