Notes - Feb 21

- A friend suggested I check out the race by Blue Bullet at Gulfstream on Monday. A Hobeau Farm homebred, this three-year old son of Red Bullet made it two-for-two lifetime for the red hot Allen Jerkens when he took a 6 1/2 furlong allowance by eight lengths under mild urging by Cornelio Velasquez at odds of 7-10. Blue Bullet is a half brother to Kelly Kip, a multiple graded sprint winner for Jerkens late last century. The Chief now has nine winners out of 28 runners at the meet, which puts him in third, 11 winners behind Anthony Sciamatta, Jr., heh heh. Sciamatta was credited with 20 winners and 19 seconds from 81 starters. Life goes on indeed.

Another Gulfstream race from Monday I wanted to mention was the 7th, a NW4X grass allowance race. Minister's Joy, a non-Phipps runner from the Shug McGaughey barn, was 6-1 morning line in the contentious field which included four stakes winners, but was bet solidly down to 3-1 favoritism. If you check out this race, you'll see what has to be one of the most effortless looking last to first moves you'll ever see. It helped that Javier Castellano saved all the ground on the turn, and that a convenient seam opened up for him once they straightened away. He never went to the whip, but was by the field in an instant so it seemed, and started easing the horse up immediately upon striking the front. The final 2 1/2 furlongs of the mile and a sixteenth race went in 23.1, plus 5.58 seconds for the last sixteenth. This horse has never succeeded in stakes company; and though I imagine Shug will try him again, he'll never, ever get a more perfect journey than this one.