Notes - Oct 14

- Pretty impressive rally by Bit of Whimsy to win the Grade 1 QEII Challenge Cup at Keeneland for Barclay Tagg. Watching on replay after learning of the result, it seemed hard to believe that this filly was going to win; she was pretty far back, and not making much progress on the turn. If anything, it looked like she was losing ground, and being passed by a horse to her outside. But she took off in the stretch, made her way to the outside with Castellano and won by a comfortable two lengths at a nice price (6.90-to-one) too! In doing so, she showed that her second in the Garden City at 12-1 was no fluke.

Of course, with only two weeks until the Breeders' Cup, we shouldn't expect to see her there; especially so with Barclay Tagg, who seems in general a bit skittish with the event, at least when it comes to his three-year old turf colts.

Bit of Whimsy is a filly who may like the mile and three-eighths distance of the F&M Turf. She's by Distorted Humor, out of an El Prado half-sister to Royal Mountain Inn, who won the Red Smith Handicap (at a mile and a quarter that year), and the Man O'War at a mile and three eighths.

Steve's Double looked like he was hanging in the stretch of the Perryville, but Jamie Theriot persisted and they managed to hold off Frankel's even money favorite Les Grands Trois, who had trouble at the start. This three-year old gelded son of Stephen Got Even won on closing weekend in Saratoga, and was 6-1 morning line, but he paid a fat $26! This son of Northern Baby might want to stretch out a bit, at least based on his pedigree. His half brother, Northern Thinking (Northern Baby), won the John Murray Begg Memorial this past April, at about 3 miles, jumping over timber!