Monday Morning Notes - Dec 17

- Country Star responded promptly to a couple of right handed smacks from Rafael Bejarano, and was gone in the Hollywood Starlet. Good job by me picking out 13-1 Grace and Power, who rallied widest of all and was a clear best-of-rest second, completing a $39 exacta. Indian Blessing is a deserving Eclipse winner, but this daughter of Empire Maker is now a two-time Grade 1 winner as well, both around two turns. Reader rgustafson pointed out that Ken Rudolph may really have seen a possible Oaks winner in this filly. I think that Country Star would be the favorite over Indian Blessing should an Oaks futures pool be conducted today, doncha think? (Bejarano said: "Oaks? She's going to be the next Kentucky Derby winner.." [SGVTribune.com]) Her final time of 1:40.54 broke the Cushion track record for the distance that Zenyatta had tied (in fifths, anyway) earlier on the card.

Elvis Trujillo, the CF on my all-star jockey baseball name team, nearly hit for the cycle in Calder's Grand Slam on Saturday, taking three of the four graded stakes. Paradise Dancer (Langfuhr) won the Grade 3 Kenny Noe; this seven-year old gelding now has a solid record of 40-11-10-10, making all but six of his starts at Calder; this was his first graded stakes win. Ditto for Electrify, the winner of the G3 Fred Hooper, who has now taken four of his last five. He's a son of Delaware Township, a third-year sire who I recall having a bit of a buzz a couple of years ago, but who has since been shipped from Florida to a farm without a website in Pennsylvania, where he stands for $4,000. Trujillo then shocked the G2 McKnight with 67-1 Presious Passion (Royal Anthem), who had won the G3 Cliff Hanger at the Meadowlands in September.

The 4th at Calder on Monday is an interesting juvenile maiden race, scheduled to be run on the grass. Hall of Famer goes first time for Christophe Clement, 13-3-3-2 at the meeting. The barn is seven for 23 with two-year old first-timers on the turf over the last three years. Hall of Famer is by Gone West, out of Palace Music, and he's a half-brother to no less than ten winners, three of them stakes winners. Pletcher debuts Sir Dynamite, and the Toddster has won with six of 16 starters at this meeting. This colt, a $450,000 yearling purchase, is by Dyanformer out of a Trempolino mare who's a half to the dam of the juvenile champ Action This Day. Most interesting on breeding though is one stuck out on the AE list. Sir Mott would make his debut for Bill Mott should he draw in; he's by Stravinsky out of a Private Account mare, and he's a half-brother to the graded turf winner Sir Cat. His second dam is the champion April Run, who I remember as if it were just yesterday....OK, maybe as if it were just a few years ago, beating the boys in the Turf Classic two years in a row (1981-2) for owner Bertram Firestone and trainer Francois Boutin.

Overlooked amongst these well-bred firsters could be the other Pletcher Tanganyika (Smart Strike), 5-1 morning line with Edgar Prado. He's had three perfectly decent 4ths on the grass thus far, and returns after a brief freshening.