The biggest horse racing event of the year is this coming Saturday May 6 — and for the first time ever, there are 14 different places that Virginians can wager the Kentucky Derby! Fans can bet the “Run for the Roses” at any of the six Rosie’s Gaming Emporiums in New Kent, Richmond, Hampton, Dumfries, Collinsville & Vinton, at the VA-Horseplay OTBs inside Breakers Sports Grille in Henrico & Buckets Bar & Grill in Chesapeake, at the Virginia Gold Cup Steeplechase Races in The Plains, at the Shenandoah Downs Harness Races in Woodstock, and online via four partner sites—Twinspires.com, TVG.com, Xpressbet.com & NYRABets.com.

Favored Forte Avoids Unfavorable Draw in Kentucky Derby; The son of Violence will start from post 15.

Originally Posted on Bloodhorse.com on 5/1/2023, Written by Byron King

After watching two of his horses draw the disadvantageous inside post in the Kentucky Derby (G1) the past two years, Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher expressed a measure of relief that Forte secured post 15 for the $3 million race May 6 at Churchill Downs after post positions were drawn May 1.

Though post 15 leaves Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable’s Forte well out in the track to begin—a position from which he may need to work to avoid losing ground around two turns in the 1 1/4-mile contest—posts in the middle or outside in the Kentucky Derby are considered desirable. There is a run of over a quarter mile to the first turn.

Forte, a son of Violence  , is the 3-1 morning-line favorite in the 149th Kentucky Derby, matched against 19 other fellow 3-year-olds in the first leg of the Triple Crown. He is the most accomplished horse to run in the Kentucky Derby since champion Nyquist   brought an unbeaten record into the 2016 race and prevailed.

Three horses are alternates in the prestigious race, known as the “Greatest Two Minutes in Sports,” in need of scratches to draw into the field.

With such a large field—most stakes races are capped at 14 starters—there is often a scramble for position as the field compresses to the inside of the racetrack, which can result in horses that are not in the leading cluster getting shuffled back.

Forte, last year’s Eclipse Award-winning 2-year-old male and 2-for-2 this year with victories in the Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) and Florida Derby (G1), typically closes from the middle or rear of the pack.

Irad Ortiz Jr., unplaced in six prior Derby mounts and who was aboard Pletcher’s two recent rail-drawn starters—Known Agenda   (ninth in 2021) and Mo Donegal   (fifth in 2022)—rides.

Pletcher’s two other starters in Saturday’s race, Whisper Hill Farm and Gainesway Stable’s Blue Grass Stakes (G1) winner Tapit Trice  and Spendthrift Farm’s Louisiana Derby (G2) winner Kingsbarns  also avoided extreme inside posts, securing posts 5 and 6, respectively. Horses from post 5 have won 10 runnings of the Kentucky Derby, most of any post. Always Dreaming was the most recent winner from that position in 2017.

“We’re just trying to avoid a really poor post 1 or 20 or something like that, which is pretty straightforward, and hopefully get some tactical position in the first turn and be able to save a little bit of ground and go from there,” Pletcher said.

Pletcher seeks his third victory in the Derby, having won it in 2010 with Super Saver   and seven years later with Always Dreaming. He has started 62 horses in the legendary race, most by any trainer. Should his trio all compete, this will mark the 12th time he has run three or more horses in a given Derby year.

He had hoped to also run Spendthrift Farm’s Major Dude  in Saturday’s race, but opted to enter him in the $500,000 American Turf Stakes (G2T) on the Kentucky Derby undercard when it appeared the 3-year-old would be a Derby also-eligible.

Pletcher calls this year’s lineup the strongest he has run from an odds perspective. Tapit Trice is the 5-1 second choice in the morning line and Kingsbarns is the co-fifth choice at 12-1.

Mike Repole of Repole Stable, a co-owner in 2022 Belmont Stakes (G1) winner Mo Donegal, added of Forte’s draw, “Honestly, we wanted anything between 4 and 16, just get us in the middle of the pack where we have no excuse.”

Others were seemingly not as fortunate. Two of trainer Brad Cox’s runners drew the innermost posts, with Gary and Mary West’s Hit Show  landing the rail and the Coolmore-affiliated Verifying  post 2. His other two runners, Jace’s Road  and Angel of Empire , drew posts 12 and 14, respectively. Albaugh Family Stable owns Angel of Empire and co-owns Jace’s Road with West Point Thoroughbreds.

Not since Ferdinand in 1986 has a horse won from the inside post position. The only horse who has won from post 1-3 since then is Real Quiet, the 1998 Derby winner who broke from post 3. Since 1987, the win rate for posts 1, 2, or 3 is just 0.95% (1-for-105).

Jeff Ruby Steaks (G3) winner Two Phil’s , trained by Larry Rivelli for Patricia’s Hope, Phillip Sagan, and Madaket Stables and ridden by Jareth Loveberry, starts from post 3.

Loveberry is among a group of jockeys riding in the Derby for the first time. Hall of Famer John Velazquez, a three-time Derby winner who is aboard Reincarnate  (post 7), is the most experienced rider in Saturday’s Derby with 24 previous mounts.

Rivelli said he originally wanted to be outside with Two Phil’s.

“But the way the race drew, I think the 3 post will be perfect for him. I think the 6 (Kingsbarns) and the 2 (Verifying) have speed and we’ll just sit right behind,” he said of his horse, who typically stalks the pace. 

The two Japanese-trained horses in the body of the field, Derma Sotogake  and Continuar , are among those outside in posts 17 and 20. Individuals seated at the Continuar’s table at the post-draw event grimaced when his name was announced with the outside post following the random pill draw.

Another Japanese horse, Mandarin Hero , is the second also-eligible. Cyclone Mischief  is the first also-eligible that would get into the race with a scratch. King Russell is the third also-eligible and least likely to gain entrance to the Derby.

Post positions can change with scratches, typically resulting in outside horses moving closer toward the inside. 

Through 2019, Churchill Downs used two starting gates—a standard 14-horse gate and an auxiliary gate for the remaining runners—with a small gap before the two. Then in 2020, Churchill Downs introduced a continuous 20-horse starting gate. Not as wide as the two prior positioned together, the continuous gate is positioned on the racetrack to not leave those breaking on the inside as close to the inner rail.

“Well, I’m glad we got a new starting gate,” Cox said. “I don’t think it affects the (inside) as much. But down inside is not where you want to be, you’d rather be out in the middle somewhere. But overall these horses are doing well. They’ll have to work out trips. It’s up to the jockeys to get the big trips and see what happens.”

Cox called post position “overrated—bottom line. People are going to argue with me on that but it’s about getting the trip. It’s more about breaking well and getting good position.”

Tyler Gaffalione on Verifying may use more of his mount’s early speed to secure a forward position from post 2. Verifying pressed the pace in the Blue Grass before being caught by Tapit Trice.

The latter has a history of breaking slowly and disliking dirt kicked in his face when trailing horses—perhaps leaving him in a challenging position with three-quarters of the field outside him if he is away slowly.

The three also-eligibles are in need of withdrawals from the race before scratch time at 9 a.m. ET on Kentucky Oaks Day, May 5.

Last year, a scratch allowed Rich Strike  to draw into the race the morning before the Derby. The overlooked colt, breaking from the far outside post in the field of 20, upset the Derby at 80-1 odds, running down Epicenter   in the closing yards.

Sun Thunder  (post 13) and Rocket Can  (post 18) will race with blinkers on.

ENTRIES: KENTUCKY DERBY PRESENTED BY WOODFORD RESERVE (G1)

With the shuttering of Colonial Downs after the 2013 summer racing season, racing opportunities for Virginia horsemen reverted to their pre-live, out-of-state, racing days with the export of starts across state lines. Meanwhile, through account and off-track wagering, purse money was still being generated, intended for incentives to slow the erosion of Virginia’s once massive thoroughbred industry.

So what could be the vehicle to maintain and preserve Virginia’s thoroughbred industry?

With the Virginia Certified Residency Program still several years away, Virginia’s horsemen and breeders worked out a deal to run Virginia’s existing stakes races in Maryland as a lifeboat. The Maryland Jockey Club was more than happy to host the races on their slate.

“Once Colonial closed down, things started coming apart,” recalls then-recently hired Virginia Thoroughbred Association Executive Director Debbie Easter. “It was not too long after I had come in. We were just keeping the Virginia stakes going, forming the [Virginia Equine Alliance], and adding pari-mutuel at the Gold Cup races. This was stuff we were doing to hold things together. It was the only way to showcase Virginia horses. They showcased pretty well.”

Rose Brier, Two Notch Road, and Exaggerated were among those winning multiple stakes in Virginia races in Maryland between 2014 and 2018.

Another multiple stakes winner was Queen Caroline, the first horse owned by Amy Moore since she was a partial owner of record of a “family” horse as a teenager.

Upon retirement from Covington and Burling, a Washington, DC law firm at which she was a partner, Moore started looking for fillies to race. At the 2014 Keeneland yearling sale, Moore, who makes decisions based on her own personal experience and background rather than via a bloodstock agent, bought a Blame filly, going $20,000 over her $150,000 budget.

“We had a good group of fillies that were coming up at the same time. I remember her just getting better,” recalls Easter. “It’s amazing that this happened to Amy because it doesn’t happen very often, it’s really unheard of. She’s doing the work herself. She’s not like many owners in how much she thought about everything.”

Queen Caroline was bred in Virginia at Morgan’s Ford Farm in Front Royal, a farm as organic as they come, where Wayne and Susie Chatfield-Taylor eschew herbicides and pesticides. Acting on a recommendation made at that Keeneland sale, Moore hired veterinarian Pug Hart, to evaluate Queen Caroline. 

“I came to the Morgan’s Ford consignment, and I saw Queen Caroline and gave her an A+ in my rating system. She was the only yearling that I saw that I rated an A+,” recalls Moore. “I thought she was a very athletic looking filly, very well-balanced, very light on her feet. It looked like gravity had less of a hold on her than it does on a normal horse. I really liked her.”

Going through law school, Moore would occasionally exercise horses for trainers such as Del Carroll and Felix Nuesch. After law school and during an engaging professional career, Moore would have little involvement in thoroughbred racing short of watching races on television. A year after purchasing Queen Caroline, Moore bought Hart’s farm in Millwood, VA. Queen Caroline, it turned out, would stable only twelve miles from where she was bred – small world, indeed.

The stakes races in Maryland that served as a lifeboat for Virginia racing, would become the stage to showcase Queen Caroline’s racing career. Three of her six career wins in twenty starts came in the Virginia stakes held north of the Potomac. Trained by Michael Matz, she won the Nellie Max Cox at Pimlico in 2016 for her second career win. At Laurel in 2017 she repeated in the Nellie Mae Cox and won the Brookmeade later that summer. 

“I didn’t know when I bought her how important the Virginia-bred program was and is,” explained Moore. “At that time, there was no racing in Virginia. The Virginia program is a terrific program.”

While the Virginia stakes were being held in Maryland, the Virginia Equine Alliance established and implemented the Virginia Certified Residency program, timely to the development of Moore’s South Gate Farm. The incentive program provides bonuses for horses certified to be stabled in Virginia over a period of six months or more. It helped to anchor Moore’s foothold in breeding thoroughbreds. 

“I needed an outside source of income, and the Virginia Certified Program brought a lot of weanlings and yearlings to my farm as boarders to be raised and sales prepped and really was a lifeline for farms like mine,” Moore explained. “It was a tremendous help to Virginia farms, which is what it was intended to be. It is wildly successful.”

One of her former tenants, Simply Super won the Hickory Tree Stakes at Colonial Downs last summer.

Retiring Queen Caroline from racing, Moore’s focus turned to finding the ideal stallion for her first venture into breeding. She identified Violence.

“I’m a commercial breeder so I have to breed what the market wants, and the market wants horses that run two turns on dirt,” observes Moore. “Queen Caroline was successful exclusively on turf. She didn’t care at all for dirt, so I was walking a tightrope between turf and dirt and looking for a stallion that had credentials in both areas.”

Violence, by Medaglia d’Oro, was a Grade 1 winner on synthetic, a Grade 2 winner on dirt, and suffered his only defeat in a four-race career when second to eventual Kentucky Derby winner Orb in the 2013 edition of the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth. According to Moore, Violence was a very good physical match for her mare mare. 

Queen Caroline’s first born, Forte, was purchased in the Keeneland September Yearling Sale for $110,000 by Repole Stable and St. Elias Stable. Mike Repole is the developer of Vitamin Water, while Vinnie Viola of St. Elias Stable owns the Florida Panthers.

Trained by Todd Pletcher and ridden by Irad Ortiz, Jr., Forte’s only loss in seven career starts was in the Sanford Stakes in her second start. He avenged the Saratoga setback by winning the Hopeful over the slop on his way to becoming the two-year-old champion, a status he attained with a win in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile.

Wins in the Fountain of Youth Stakes and Florida Derby solidified Forte’s Derby favorite status through the spring. In mid-April, Practical Move won the Santa Anita Derby and Tapit Trice won the Bluegrass, winning battles that may have closed the gap on Forte’s favorite status but could not erase it.

Moore’s Clarke County farm is only about eight miles away from Audley Farm, where Bodemeister was bred and sent off as the favorite in the 2012 Kentucky Derby.

“Clarke County gets excited about their Derby horses,” stated Moore. “Right now, I go into the post office or grocery store or whatever and people are all behind Forte, which is nice.”

Located in northwestern Virginia, Clarke County’s recent breeding success is a portion of Virginia’s thoroughbred racing industry whose economic impact was estimated in 2019 by Chmura Economics and Analytics, while Colonial Downs was closed, to be over $542.1 million and to employ over 5,000 people. Through the preservation of the Virginia stakes program and the Virginia Certified Residency program, the industry’s rebound is aptly symbolized with this year’s Kentucky Derby favorite.

“What an opportunity for Virginia on Secretariat’s 50^th anniversary to speak for things to be turned around and coming back,” exclaimed Easter about the timeliness of Forte. 

Queen Caroline is currently in Kentucky, sixty days in foal to champion Flightline. Moore, whose first thoroughbred purchase was a stakes winner and whose first breeding to that stakes winner is now the Derby favorite, has one more first in front of her. Next Saturday she’s headed for Churchill Downs for the first time in her life on the first Saturday in May.

From out of the lifeboat into the ride of a lifetime.

The Loudoun Point-to-Point race took place on Sunday April 23 in Leesburg VA, the staple point-to-point event was a massive success both for Loudoun County and the Virginia Equine industry. Fans from all over the Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia area came out to enjoy the races! The scene was set with traditional derby hats and apparel. 

The event began with five pony races including a lead rope race, a large pony flat race, a Shetland pony flat race, a small pony flat race, and a medium pony flat race. The lead rope race sponsored by Don Devine was won by EHM stables Thumper ridden by Manuel Aguilera Jr. Thumper was trained by Betty McCue. 

The large pony flat race (between 13.2 and 14.2 hands) for junior riders (below 16 years old) was won by Lesile Young’s Janneydancer ridden by Jaidyn Shore, trained by Suzanne Stettinius. 

The second to last pony race was for small ponies under 12.2 hands tall, ridden for about a quarter of a mile by junior riders under 16 years old. The race was won by Christopher Kern’s Mallory, ridden by Cami Kern and trained by Christopher Kern and was seven lengths the best. in a time of 25 seconds. 

Lastly, the medium pony flat race was held for ponies between 12.2 and 13.2 hands, also ridden by junior riders. This race went for three furlongs on the turf. It was won by Blueberry, a pony owned and ridden by Yomar Ortiz Jr, and trained by Betty McCue. Blueberry crossed the wire 12 lengths ahead of the second-place finisher in a time of 38 seconds.

The first and only hurdle race of the day, the Farm Credit Maiden Hurdle race was split into two divisions both went for 2-1/4 miles around the track and included 13 jumps. The first division was won by Rolling Tide LLC’s Hold Hard, ridden by Barry Foley and trained by Doug Fout. He won by a single length and the winning time was 5 minutes and 9 seconds.

The Second Division was won by Kiplin Hall’s Absam, ridden by Jamie Bargary, and trained by William Dowling. He won the race by a neck over Upland Flats Racing’s Moonshine Time. The winning time was 5:04 3/5.

The Loudoun Hunt’s hounds came out and played with all the kids on the track. A highlight of the yearly event as always! 

The third race was a mile and a quarter flat race sponsored by the VHBPA (Virginia Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective association) for a purse of $2,000. The winner was Mint Meadows Farm LLC and Don Metzger’s B Determined, ridden by Erika Taylor, and trained by Suzanne Stettinius. The horse charged to victory with a time of 2 minutes and 25 seconds, winning by a neck.  

Race number four was the Katherine F. Russell Memorial flat race for three-year-olds and up who had never won a flat race. This race went for about a mile and a half on the turf and was sponsored by Nadine Miglio Galvin and Carroll D. Galvin, MFH. The race was won by Beverly R. Steinman’s Dyna Mast, ridden by Barry Foley, and trained by Doug Fout. Dyna Mast won the race by one length in a time of 2 minutes and 45 seconds. 

The fifth race on the card was the Takaro Farm Turf Cup, a mile and three quarters for horses three and up. The winner of the three-horse race was Charles C. Fenwick Jr’s Withoutdestination, ridden by Elizabeth Scully and trained by Todd J. Wyatt. He completed the race in 3 minutes and 20 seconds winning by ⅗ of a length. 

The last race on the card was the Dale Lumber Company Restricted young flat race for 5-year-olds and up to be ridden by amateur riders from the age of 15-20 years old. EHM Stable’s Prince Khozan dominated the two-horse field besting Camile DeStanley’s Blue Mandate by an eighth of a mile (furlong). Congratulations to winning rider Gretchen Eisenberg and trainer Manuel Aguilera Jr.

As always, the Loudoun Point-to-Point races were a massive success and truly embodied the rich history and culture that makes the equine industry in Virginia one of the greatest in the world.

April 25, 2023

Dear Friends of Secretariat for Virginia,     

We have great news! The beautiful bronze ‘Secretariat – Racing into History’ is generating contagious enthusiasm all over Virginia.

Ever since the statue arrived for temporary display in Ashland on March 31, a steady stream of people have come to see it from all over. They get out of their cars, stand, pose for selfies, smile and marvel at what a work of art it is. Then they open their wallets to show their appreciation. Donations are pouring in. In just two months of fundraising, we are well over halfway towards our goal of $695,000! Specifically, we have received over $80,000 in cash, over $20,000 in pledges, at least $100,000 in in-kind donations, and assurances from organizations, companies, private donors and foundations of $200,000 more. And the momentum is building. If you are one of our donors, your generosity has made an important contribution to this effort. We are very grateful.

Watching the visitors, I have been trying to articulate why people respond so emotionally to the statue and to the horse himself. As to the statue, it is obvious: it is an astonishing work of art. As for Secretariat, he was an equally astonishing athlete. He still awes us. But he also makes us feel good. In the 1970s, people said he restored their faith in humanity. How did he do that?

I think he inspired us because as humans, we are drawn to beauty, to stories or myths and to nature, especially to animals. Secretariat’s feats have become mythic. The way he ran was joyful. And he allowed us to experience pure animal power at its finest.

This is why I am working so hard to put this statue in Ashland. Mom spent the last 40 plus years of her life telling Secretariat’s story and connecting with the people who loved him. She recognized that’s what Secretariat did—by running so fast, by being so beautiful, by demonstrating so much heart—brought comfort and joy to people. She wanted to spread that feeling.

The monument is demonstrating the same effect as Secretariat had in the 1970s. It is a celebration of unparalleled achievement.  Of grit and determination of the people who bred and raised him, including the grooms, the exercise riders, the jockeys and the trainer. Of the legacy of Central Virginia as the cradle of American horse racing.

The Secretariat monument is a permanent work of art that will inspire us and make us smile every time we see it.  As you may know, the statue is leaving April 27 for the Triple Crown Tour.  We want to make certain it returns, so please continue to support this campaign to bring Secretariat home to Virginia and install it in Ashland.

Thank you for your encouragement and assistance.

Sincerely,

Kate Chenery Tweedy

Donation links:
www.secretariatforvirginia.com
www.ashlandmuseum.org
https://www.gofundme.com/f/bring-the-secretariat-monument-to-ashland-va

HOW TO DONATE:   

• Send checks payable to Ashland Museum with Secretariat in the memo line. Mail checks to PO Box 633 Ashland, VA 23005    
• On-Line
  • Ashland Museum:  http://www.ashlandmuseum.org  
  • gofundme: https://www.gofundme.com/f/bring-the-secretariat-monument-to-ashland-va

QUESTIONS:

• Contact Wayne Dementi (804)363-0160

FOLLOW THE TRIPLE CROWN TOUR www.SecretariatForVirginia.com

Originally Posted on 4/20/23 on Nationalsteeplechase.com, Written by Tod Marks

Enriched Gwathmey headlines action-packed Saturday in Virginia, Maryland 

Snap Decision, Andi’amu return to action at the Middleburg Spring Races, while Maryland hosts the second leg of the Timber Triple in Butler.

Glenwood Park hosts stars and stakes action at the Middleburg Spring Races on Saturday with an eight-race card, anchored by the $100,000 Grade 2 Temple Gwathmey stakes and $25,000 Middleburg Hunt Cup timber stakes.

In all, $255,000 in purses are up for grabs, the third richest meet on the National Steeplechase Association spring calendar, behind only the Iroquois and Virginia Gold Cup races. Post time is 1 p.m. The Gwathmey, which annually draws top talent, has gotten a purse bump of $25,000.

Virginia’s oldest steeplechase, which dates back to 1911, the Middleburg Spring Races drew a record crowd on a beautiful day last year. The forecast is less optimistic for this year’s running, but while the weather may not be perfect, the competition couldn’t be better.

A brilliant performer since he made his NSA debut in 2019, Bruton Street-US’ Snap Decision, now 9, comes into the 2 1/2-mile Gwathmey well rested after an arduous campaign in which he conceded a lot of weight to his rivals under handicap conditions. When he finished second in last year’s Gwathmey, also a handicap, Snap Decision carried 14 more pounds than the winner, Iranistan. The two-time 2022 Grade 1 winner (Iroquois and Jonathan Sheppard) will again be toting highweight, of 158 pounds, on Saturday, 12 to 18 more than his four foes. Should the son of Hard Spun be victorious, he will pass the $900,000 mark in career earnings. Jack Fisher trains and regular rider Graham Watters has the mount.

Lining up against the 2022 Eclipse Award finalist will be Del Rio Racing, USA Steeplechase, and Upland Flats Racing’s Ask Paddington, trained by Keri Brion and ridden by last season’s top jockey, Parker Hendriks. A nine-time winner in the UK, the Irish-bred finished third in his NSA debut in the G1 Lonesome Glory at Aqueduct last fall, just three-quarters of a length behind Snap Decision, who gave way to the 41-1 winner Noah and the Ark. Ask Paddington finished a distant third to eventual Eclipse Award winner Hewick in the Grand National at Far Hills, the only jump race in which Snap Decision has ever finished off the board.

Madaket Stables and The International Ventures’ Going Country is another Irish-bred trained by Brion. Though he’s never won a stake, he has been in the thick of things in several outings, including two seconds, to Snap Decision in the Sheppard at Saratoga and champion mare Down Royal in the G2 Zeke Ferguson at Great Meadow in the fall.

A 10-time winner of nearly $350,000, Sharon Sheppard’s Recidean, trained by 2022 leading trainer Leslie Young, who is off to a fast start this season, was a two-time stakes victor last year, taking the G2 Semmes Memorial at Great Meadow, then closed out his campaign with a convincing tally in the Appleton hurdle stakes at Far Hills.

Completing the field is Irv Naylor’s Belfast Banter, an accomplished hurdler in Europe still looking for his first U.S. win. In four NSA starts in 2022 (three in G1 competition), the seven-year-old Irish-bred’s best finish was a second to Redicean in the Semmes. Cyril Murphy is the trainer.

The supporting card

Timber racing has been front and center early this spring, and the $25,000 Middleburg Hunt Cup at 3 1/4 miles has drawn the reigning champion, Ballybristol Farm’s Andi’amu, who won the race in 2019, and finished second last spring following nearly two years on the sidelines. Trained by Leslie Young, Andi’amu, a winner of more than $500,000, also captured the timber crown in 2019, and enters the Hunt Cup riding a two-race winning streak. Overall, the champ captured four stakes in 2022.

A group of familiar adversaries will take on the 14-year-old juggernaut, including Sheila Williams and Northwoods Stable’s Storm Team, who upset Andi’amu in last year’s Hunt Cup and again in the Brown Advisory timber stakes at Shawan Downs. The Hundred Acre Field’s Cracker Factory, trained by Mark Beecher, boasted back-to-back scores last season, breaking his maiden at Shawan Downs, then two weeks later taking the National Sporting Library & Museum Cup at Glenwood Park, defeating Storm Team, among others.

Upland Partners’ Mystic Strike is as accomplished as any runner, having won seven stakes in his venerable career, including the 2021 Middleburg Hunt Cup. At 14, he’s already made a pair of starts for trainer Todd McKenna, finishing a distant third to Tomgarrow in last week’s My Lady’s Manor Stakes, and a far-back second in his bow at Cheshire.

Stepping up in class, Northwoods Stable and Sheila Williams’  Notjudginjustsayin, who like stablemate Storm Team is trained by Jack Fisher. The Kentucky-bred broke his maiden over timber at Genesee Valley in the fall then promptly captured an allowance contest at the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup Races.

The rest of the card consists of four hurdle races at 2 1/8 miles, including a $35,000 allowance; $30,000 maiden special weights contest; $25,000 maiden for fillies and mares; and a $20,000 maiden for horses who have started for a claiming tag of $25,000 or less over jumps or on the flat. There’s also a $20,000 steeplethon over mixed obstacles at 2 5/8 miles and a 1 1/2-mile training flat event.

You can download the full entries here.

The Hunt Cup is the third race (2:10 p.m post time) while the Gwathmey is the fourth (scheduled to go off at 2:45 p.m). While all of the NSA meets will be streamed live, without commentary, on www.nationalsteeplechase.com, the Middleburg Races will also be streamed via America’s Best Racing, hosted by Dan Tordjman, the NSA’s Megan Connolly, and Bri Mott of StableDuel, starting at approximately 1 p.m. Eastern Time. The ABR show, presented by Brown Advisory, will offer on-site analysis of several major races and an inside look into the world of jump racing. Featured races on the April 22 Middleburg card include the Gwathmey, Middleburg Hunt Cup, Alfred Hunt steeplethon, and Glenwood allowance hurdle.

Additionally, the Middleburg Races will kick off the NSA’s partnership with StableDuel, where fans can have fun handicapping the races and compete for $2,000 in prize money. To learn how to play Saturday’s free contest, click here.

And at the Grand National…

Seven to contest second leg of Maryland Timber Triple

Timber racing returns to Maryland hunt country for the second Saturday in a row as seven runners are expected to go to the post in the 120th running of the historic contest in Butler.

This year’s Grand National, at a distance of 3 1/4 miles over 18 fences, carries a purse of $30,000. The event is restricted to amateur riders. Gates open at noon, and the four-race card gets underway at 2:30 p.m. The Grand National is the first race on the card.

Only four of the runners entered in the Grand National are among those nominated to the longest and most demanding race of the series, the 126th Maryland Hunt Cup, which will be run at 4 miles on April 29. Vintage Vinnie, winner of the previous two Hunt Cups in record-setting performances, finished second in the first leg of the series last week, the My Lady’s Manor stakes, and is sitting out the Grand National. Tomgarrow, who won the My Lady’s Manor, is not running in either of the other legs.

This year’s Grand National field includes a mixed batch of runners at various stages of their respective careers.

South Branch Equine’s Master Seville, trained by Mark Beecher, is a perfect two for two this season in the allowance ranks. He handily defeated Charlie Fenwick’s Royal Ruse, who is also in the field, last week at The Manor Races. Royal Ruse, trained by Sanna Neilson, hasn’t won in more than two years, but finished second in the Grand National in 2021.

Lightly raced Monbeg Stream, who runs in the colors of Tuscany Racing for trainer Leslie Young, also enters the Grand National off of two straight 2021 timber victories, a maiden followed by the Mason Houghland allowance at the Iroquois Races.

Irv Naylor’s Withoutmoreado, trained by Kathy Neilson, was third in a timber allowance at last year’s Grand National meet, then followed it up with a victory in similar company at Winterthur. In his two stakes tries, Withoutmoreado finished a distant second to Andi’amu at Willowdale and fourth to that same rival at the International Gold Cup in 2022.

Since coming over from Ireland in 2022, Armata Stable’s Our Friend has two wins – a maiden and allowance score – in three outings for trainer Joe Davies.

A one-time claimer on the flat, Upland Partners’ Shootist has carved out a nice career for himself over timber. Trained by Todd McKenna, the nine-year-old son of Smart Strike has six top-three finishes in eight starts. And in his last stakes outlining in 2022, he finished second – albeit far back – to champion Andi’amu.

The lone stakes winner in the field (the 2021 Willowdale Steeplechase), Kiplin Hall’s Renegade River hasn’t won in seven tries since then. But the 10-year-old son of Bellamy Road gave dual Maryland Hunt Cup winner Vintage Vinnie all he could handle in his most recent start, just missing by a half length in an allowance race at the 2022 My Lady’s Manor races.

Rounding out the rest of the all-timber card is a $12,500 maiden at 3 miles; the $17,500 Benjamin H. Murray Memorial allowance at 3 1/4 miles; and $10,000 Western Run Plate at 3 miles for apprentice riders.

You can download the full entries here

Forte, who is currently the early favorite to win the Kentucky Derby, is an important horse for the state of Viriginia. He was bred by Virginia Thoroughbred Association President Amy Moore and spent much of his upbringing at her South Gate Farm in Millwood, VA. He is currently sitting at 7-2 odds; we will be cheering for him in the “Run for the Roses on Saturday May 6th.”

Forte has won his last 5 races all of which were grade 1 stakes, with the exception of the grade 2, $400,000 Fountain of Youth Stakes at Gulfstream Park. He has won 6 of the 7 races he has ran in his career, earning an astonishing $2,409,830 in purses. He has notable victories in Derby preps such as the Hopeful Stakes in Saratoga, The Claiborne Breeders Futurity at Keeneland, The FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Juvenile also at Keeneland, and Curlin Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park.

The Kentucky Derby can be wagered on at all Rosie’s locations around the Commonwealth, at the Virginia Gold Cup, Buckets Bar & Grill in Chesapeake, Breakers Sports Grill in Henrico, TVG.com, Xpressbet.com, Twinspires.com, NYRABets.com, and for the first time ever Kentucky Derby wagering will be available at Shenandoah Downs Harness Track in Woodstock, VA.

Originally posted on 4/17/2023 on thoroughbreddailynews.com

St. Elias Stable and Repole Stable’s GI Kentucky Derby favorite Forte (Violence) arrived at Churchill Downs on Monday following a 14-hour van ride from trainer Todd Pletcher’s winter base of Palm Beach Downs in South Florida. Last year’s champion juvenile colt bedded down in his barn 39 and joined fellow Derby hopefuls Kingsbarns (Uncle Mo) and Tapit Trice (Tapit), both who arrived in Louisville on Sunday.

Forte, who won last year’s G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and G1 Hopeful S. before being honored with the Eclipse Award, has won both the GII Fountain of Youth S. and GI Curlin Florida Derby in both starts this year.

sted April 22 at Glenwood Park followed by the Foxfield Races in Charlottesville April 29 and the Virginia Gold Cup on May 6 at Great Meadow in The Plains — which also features Kentucky Derby simulcast wagering. 

The Point-to-Point (PTP) season, which began March 4, is in the homestretch with two events remaining — the Loudoun Hunt PTP at Morven Park in Leesburg on April 23 and the Middleburg Hunt PTP at Glenwood Park on April 30. Highlight of early spring action took place at the Old Dominion Hounds PTP April 8 in Washington, Virginia when three NSA sanctioned races took place at the Ben Venue Farm for the first time ever with purses totaling $65,000.

Looking ahead, Colonial Downs will host two jump races every Friday this summer from July 14 – September 8 and for the first time since reopening in 2019, they will be part of the pari-mutuel cards. The steeplechase races will be programmed as races one and two on Fridays. A pair of $75,000 stakes highlights the ’23 summer campaign. The Randolph D. Rou

Stall applications for the Colonial Downs summer season are available now at colonialdowns.com — and virginiahorseracing.com — and must be turned in on or before May 3. The first of two Condition Books is also available online at the same sites. The New Kent barn area will open June 19 and the track will be available for training beginning June 22. Purses, which averaged $622,000 per day last year, will safely be over $650,000 this year said Frank Petramalo, VAHBPA Executive Director. “With the addition of the Arlington Million Day stakes, total purse money for the meet will be in the $19 million range,” he said.

The Secretariat Turf Course was set ablaze March 28 in an annual controlled burn that helps prepare and nurture the country’s widest grass racing surface for the upcoming meet. The burn takes dead cover off the turf in a rapid manner and allows it to grow back more plush, green and safe within weeks. The controlled burn method is preferred to cutting the grass since the process is quicker and more efficient.

Colonial’s turf irrigation system also underwent a complete renovation and material has been added to the 1 ¼ miles dirt oval. 

“We look forward to working with a new partner (Churchill Downs Incorporated) in the race meet that brings a wealth of experience of putting on great racing events,” added Petramalo. 

A record of more than $5.2 million in stakes purses will be up for grabs at the upcoming 27-day meeting at Colonial Downs which runs from Thursday, July 13 through Saturday, September 9.

The total is buoyed by the relocation of the Grade I Arlington Million, Grade I $500,000 Beverly D. and Grade II $500,000 Secretariat Stakes from their long-time home at Arlington International Racecourse (the Million and Beverly D. were raced at Churchill Downs in 2022). In addition, the Grade III New Kent County Virginia Derby will carry a $500,000 purse, $200,000 more than last year, and its sister race the (Listed) Virginia Oaks, has been kicked up by $50,000 to $250,000.

The Million, Beverly D., and Secretariat will be raced on Saturday, August 12, the traditional weekend for the internationally renowned trio. The Million will be run at 1-1/4 miles and the Beverly D. will be contested at 1-3/16 miles while the one-mile Secretariat leads perfectly into the nine-furlong Virginia Derby four weeks later closing day Saturday, September 9.

It seems only fitting that the Secretariat, named for the Virginia-bred 1973 Triple Crown winner, has now found a home in the Commonwealth as the 50th anniversary of “Big Red’s” Triple Crown is celebrated.

The aforementioned Virginia Derby will headline a card with $1.3 million in stakes purses. In addition to the Virginia Derby and Oaks, the closing day program will include the $150,000 Da Hoss Stakes for older horses at 5 ½ furlongs on turf, $150,000 Colonial Cup for older horses at 1-1/2 miles, $125,000 Rosie’s Stakes for 2-year-olds sprinting 5 ½ furlongs on turf, and $125,000 Kitten’s Joy Stakes for 2-year-olds over a two-turn 1-1/16 miles on the turf.

The stakes program kicks off opening weekend with a quartet of turf races for Virginia-bred or -sired older runners on Saturday, July 15: the $125,000 Edward P. Evans at a mile, the $125,000 Brookmeade for filles and mares at 1-1/16 miles, and the $125,000 Punch Line and $125,000 Tyson Gilpin both at 5 ½ furlongs with the latter of the pair restricted to fillies and mares.

A pair of $150,000 open stakes races – the Van Clief and the Andy Guest – headline the following Saturday, July 22. Both races are carded at 5 ½ furlongs with the Andy Guest restricted to fillies and mares.

The $100,000 Housebuster Overnight Handicap for 3-year-olds at 7 dirt furlongs will be showcased on the July 29 card. 

Two-year-olds are featured on Saturday, August 5 with the $150,000 Keswick for filles going five furlongs on the dirt and the $150,000 Hickory Tree Stakes for Virginia-bred juveniles also at five furlongs.

The Saturday, September 2 card is highlighted by a quintet of stakes races all on turf: the $150,000 Jamestown Stakes is for Virginia-bred or -sired 2-year-olds going 5 ½ furlongs while the remaining four events are for Virginia-restricted horses – the $150,000 Meadow Stable for older horses at 5 ½ furlongs and its female companion race the $150,000 Camptown, and the $150,000 Bert Allen and its filly and mare counterpart the $150,000 Nellie Mae Cox, both at 1-1/16 miles.

******************