Tuesday Odds and Ends

Patrick Biacone is bitching about no one scheduling a 6 furlong prep for fillies and mares before the new BC Filly and Mare Sprint on October 26…I volunteer La Traviata can prep in the $400,000 Presque Isle Downs Masters Stakes for fillies and mares at six furlongs on September 15. No graded status, and it is on Tapeta, not dirt, but its three weeks after her last start and nearly six weeks before the BC race.

Promising two-year-old filly Glacken’s Girl, winner of the Astoria Stakes and trained by Todd Pletcher, has been retired due to a workout injury suffered last week. She’ll enter the Fasig-Tipton November sale for horses of all ages. What a damn shame! I’m a sucker for Smoke Glacken progeny.

I’m not sure how I feel about Gulfstream moving (and lengthening) the G3 Holy Bull—from late March to April 12, just three weeks before the Kentucky Derby. There is already the G2 Lexington that weekend, and the G1 Blue Grass and G2 Arkansas Derby the weekend before; two weeks back, it’s the G1 Wood Memorial, G2 Illinois Derby and G1 Santa Anita Derby. Are there enough Derby-ready three years olds to fill this many graded stakes in APRIL?

Now that Hard Spun is headed to the G2 Kentucky Cup Classic at Turfway (September 29), Tiago looks towards the G1 Goodwood at Santa Anita (September 29), and Curlin is pointed towards the G1 Jockey Club Gold Cup (September 30). Just call it a gut instinct (or maybe wishful thinking), but my money is on Street Sense heading to Suffolk for the Mass Cap (September 22). Nafzger has mentioned it’s time to meet older horses…

$2 Trifectas of the day (the first with atmospheric theme dominant):
• 9th race at River Downs—Baltic Sun ($123.20), Windy Beach ($9.20), and Early Morning Rain ($4.60) paid $9,900.60.
• 3rd race at Mountaineer—Jacklin ($68.40), Drown the Sorrows ($18.00) and Native Heartbeat ($13.40) paid $9,290.60.

Today was my first day back at work in over eight months—god bless sabbaticals! Actually, it wasn’t that bad being back in the classroom again…I sort of missed it, to tell the true. Not loving the prospect, though, of the inevitable committee work… Still, I can't wait until six years have passed so I can take another one! :)