Thanksgiving weekend review · 14.10.08

On Saturday one of my picks, Against the Sky, held on to win the Ballerina Stakes over a fast-closing Lady Raj, half of the favoured entry. The race was marred when Lecturing Lynn, one of the two three-year-olds in the race, broke down while pressing the early pace — she was later humanely euthanized. Against the Sky had to be checked abruptly to avoid clipping heels with Lecturing Lynn and possibly going down, but jockey Frank Fuentes kept the big mare wide and out of trouble, giving her the chance to win her second-straight distaff stakes. The win might have just earned the late-blooming Against the Sky older filly/mare honours at the BC Thoroughbred Industry Awards next month.

The next day, Rosberg just got up in the final strides to catch top three-year-old Krazy Koffee in the Premiers Championship. Spaghetti Mouse, who with pre-race favourite True Metropolitan had set a testing pace earlier in the 1 3/8-mile race, finished a good third. To be honest, even though Rosberg was one of my picks (with “Met”), I was really cheering for “Koffee” and “the Mouse” — as were most of the crowd at Hastings, as the audible groan at the finish demonstrated.

In my opinion, the two best efforts in this race were actually losing ones. Krazy Koffee, in his first race against older horses, overtook both a two-time Sovereign Award winner and a popular local champion, and just failed to last against a well-bred son of A.P. Indy. If he wasn’t before, he is now a lock to win the top three-year-old colt/gelding title for 2008. Spaghetti Mouse, while shouldering top weight of 126 pounds, forced the early pace, held the lead briefly coming into the final turn, and even came on again in the final yards. Despite the tough loss, over the course of the year Spaghetti Mouse accomplished more than either True Metropolitan or Rosberg among the older horses. He’s probably won that division, and it likely will be between him and Krazy Koffee for BC Horse of the Year honours. Assuming they both return next year, this could be the beginning of a great rivalry.

A rainy Thanksgiving Day afternoon saw Vintner take the fourth race in the starter handicap marathon series, at 1 1/2 miles. The chestnut gelding set the pace from the beginning, was briefly headed by Lord Vic coming around the final turn, but came back to win easily. My other pick, Alberta shipper Beau Run, was never a serious factor.

More tomorrow.

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What do you think?

  1. The Premier’s was a riders race and given the insane fractions, the Mouse came again late: he ran the best race given that handicap of a ride AND the fact that Alvarado was hurting as he came off a horse right before the big one and was off all 11 mounts the next day.

    — Dr. Timothy Yatcak · Oct 15, 11:57 AM · #

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