WAXING POETIC

Steam and smog in Toronto today..no racing so that's good.

Some good news, some not so good.
More wax was put on POLYTRACK at Woodbine before last night's card and while it surely was a bit sticky on the goggles of the jocks, but there's no question the surface is getting a bit better.
Horse racing lovers will either laugh hysterically or blow a gasket (or both) over the story/video at the bottoms of today's notes.

AND THEN THERE’S MIKE

Wednesday night – Pick 7 balloons to $104,000

You have to love this time of year when the 3-year-olds are sorting themselves out and their form fluctuates as they go along.

Take MIKE FOX, the enormous, beautiful Giant’s Causeway -Alexis, Alzao colt of Morgan Firestone’s. This Queen’s Plate eligible had a drab local debut in the Queenston Stakes when he was 8^th behind Jiggs Coz beaten 7 lengths.

Last night, stretching out to 1 1/16 miles for an allowance/optional claiming event for older horses, Mike Fox stalked a slow pace and then powered his way to a 1 ¼ length win under Emma-Jayne Wilson (who won 2 races on the night).

Mike earned an 83 Beyer Figure and all of a sudden got back into the Plate picture.

Speaking of 2 wins on the night, Mike’s trainer IAN BLACK won twice and had a second-place finish.

Before there was Mike, there was the very good Kinghaven Farms homebred LYRICALLY (Thunder Gulch), who won for the second consecutive time in her 3 starts in an allowance race. She earned a 75 Beyer Figure.

Trainer Paul Attard won off the claim in the last race with Striking Attitude, who ran so well in his career debut when battling on the pace through 1 1/16 miles and just getting beaten. Last night, Striking Attitude won from off the pace with Tyler Pizarro and completed the wild Pick 7 ride with his 5 to 1 payoff.

The Pick 7 was going along quite nicely after a few races last night.

Favourites SOLD THE GOLD (Formal Gold) and IFBUTMAYBEWHEN (Kiridashi), the Hempel family’s homebred, won handily.

Longshot players would have zoomed in on PARRSBORO GOLD in the 4^th race as a stretch runner in a field of speed.

But then things got tricky.

Trainer MARKO MESIC sent out MORO MOO (Kiridashi) to win her debut in race 5 for $16,000 claiming fillies, upsetting favoured LUV A MARINE, who was dropping from $37,500 ( Eeks) Moro Moo, who came from 12 lengths back to win comfortably under Dean Deverell, is co-owned and was bred by George Pavlopolous. The dam is the Mister Baileys mare Ouzo On Ice.

Lyrically, Mike Fox (10 to 1) and Striking Attitude finished off many players and the Pick 7 paid 5 of 7 for just over $200.

The carryover for tomorrow? A nice $104,000. No doubt we are all going to key the Sam-Son filly DANCE WITH DOVES in the first leg, race 2!

EFFORT WAS ROCK SOLID

Meteor holds Plate position

Queen’s Plate winterbook favourite TWILIGHT METEOR ran an exceptional 89 Beyer Figure in the Straight Deal Stakes yesterday at Belmont Park on the grass in his final prep for the Queen’s Plate.

His performance was probably much better than it first looked yesterday when he faded after stalking a slow pace.

The chestnut son of Smart Strike was making his first start since the Lane’s End Stakes in March (a 2 month layoff) and he pressed a slow pace, made a bid for the lead on the turn and then stalled but the final 2 furlongs was run in a scorching :22 2/5.

The colt is trained by Todd Pletcher for John Fort’s Peachtree Stables and was bred by Kinghaven Farms.

GATE SHAKE-UP

Turf works begin

As readers may know by now, the starting gate team at Woodbine had a big change last night when DREW BROWN took over from SHANE ST. PIERRE as the chief starter. Brown, who has been the starter at Fort Erie, starts his horses from the ground, right in front of the gate, unlike others at Woodbine who have stood in the stand.

The starting gate crew at Woodbine had come under some heat in the last year with slow load times, many loose horses and vet scratches.

Note that Brown’s first card of racing at Woodbine was not perfect – there was a vet scratch at the gate in the middle of the card.

Readers comments can be found further down the page.

And turf workouts began yesterday and old-time LE CONQUIEME ESSAI, a multiple stakes winner, was on the tab for four furlongs (52 seconds).

FULL AGREEMENT

Live Oak Stud’s TACIT AGREEMENT, who was 5^th in the Chief Bearhart Stakes (taken off turf and run on Polytrack) last fall is headed back to Woodbine for the Dominion Day Stakes on Canada day according to the Daily Racing Form. The 6yo gelding has won back-to-back stakes at Calder as part of the Seniors Triple series with 99 and 96 Beyer Figures.

Ontario-bred GUIDED AFFAIR won his maiden at Delaware Park yesterday for trainer Sandra Slivka. The Golden Missile-Lily’s Affair, Colonial Affair 3yo colt was making his 9^th career start and won a maiden allowance by 4 lengths with a 75 Beyer Figure. The colt was bred by Adena Springs.

I THEE WED

Grade 2 stakes winner I THEE WED, who won the Nearctic Stakes at Woodbine for Pin Oak Stud and trainer David Bell, has been racing for $3,500 claiming at Penn National recently.

Last night, the 7yo gelding finished fourth for $5,000 starter allowance. The chunky chestnut has won $494,000.

Also at Penn National last night, Canadian-bred TIGER SHRIMP (Alphabet Soup) got up to win by ½ a length in a $3,500 claiming race for owner Sam Webb. Grey Tiger Shrimp is 7-years-old.

NOT THE BEST FOR LAST

This, my friends, is really, really sad. And it goes hand-in-hand with my POLL this week (see sidebar at right). Okay, so it doesn’t happen here in Canada but is there not a way to get these people interested in betting on a horse race…anyone?

Take a look…

http://www.aolsportsblog.com/2007/05/23/preakness-infield-no-one-cares-about-horse-racing/

READERS COMMENTS

Thoroughblog appreciates all comments and discussions and the Preakness debate is a good one that will rage on forever – well, okay at least until those horses hook up again.

Time to move on, however, to another discussion so let’s talk about the sport in general, Polytrack, how to bet a Pick 7 or Canadian racing.