GOBBLING UP STAKES

Update - 10:44 a.m. - DYLAN THOMAS came from 7 lengths back in the ARC, rallied wide and then drifted in numerous paths, brushed and interfered with several rivals and then held on to win the 2400 metre classic at Longchamp. Controversial jock KIEREN FALLON rode. Impossible to know what was going on over there watching the telecast (no sound most of the time). A very very long inquiry was posted - hard to imagine this guy won't be disqualified is what I thought....and that YOUMAZAIN (Sinndar), a huge longshot,won't be moved up. But meanwhile, Dylan Thomas was being paraded, music played, photos were taken for the 40 minutes after the race while the stewards decided. They were going to DQ the winner after all that? And put up an 80 to 1 shot to win it?\

I think not!....guess it's a whole lot different over there

In the news... trainer JODY HAMMETT writes in to THOROUGHBLOG, the Breeders' Cup prep races are just that... preps....

likely OFF TURF at Woodbine as the rain continues (a deluge yesterday in mid-card made grass very soft)

SPEED KILLS

(zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz)

Lots of WIN AND YOU ARE IN races for the Breeders Cup yesterday, Canadians didn’t do well, and boy, you could really tell that many horsepeople were simply setting their horses up for the Cup. Tough on the bettors.

How about the FUTURITY at Keeneland. That was a laughable race where only one horse went to the lead, okay, Slew’s Tiznow pressed WICKED STYLE (Macho Uno), but the others seemed happy to rate their horses off a 49 and change half mile and that was their undoing (and anyone who bet closers).

WICKED STYLE – 86 BEYER

GOLD TRAIN appeared to break down in the race on Keeneland’s Polytrack. (Teuflesberg also suffered a bad injury on the surface too, during the Phoenix stakes. Another runner, Dream of Angels, flipped in the paddock before the Phoenix and fractured his skull, having to be euthanized)

At Belmont, the very fast filly INDIAN BLESSING (Indian Charlie) did the opposite – ran like a maniac and then simply staggered home to win the Frizette in a less-tha-inspiring renewal. Beyer Figure 87 Beyer.

At least WAR PASS (Cherokee Run-Vue), the winner of the Champagne, is a Beyer Figure monster and looks like a legitimate contender.

103 Beyer for his romp yesterday.

On the other side of speed…there were some silly speed duels at Woodbine that killed off some horses. Race 2 – DADA BEE and KIRISTENA looked like they were in a quarter horse race, not a 6 furlongs $10K claiming event and both fizzled while CLEVER DARLEY won.

CAT DAN was sent on a maniacal mission in the finale and faded to be 3^rd.

Other stuff..

EMMA-JAYNE-WILSON bagged three including the Carotene Stakes won by Carotene’s trainer Roger Attfield for Windhaven – SANS SOUCI ISLAND (Chester House) was the predictable winner and Wilson gave her a pristine ride.

Race 1- VALID VENTURE got a 77 Beyer Figure for a very easy maiden score in his 3^rd career start for MSW (Ont. Sired). The Tethra colt is owned and trained by Laurie Silvera and was a $13K (US) purchase from the local sale from breeders Bernard and Karen McCormack. Looks like a nice colt.

Race 9 – Congrats to trainer GORD COLBOURNE who won his first race of the season with the filly YONA (Yonaguska, one of 2 by that sire that won yesterday at Woodbine). Rallying from far back, overcoming a steadying incident late on the turn, YONA angled out and powered to her maiden score under Jono Jones.

SUGAR SWIRL (Ontario bred by Touch Gold) earned a 96 Beyer Figure for her 2^nd place finish in the Thoroughbred Club of America Stakes at Keeneland. The consistently good filly has a sister, Silk Candy, racing at Woodbine.

Happy Thanksgiving…racing today and tomorrow at Woodbine – tomorrow Grey Breeders’Cup.

JODY HAMMETT – ON THE RECORD

THOROUGHBLOG would like to thank trainer JODY HAMMETT very much for his note today on his fine. The topic has, as he mentioned, a hot one on this site, and it is commendable that this young trainer has responded to the fans and readers.

Jody is a not only a fan of horse racing but a horse lover. We have seen him claim horses simply to retire (Praise from Dixie).

There are certainly many, many people involved in the game who take liberties with the rules, bending them, if you will. Let’s not forget that this issue also involves the clockers, who have time and again, been questioned – under breath – by scribes and horsepeople alike for years.

That is not to say Jody is guilty or innocent, but he has been fined, a hefty one at that, and that should be the end of the story.

Thanks everyone for your interest, it is, after all, the game and industry we love and want to thrive.

FROM JODY HAMMETT..

Hi, Jen and Jen Bloggers, This is Jody Hammett, Jen call me to confirm if you like.

I got a call from a friend who said that I am the "hot topic", so I figured I would take a gander and have decided to respond.

The calling in of Speedstorm as stated previously was entirely a mistake. Someone (not my wife or kids) in my family is fighting lung cancer, balancing my family, my wife’s career and my career while seeing a family member through this time has been difficult.

The morning that Speedstorm was scheduled to work, she was to work with a fellow trainers horse at 930am, the trainer was going to call her in as I was to be at my family members side during treatment that morning.

At 800am I went to the race office and was advised that I needed to work my horse before 9am in order to make the program, so I called the barn told my rider to tack her up and take her out. When entering the track to work, she was acting up and did not back up to the wire, she was called in and there are witnesses which overheard, unfortunately the person who is supposed to be in the box was not, he was chatting behind the box and did not call the work in to the clockers...SHE MADE TIME!! I get a call back asking me why I did not breeze the horse, I explained she was out at 830, I was asked to re-work her for my 30 day, I explained that I might have to scratch. I forgot to touch base with the trainer that I had lined up with for 9:30 after making arrangements for another horse to breeze with my shedrow foreman the horse. As a result of my forgetfulness’ COMPADRE STRIKES was called in as speedstorm, anyone going back to the day in question, can quickly see that I corrected the mistake before the published worksheets as COMPADRE STRIKES is on the sheet working a half mile, SPEEDSTORM was not removed.

What is a guy to do???? I get it, I understand that our industry is riding on integrity and it counts, did I make a mistake YES, was I purposefully misleading anyone, NO!!! Are trainers accountable for their mistakes, YES!!

Will I appeal, not sure yet, my wife, my family and my friends will be the only people included in that decision. With that said, I would be glad to pay even the 5000.00 fine (4700.00 more than Malcolm Pierces fine for the SAME THING) for my "negligence" and wish that it had been published that way. ORC is making a statement to the public; anyone who has been a part of an ambiguous situation knows that there is always a short end of a stick in situations like these.

To, I believe my peers, who have supported me both personally and publicly - THANK YOU!

As for the deeper bashes around warm up and sore horses, someone addressed a lot about how trainers make these decisions already. The filly on Wednesday is the widest filly at the Knee's I have ever trained and she clearly swings it, she did clear the commission vet in the AM as all horses who are presented to race in the PM do, again as someone else also stated, rarely will you see one of my horses get scratched especially VET and I do not push sore horses EVER! We have a collection of retired thoroughbreds that we have retired to avoid any career threatening injuries!

To those who my NEGLIGENCE has personally affected, I apologize.

Thanks for taking the time to review, please do contact me through my website (www.jodyhammett.com) or published phone number on my website if you have any further questions or concerns, I would be pleased to chat, because good horseman are as much affected by the ambiguity as handicappers, remember this is our livelihood, don’t forget we all make mistakes, have you ever made one at work that cost you 5K and public humiliation??