PUNCH TICKET

UPDATE - MARCHFIELD 5TH IN '08 DEBUT

Eugene Melnyk's Canadian-bred 4yo colt MARCHFIELD, the Breeders' Stakes winner, was a solid 5th in a 1 3/16 mile turf allowance at Keeneland today.
The A.P. Indy colt was several lengths off a very slow pace in his first race of the year, was blocked for half the turn and halfway through the stretch and he finished mildly as th elate pace was quickening smartly.


UPDATE....PIANO IS KEY FOR ASSMUSSEN

Can it be this easy?
The world's leading trainer STEVE ASMUSSEN won with his first starter at Woodbine in 2008 as PIANO TUNNER (why did everyone call this horse Piano Tuner?) inhaled a ridiculously fast pace and won the 3rd race yesterday at Woodbine.
Favoured, and rightly so, the race set up so perfectly for the Millenium Farms-owned Sefapiano mare.
CHICAGO BREEZE, a 2 furlong specialist, won her first 2 races of 2007 at 5 furlngs but went 21 2/5 out of the gate yesterday under Rod Dacosta and predictably plummeted.
Grain of Truth, a winter raced contender, blew the turn and no one else was good enough.
Easy.

Darren Fleming, ASSISTANT to Asmussen spoke after the race:
"We claimed her not far back, she had liked Polytrack before, It's nice to get started off this way. We were a little worried about (the distance) but the race set up perfectly."


Notes cleanup: CHANTAL SUTHERLAND was working horses at Woodbine yesterday and should be riding next week...WOODBINE's TV dept. did well as it tried to fudge a view of the 7 furlong chute for a pair of races yesterday. The new standardbred barn, which is currently in 2 pieces on the clubhouse turn, blocks the regular camera angle at this time. Now the race has a lower-pan, diagonal, almost head on view as the horses leave the chute which works quite well.

Today's news - DERBY PREPS AND MORE DERBY PREPS - (COOL COAL MAN -right- has a big shot in the BLUE GRASS today, photo from EquiSportPhotos)...CANADIAN-BREDS SEALY HILL and ARRAVALE square off in Jenny Wiley...KENTUCKY BEAR and MINER'S CLAIM race for Canadians in the Blue Grass...Ontario-bred 3yo's in the Achievement Stakes and yesterday's results. Results? WOODBINE made history when it opened on April 5...read on...





A giant GONE FISHIN colt was born this week at Stonebriar TB's (see ad at right). Gone Fishin is stamping his foals with his great looks and no doubt his talent!








SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE Day 3 at Woodbine
Nine races and nine different winning trainers and owners on a card of racing that saw a lot of morning line favourites win but some nice priced longshots sprinkled around.

Trainer ANTHONY ADAMO from Fort Erie played a big role in the DAILY DOUBLE as he brought in Tampa shippr BURGE HOLIDAY HUNT to skip away with race one for maidens for $10K. The white faced Harlan's Holiday gelding broke like a rocket and was never challenged. He was well bet at 5 to 2.

The next race, Adamo and partners took that money and claimed old-timer CREASE INFRACTION for $20,000. The fancy looking 10-year-old won as the favourite after a 2 wide pace duel for his 12th win in his 67th start.
He's by Friendly Lover out of Regents Signet.

Gail Wood and sister Dr. Ruth Barbour of Hillsburgh, Ontario celebrated a nice day with their homebred gelding SEARCH FOR A HALO, who galloped along under Emma-Jayne Wilson and won the 3rd race for $20K claiming. The gelding won 1st time out last year as well. Phil Gracey trains the son of Southern Halo.
Later the Wood-Barbour connection just about won with 1st timer SOUPER VEX (Alphabet Soup) in the last race...

MICHAEL'S BAD BOY, a chunky Wonneberg gelding owned and bred by Joan Agro, was an easy winner for $25,000 claiming in race 4. It was the 4th win in his 12th start and his second consecutive win for trainer Nick Gonzalez.

George Robertson's Ontario bred SWAMPSTER filly OPENING REMARK seemed to reluctantly win the 5th race even if she was dropping from $40K claiming to just $10K. She surged to the lead as the favourite in deep stretch under Tyler Pizarro and won for trainer Tony Mattine.

Ted Knight had old-timer CHOREOGRAPHY well prepared to win his 8yo debut for $8,000 claiming in race 6. The chestnut gelding by Foxtrail-Princess Nita, Spectacular Bid darted to the lea dunder David Clark and was always in front for his 7th win in 53 starts. It was his first win in several seasons (he won last fall but was disqualified).

Class dropping for the season debut was the name of the game yesterday and HOUSTON ONE dropped from a MSW to $16K for her 2nd career start yesterday in race 7 and won easily for Steve Foxcrodft and Franz Crean. The Ontario-bred is by One Way Love out of West of Houston by West by West and was bred by Franz Crean.

Jockey JONO JONES, fresh from a winter in his home of Barbados, won the LATE DOUBLE.
NATURAL MYSTIC, owned and bred by KINGVIEW FARMS - Richard Day - and ROB CUDNEY, was well prepared in Ocala by Catherine Day Phillips to win the featured 8th race for Ontario sired 3yo fillies.
The Bold Executive - Stutz Classic, Regal Classic gal battled on the pace with several others, lost the lead to Miss Juicey and then battled back to win.

Players of horse' appearance on post parade may have liked ACE CONTENDER in the finale for maidens for $23,500. The Bernstein grey gelding pranced onto the track for Audre Cappuccitti, showed a bullet 1:13.80 workout and a 57 Beyer Figure from last year at 2 and fended off firster SOUPER VEX to win at 25 to 1.

HORSES TO WATCH: Stakes winner Enough is Enough closed mildly in race 2 and will get better with a bit more distance.
Honest Accountant ran well in race 4 as the pace was very, very slow (24, 48 at 7 furlongs).
RUNNING DOTTIET was mired on the rail in traffic trouble in race 5 in the stretch.

Footnotes: The track seemed to play fair although there were several well regarded runners who did little after rail trips. The finale, the top 2 rode the rail to their placings.

On-track handle was $186,000 - overall for the first Friday of the meeting was just $1.3 million.




YESTERDAY elsewhere

KIP DEVILLE, 2nd in the Woodbine Mile last year and then the winner of the Breeders' Cup Mile, started off 2008 with a bang. The Kipling horse won the Maker's Mark Mile, a Grade 1, yesterday at Keeneland and is on track to go right to Woodbine for the Mile again in September.

KNIGHT'S CAUSE, a Chiefswood Farm Caandian-bred maiden, made his third career start at Keeneland yesterday off a one-year layoff and almost hit at 18 to 1. The ascot Knight-Last Cause 4yo, a homebred, swept up to the lead 5 wid off the turn but the move was too soon and he was caught. Interestingly, chart callers caught jockey Pat Husbands riding the gelding past the finish line out to the 2nd finish line.

At OAKLAWN, a Canadian bred 4yo by Running Stag--My Valley Girl, by Friendly Lover named MOUNTAIN STAG won a $40,000 maiden claimer at 6 furlongs. He was bred by Adena Springs.


WRITER SAYS - PYRO NO SURE THING! By Michael Amo For the Times Herald-Record April 12, 2008
The 84th Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland features 12 entries, the largest field since 1983.

With Pyro the even-money choice, why so many challengers?

They like their odds. Only three times in the last 10 years has a favorite won this race. Talk about a graveyard of champions.



Blue Grass Stakes: Keeneland, 5:18 p.m. (11„8 miles, Stakes, $750,000 purse) Arkansas Derby: Oaklawn Park, 5:44 p.m. (11„16 miles, Stakes, $1 million) Holy Bull: Gulfstream Park, 6 p.m. (13/16 miles, Grade 3, $150,000)

Blue Grass Stakes

1 Cool Coal Man Desormeaux 4-1

2 Kentucky Bear Theriot 50-1

3 Cowboy Cal JVelazquez 15-1

4 Stevil Bejarano 30-1

5 Monba Prado 15-1

6 Big Truck Coa 6-1

7 Pyro Bridgmohan 1-1

8 Stone Bird Lanerie 50-1

9 Medjool Baze 30-1

10 Miner's Claim Husbands 20-1

11 Halo Najib Gomez 15-1

12 Visionaire Lezcano 6-1


Arkansas Derby

1. Victory Pete Potts 12-1

2. Tres Borrachos Baze 20-1

3. King's Silver Son Quinonez 6-1

4. Gayago Smith 5-2

5. Isabull Doocy 20-1

6. My Pal Charlie Leparoux 12-1

7. Blackberry Road Borel 8-1

8. Liberty Bull Razo 6-1

9. Golden Yank Sterling 15-1

10. Z Fortune Alabarado 9-2

11. Indian Sun Migliore 12-1

12. Shekinah Emigh 12-1

13. AblazeWthSpirit Berry 12-1

14. Jazz in the Park Mena 12-1


Pyro, with his last two victories and two second places to War Pass, should win. The track favors his come-from-behind style. The timing of this race fits his training pattern, a race every 30 days. Yet his lack of experience both at this distance and over a synthetic surface makes him vulnerable. Maybe this is a tuneup and another favorite in the prep races will fall. The fast front-runner, Cowboy Cal, is likely to be in the mix gate-to-wire, possibly giving trainer Todd Pletcher his Derby horse. If jockey John Velasquez can control the pace, he might have his ticket to Churchill Downs. If he can't, look for closers Halo Najib, Big Truck, Monba, Visionaire, Cool Coal Man and Pyro to be driving in a dash to the finish. to read more on other Derby preps from Michael Amo.. http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080412/SPORTS/804120349/-1/SPORTS
(Michael Amo is a handicapper and longtime horse racing observer. He will write occasionally about the Triple Crown preps and major racing events. Contact him at racefan@gmail.com.)


ARKANSAS DERBY PREVIEW

72ND ARKANSAS DERBY : Bulky field, slim pickings BY ROBERT YATES Posted on Saturday, April 12, 2008
HOT SPRINGS — The morning after the $ 300, 000 Grade II Rebel Stakes March 15 at Oaklawn Park, a reporter reminded Jerry Hissam that he seemed to be back at square one in the chase for a second consecutive Kentucky Derby victory.
Hissam, the longtime agent for jockey Calvin Borel, acknowledged the position, then added it was potentially a good place to be.
Now, we know why.
After a roller-coaster three months, Borel is reunited with Dogwood Stable’s Blackberry Road in today’s $ 1 million Grade II Arkansas Derby, which highlights Oaklawn’s closing-day program.
Post time for the 72 nd Arkansas Derby is scheduled 1 for 5: 44 p.m. The 1 / 8-mile race will be televised live nationally by ESPN. Again this year, the Arkansas Derby is linked in the Premier Pick-4 with the $ 75, 000 Instant Racing Stakes and Keeneland’s $ 750, 000 Grade I Blue Grass Stakes and $ 400, 000 Grade II Commonwealth Stakes.
A full field of 14 is entered in the Arkansas Derby, which, unlike the past few years, lacks a nationally prominent name on the Triple Crown trail.
A year ago, Borel, a twotime Oaklawn jockey champion, and Hissam were locked into a champion in Street Sense, who won the 133 rd Run for the Roses 1 by 2 / 4 lengths over Hard Spun. But it’s been a bumpy and, at times, peculiar ride this year.
“Getting back to this point has been interesting,” Hissam said. Borel and Hissam began 2008 juggling three promising prospects —Turf War, Denis of Cork and Blackberry Road — but eventually lost them all after one misstep and one hole didn’t open up in a race. Given a choice of riding Turf War or Denis of Cork in the $ 250, 000 Grade III Southwest Stakes on Feb. 18 at Oaklawn, Borel went the wrong way.
Turf War finished a well-beaten ninth as the 2-1 favorite, while Borel’s close friend, jockey Robby Albarado, won the race on Denis of Cork. “It was crushing blow that day with Denis of Cork,” said Hissam, a Hot Springs resident who has represented Borel since 1991. “I made the wrong decision. It was a coin flip between the two horses.” Aboard Blackberry Road in the $ 300, 000 Grade III Risen Star Stakes on Feb. 9 at Fair Grounds, Borel, in his trademark style, saved ground throughout but couldn’t find clear running room in the 1 stretch and was beaten 3 / 2 lengths by Pyro.
Borel subsequently was replaced by Albarado when Blackberry Road made his next start in the $ 600, 000 Grade II Louisiana Derby on March 8 at Fair Grounds. Now in somewhat of a scramble mode, Hissam said there was never any discussion about riding back Turf War, who flopped again in the $ 500, 000 Grade II Lane’s End Stakes on March 22 at Turfway Park.
Hissam said Borel could have ridden Anak Nakal for Hall of Fame trainer Nick Zito in the Rebel, but the jockey landed on long shot Sacred Journey, who ran off to a long lead in the Southwest before tiring to finish in a deadheat for third. Sacred Journey finished last in the Rebel. Back to square one. In this case, back to Blackberry Road.
“Top-class rider,” said David Carroll, who trains Blackberry Road and Denis of Cork. “This is Calvin’s home track. He knows this track inside and out. It’s my job to bring the horse up the race the best possible way. I feel that I have done that. “ We’ll give him a leg up, wish him luck, and hope for the best.”
Blackberry Road, a half-brother to champion Vindication by the sire Gone West, has teased his connections throughout a ninerace career that has produced just one victory, but strong efforts in graded stakes company.
Borel has ridden Blackberry Road four times and worked hard to get the colt to relax off the pace and finish strong. Then came the Risen Star. Then came the Louisiana Derby, where Blackberry Road was surprisingly near the lead.
“If I see him as close to the front going into the first turn [today ], I’m going home,” Carroll jokingly said. “I don’t know what that was about. I think Robby wanted to get a clean trip. But I’m not blaming him at all.” Carroll said it was strictly his decision to replace Borel for the Louisiana Derby, pointing to frustration over a couple of bad trips, especially the Risen Star. But Carroll added there were no hard feelings.
Ditto for when Borel chose Turf War over Denis of Cork for the Southwest. “I think when you take care of things professionally, there’s no repercussions,” Carroll said. “We were just looking to make a change. We’d all gotten a little frustrated with a couple of the trips we had. Hopefully, it will be a happy ending.”
Hissam said two days after Blackberry Road ran fourth behind Pyro in the Louisiana Derby, Carroll asked if Borel would be interested in riding the colt again. The only catch was Blackberry Road’s next start would be in the $ 500, 000 Grade II Illinois Derby on April 5 at Hawthorne. Hissam said Borel was already committed to ride Kettleoneup and Jonesboro in the $ 500, 000 Grade I Apple Blossom Handicap and $ 500, 000 Grade II Oaklawn Handicap, respectively, the same day in Hot Springs. “I had a million dollars worth of races here, but I told David, ‘Let me plant a seed in you,’” Hissam said. “I told him the Arkansas Derby was the same distance as the Illinois Derby … the bottom line is you’re running for $ 1 million instead of $ 500, 000.” Borel said Carroll called about 1 2 / 2 hours later and said the Arkansas Derby was “under high consideration.”
“But I wasn’t moving [commit ] until I found out he was coming,” Hissam said. On March 25, Dogwood President Cot Campbell announced Blackberry Road would run in the Arkansas Derby. Carroll said the Arkansas Derby became a good fit because Blackberry Road came out of the Louisiana Derby tired physically and the additional week between races will serve him well.
Blackberry Road, who is 8-1 in the program, is scheduled to break from post 8, a spot Carroll prefers because the major speed horses appear to be inside. “Ideally, he likes to be farther back,” Carroll said.
“He’s got a really good turn of foot and Calvin knows him well. Hopefully, when it comes time to run he’ll have somewhere to go.”
Hissam said he believes Blackberry Road must finish at least fourth to earn enough graded stakes money to be among the 20 horses expected to run in the Kentucky Derby on May 3 at Churchill Downs.
“If not,” he said, “I guess we’ll be shopping again.”

UNPRECEDENTED...WOODBINE'S RESULTS CHARTS
Chartcaller PAUL TURNEY's work duties have changed. He does not stand in front of the window and call each race at Woodbine into a tape recorder and then transcribe it later.

Turney, who works for Equibase and Daily Racing Form, is part of the historical occasion where Woodbine has become the first track in North American to get its charting information from a transponder in a horse's saddlecloth.
TRAKUS, implemented at Woodbine two years ago, is now providing the running lines for a horse automatically....
read more


Woodbine charts automated By BILL TALLON
Woodbine has become the first Thoroughbred track in North America to use automated charting information supplied by Trakus, the wireless tracking system that involves a radio transponder in each horse's saddlecloth.

The system, which has been used to provide charting information for Standardbred races at Woodbine and nearby Mohawk Raceway since the fall of 2006, has been in use for the Woodbine Thoroughbred meeting that opened April 5.

The charting information for interior points of call is relayed from Trakus to the data provider Equibase. The on-site Equibase chart-caller no longer has to call the races manually but still composes the comments and footnotes and compiles the mutuel, timing, and equipment information that goes into each chart. The official order of finish and margins are provided by TelePhoto and the fractional and final times by Teletimer.

Trakus, a Boston-based company, began providing Woodbine with graphics for its live and televised races in 2005. Keeneland and Del Mar also use Trakus for their television graphics.

Trakus also provides information such as the actual distance traveled, in feet, for each horse and the average speed in miles per hour.

WHO WILL ACHIEVE $150,000 PURSE?
Will STUCK IN TRAFFIC keep the roll going for the red-hot Nick Gonzalez barn? Is NOT BOURBON a better, more developed 3yo who is truly a Queen's Plate contender for the red hot Charles Fipke stable?
Or will a colt upset both?
Today's $150,000 ACHIEVEMENT STAKES is a 6 furlong race for Ontario-breds but there are some Plate eligibles in the race such as the top 2 favourites plus SUN HAWK.
STUCK IN TRAFFIC is almost a rank-maniac, he will zoom to the lead and David Clark will try to get him to coast home. The Kiridashi gelding is a multiple stakes winner.
NOT BOURBON, by the deaceased sire Not Impossible, is also a stakes winner who has been training in Florida like his rival.
And the well-related SUN HAWK, from the Mike DePaulo stable, is a half-brother to NYUK NYUK NYUK, who sizzled in Florida this winter.

The Achievement was run last year in June. This is the 56th edition of a race that has played a role in getting a horse to the Plate - just not lately.
Once a 1 1/16 mile race, it was shortened to 7 furlongs in 1980 (David Clark rode the winner that year, MY ONLY LOVE!) and BOMPAGO and REGAL INTENTION used the race for a step to a Plate score.
In 1994 it was shortened to 6 furlongs and has been won by sprinters like WAKE AT NOON, RARE FRIENDS and last year, LEGAL MOVE.


FAMOUS WOODBINE JOCKS in new roles
Earlier this year THOROUGHBLOG reported that ROBERT KING JR., a multiple Sovereign Award winning jockey, had retired from riding and took over as secretary of the Jockeys Guild of Canada.
Today, www.niagarathisweek.com writes about JACK LAUZON, who has retired from riding to be an agent...


With another racing season about to begin, Jack Lauzon is changing hats. The 46-year-old Lauzon, a native of Welland, has taken over as the agent for jockey David Garcia, who rode 10 winners at Woodbine last year and another five at Fort Erie. The ever-hustling Lauzon will also act as the agent for Gary Cruise and Jackie Briscoe, who he describes as an up-and-coming apprentice jockey from Australia. "I pinched a nerve in my shoulder last October, and I've had like a shooting pain in my arm ever since," Lauzon told the Daily Racing Form. "My whole arm and my hand are numb and I've lost the strength in it so for the time being I'm on the shelf. "I'm an active person and couldn't just sit at home and do nothing so I came here (Woodbine) a couple of weeks ago hoping I could hustle up one rider and I ended up with three," he told Niagara This Week on Wednesday. Lauzon was badly injured after a riding accident in Macao in 1996 and fought his way back to the saddle after a 2 1/2-year absence. "This is probably the next segment of my life," said Lauzon. "Whether or not I'll do it for the rest of my life, I'm not sure but right now I'm enjoying it and I get to eat it a lot, which I like." Lauzon has ridden 1,620 winners, including Queen's Plate victories with Regal Intention in 1988 and Basqueian in 1994, and amassed purses of more than $31 million from 12,778 career mounts. He rode 10 winners at Woodbine last year and another 21 at Fort Erie. Live racing returns to Fort Erie May 3.