Two Sons, Two Races...

Dynaformer, the twenty seven year old great Stallion of Three Chimneys, has two sons that have races today.  Five year old Lentenor (Dynaformer-La Ville Rouge) and fifteen year old Dyna King (Dynaformer-Rekindled) are those two sons.  Lentenor will be in a race to further his career on the track, and Dyna King  is in a race fighting for his life, as he begins a new chapter today in his continuing fight against that damn disease, laminitis. So, as we are cheering on Lentenor today while he returns to stakes company at Tampa Bay Downs, let's also think of Dyna King as he will be in Arizona getting stem cell and hoof treatments.

Dynaformer, Dyna King, and Lentenor on the track:

Dynaformer, before his victory in the Jersey Derby (Grade II) at Garden State Racetrack, back on May 30, 1988:



Dyna King, in his last race of his career at Rillito Racetrack, back on February 10, 2007:



Lentenor, after his victory at Tampa Bay Downs,back on December 23, 2011:



A look at both races...


Lentenor

Lentenor returns to the track today in race #9 at Tampa Bay Downs, post time is about 4:10 for the Grade III Tampa Bay Stakes.  This will be Lentenor's first race since his record setting performance back on December 23rd, when he set the track record on the same course and same distance, covering the 1 1/16 miles on the turf in 1:40.95.  This will be Lentenor's third race in stakes company in his lightly raced career, having finished 7th in the Grade III Kent Stakes at Delaware Park on September 25, 2010 (a race I throw out due to the fact I believe he was racing with a undetected shoulder injury), and a 4th place finish in the Grade I Florida Derby back on March 20, 2010.

Today's race will have a full field of twelve,Luis Garcia gets the return mount on the Leigh Delacour trained Lentenor, they will be breaking from the unlucky outside post (#12) in the race. 

What can I say?  This field in this race is incredibly tough to predict and to handicap, it truly is a race that five or six colts can win.  Will Lentenor overcome the outside post and return to the winner's circle?  If Luis can get Lentenor up close in a stalking position by the first turn and keep him out of traffic problems, then I believe Lentenor has what it takes to come charging down the stretch and be right there for the victory.  This race is impossible to handicap and I have given up trying.  I will just sit back while watching the race unfold, hoping it is a safe race for all, and would love to see Lentenor in the winner's circle after the race.  With that said, my top three in the race are Lentenor, Allie's Event, and Successful Mission.  Two wildcards would be the Graham Motion trained Hoofit, and the Dale Romans trained colt Guys Reward.  The class of the field is Duke of Mischief, with earning's over $1.7 million, the question will be if he can return to form on the turf, I am going to say not today, we shall see. 

In light of what Dyna King has gone through and continues to go through, today's race for Lentenor puts everything into perspective for me.  I just want a safe race for all, and of course would love to see Lentenor get his first stakes victory for Roy and Gretchen Jackson, Leigh and Arnaud Delacour, and of course, for Lentenor!  I am sure Barbaro will be looking down cheering his baby brother on!

The field for today's race:

Tampa Bay Downs, Race #9, Post Time 4:10 PM

$150,000 Tampa Bay Stakes (Grade III), One And One Sixteenth Miles (Turf), Four Year Olds And Upward.

PP       Horse                      Age/Sex                  Jockey                      Trainer                     M/L  Odds

1.  Roman Tiger                   7/Gelding               Angel Serpa                 Dennis Manning               12/1
2.  Versailles Road               6/Gelding               R.D. Allen, Jr.              Ian Wilkes                       12/1
3.  Union Bowman               5/Horse                 Oriana Rossi                 Joesph Davis                   20/1
4.  Swift Warrior                  4/Colt                    Mark Guidry                John Terranova                15/1
5.  El Commodore              5/Gelding              Daniel Coa                   Gregory Griffith              30/1
6.  Hoofit                              5/Gelding              Rosemary Homeister    Graham Motion                8/1
7.  Duke of Mischief              6/Horse                Daniel Centeno             David Fawkes                  8/1
8.  Successful Mission           6/Gelding            Jeffery Sanchez             Edward Plesa                  9/2
9.  Guys Reward                   5/Horse                Pable Morales              Dale Romans                    6/1
10. Moryba                           6/Horse                Luis Saez                      William Mott                    3/1
11. Allie's Event                     6/Gelding             Scott Spieth                   Lori Smock                     8/1
12. Lentenor                          5/Horse               Luis Garcia                    Leigh Delacour                8/1


The race will be shown live on HRTV, for those that don't have HRTV, here is a link to watch the race live (remember, post time is about 4:10 PM!):

Link :  http://www.tampabaydowns.com/tampa-bay-downs-live-video.aspx


A replay of Lentenor's record setting race back on December 23rd:




Photos of Lentenor:








****UPDATED FEBRUARY 26, 2012****

Lentenor finishes 5th, just two lengths behind the winner, longshot Roman Tiger.

A good effort by Lentenor to stay up for 5th place. The outside post really hurt him today, since I believe he used up a little too much energy to get up to third going into the first turn. A perfect ride by Luis, he stalked perfectly in third for the whole race and was in a perfect position coming into the stretch. He just didn't have that burst of speed, he did well to hold onto 5th in this very evenly matched talented field of twelve. BTW, to show you how much the outside post hurt Lentenor, he traveled 52 feet more then the winner! That right there says it all!

Bravo to Lentenor for his game effort today, with a better post postition, he would have most likely got the win or have been very close.

Just click on the link below to see a replay of Lentenor's race. After clicking on the link, click on the 25th in the calender section, then click on race #9. You can view both the regular view or head-on view. Remember, Lentenor is on the far outside.

REPLAY OF LENTENOR'S RACE

Dyna King/Gifted

I first heard of Dyna King back in December of 2010, after he had just been rescued from the Arizona desert.  He was found in horrible shape, starving, emaciated, barely able to stand, let alone walk.  He was rescued by Judy Glore, President of HEART of Tucson equine rescue.  For those not familiar with Dyna King's story, here is a story I wrote about him on Bloodhorse back in December of 2010:

"In The Spirit Of Christmas"

Link: http://familyofbarbaro.blogspot.com/2011/03/in-spirit-of-christmas.html

He has been to hell and back, with his will to survive and all the love and support by Judy, the volunteers of HEART, and everyone that has helped with donations, Dyna King wants to live, and he knows he is loved by everyone that his story/life has touched.  He has fought everyday to survive and was doing amazing for so long, but, a few months ago, that evil laminitis reared it's ugly head and Dyna King had major setbacks.  With Judy's love and commitment to Dyna King every minute of everyday, he is improving one day at a time.

I would like to print Judy's words from this week (via Facebook), on what Dyna King is facing and how wonderful so many people have been in helping with his plight.  With that said, the following is by Judy Glore, President of HEART of Tucson equine rescue:

Dyna King/Gifted...

"This Saturday is the day for Gifted.  Dr. Dryden will be here at one of our best barns in Tucson to help him with his feet. We have vets and farriers attending to see what the treatment will be for this boy. I can't believe this is coming true for Dyna King. I am so greatful to all the doctors that are helping him and most of all the flight is being donated by him on his frequent flyer miles. We could never afford this kind of treatment for him or the chance to save his life with out the help of all of you, and the vets who really care. THANK YOU EVERYONE that has had faith and stood by this boy.

Some one told me the other day that lots of great horses have been lost to this disease like Secretariat, Barbaro and many others, I said the doctors didn't know what they know now either. We don't ever give up hope we just push to save the ones we can now, and give them a good life of love, carrorts and laughter. We still have so much to learn and every horse that has died before them has taught us just one more thing that might be the key to saving many.

Night everyone, Saturday here is going to be the tell all for our beloved Dyna King. What a strong angel he is.  A big thank you goes to Jen at Three Chimneys. She was able to make the call to Rood and Riddle that got them on board for Dyna King. This guy truly has some amazing angels around him. Four more days to go.  Thank you everyone for hanging in with us here. We have been working so hard for this boy and your prayers and thoughts have helped us to push over that edge that we never thought would come for him. I just can't thank you all enough. I really believe that all of your thoughts and prayers have made this happen. God Bless you all and I hope and pray that all of you get the same blessings that Gifted has brought to us back to you ten fold. I know he would wish this for you as well.

We have lots of updates for you all tonight on Gifted. I am having trouble uploading the pictures and videos so our wonderful webmaster Greg Ambrose will do it for us tonight. Lol, Greg you are awesome!!!! I know everyone wants to see what our sweetheart did today and thank you for helping us to make that happen. He was the Rock Star I knew he would be. Dyna King gets to meet Dr. Dryden tomorrow morning. And we are doing stem cell, and hoof treatment for him. This guy gets to have the dream of a life time come true, and now the rest will be up to him, but with his will power I feel really good about this. Will Power, Great Doctors, and more love and faith from America he has got one hell of a chance here to have a good life again.

I cried tonight when I had to leave him there and he whinnied at me and tried to call me back. This is like leaving your kid at the hospital and telling them you will be back first thing in the morning. All too familar for me.

He came off the trailer like we were going to the gates. He was so proud and walked out so well. He followed me like a puppy and loved meeting Mrs. Rogers the barn owner and his staff.  Unreal is all I can say. He is in a stall with mattress floor. The place is a dream for horses.

Dyna King trusts us and knows we will only put him in a good situation. he is amazing that way especially since he came out of such horrific conditions. Horses are the most forgiving animal here on earth. We can never validate that trust with them. My spelling is horrible I need to go to bed, lol. Love you all and thank you for the prayers for Dyna King/Gifted.

We are getting closer to the day for Gifted.  Here is the link to where he will be spending the night and waiting for Dr. Dryden to come work with us and the staff at Bandaleros for his treatment. We will have our local vets there that want to attend and farriers that will learn what they can from this amazing vet. We will try to film as much as we can for this day to share with you all. wish our boy good luck, and dreams do come true if you pray hard enough, and work to make it happen. Gods Speed Gifted, you get the chance boy now lets make it happen !!!!!"

Link to Bandalero Ranch: http://www.bandaleroranch.com/index.htm

Photos of Dyna King and Judy  taken yesterday:





 

A complete slideshow of photos taken yesterday of Dyna King/Gifted:





 

Judy, you are a true saint, and the love and hard work you dedicate everyday to Dyna King and all the others at your rescue are truly blessed to have you in their lives, thank you!

So, as we watch Lentenor's race today, I am asking everyone to also think of Dyna King, who at the same time, will be starting a race for his life.  These two sons of Dynaformer mean the world to me, and I just pray they both win their respective races today, and everyday that follows in the future.

The ongoing care for Dyna King is expensive, and any donation you can make would help greatly!  I thank you from the bottom of my heart for any donation you can make, every dollar helps, thank you!
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Links:
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To donate:  http://heartoftucson.com/help.cfm
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HEART of Tucson's website:  http://www.heartoftucson.org/
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HEART of Tucson's blog:  http://www.heartoftucson.org/blog/
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HEART'S Facebook page:  http://www.facebook.com/groups/94549935886/
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****UPDATED FEBRUARY 26, 2012****

Dr. Dryden's interview after treating Dyna King/Gifted with stem cells and new shoes. A huge thank you to Dr. Dryden, Rood & Riddle, Three Chimney's, and everyone that helped with donations to make yesterday possible. Dyna King has such a long road ahead of him to fight this evil laminitis, but, if ever a horse could do it, Dyna King is that horse! A huge thank you to Judy, she is truly Dyna King's guardian angel. Continued prayers for Dyna King...




Video of Dyna King/Gifted walking to his stall after receiving his treatment.




Here are photos taken on February 25, 2012 of Dyna King/Gifted getting treated by Dr. Dryden:
(All photos courtesy of Kim Reis, Heart of Tucson, thank you!)

Godspeed Dynaformer, Lentenor, and Dyna King...

Margano and Edgar Racing Today at Gulfstream Park, Post Time 3:49

***UPDATE***

Margano finished in 7th place today today.  Just not his day and he will be back.  To finish 7th and only be behind the winner by just three and a half lengths just shows how evenly matched this talented field was.  Congrats to Star Channel and Javier Castellano for the win, very impressive. 

Chart:

http://www.equibase.com/static/chart/pdf/GP010812USA8.pdf


Here is the replay:









What a pleasant surprise we all received when the entries came out for today's races at Gulfstream Park, Margano with Edgar Prado on board!  Coming off his very impressive maiden breaking victory back on December 10th, Margano will try to repeat that effort on the same turf course today in race #8, post time is about 3:49 eastern time.  Edgar Prado will have the mount on Margano, the first time Edgar has been on a brother of Barbaro since Nicanor's racing debut back on January 31, 2009.  A race that saw Nicanor grab a quarter and finish tenth in the field of twelve.  While I am not one to speculate why it has been almost three years since Edgar has been on board a brother of Barbaro, I am just glad that Margano will have the guidance of a Hall of Fame rider, and hope it is the beginning of a wonderful partnership between the two!

Margano enters this race as a three year old, as all racing Thoroughbred's turn a year older the first of January, even though his "real" birthday is March 10th.  He will be facing a field of eight other rivals, with Edgar and Margano breaking from gate #3.  Margano will be carrying the most weight of the field at 122 pounds and has been named as the morning line favorite at odds of 3-1.  The high weight is dictated by the conditions of the race, "Weight, 122 Lbs. Non-winners of a race at a mile or over since December 8, 2011 Allowed 2 Lbs. Such a race since November 8, 2011 Allowed 4 Lbs.", Margano is the only one in the field that has had a victory at a mile or over since December 8th, hence the weight of 122 pounds (which I don't think will be a factor at all).  I will add that I think this is a very wise move by Mr. Tagg and the Jackson's to continue Margano's progression on the turf, a surface he seems very comfortable racing on.  With that said, I fully expect to see Margano give dirt a shot after today's race, but, let's talk about that after today's start.

Since his maiden victory, Margano has had three impressive works at Gulfstream Park, all on the dirt with the latest coming this past Wednesday, where Margano went five furlongs "handily" in a time of 1:00.65, ranking second of five working that distance.


Rather then break the field down as usual, I am just going to sit back and enjoy today's race.  Of course I believe this will be Margano's second victory of his young career.  With that said, I will say the top three will be Margano and Edgar, Star Channel, and Africanist to finish out the top three in this very evenly matched field of young three year olds.  Also, watch out for Argentine Tango to come flying down the stretch, he is the one I am scared of the most, even though I left him out of my top three due to him just racing two weeks ago and I expect he might be a little tired, I hope.


You can watch Margano's race LIVE on the following link, remember, post time is about 3:49!

Link:  http://www.gulfstreampark.com/portal/gulfstream-video-and-xpressbet-racechat



Race 8, Post Time 3:49, Allowance Optional Claiming ($75,000), Purse $53,500, 1 1/16 Miles-Turf


P.P       Horse                         Jockey                         Trainer                               Odds


1.  Mucho Mas Macho           L. Jurado                       H. Collazo                              12-1

2.  Jackwagon                      D. Centeno                      B. Croft                                  20-1

3.  MARGANO               Edgar Prado                 Barclay Tagg                       3-1

4.  All for the Trip                   J. Bravo                          K. Dickey                                6-1

5.  Heiko                               J. Velazquez                     D. Miller                                  6-1

6.  Argentine Tango               R. Maragh                        S. Gold                                    4-1

7.  Star Channel                    J. Castellano                     T. Pletcher                                8-1

8.  Patrioticandproud            L. Contreras                      T. Pletcher                                6-1

9.  Africanist                         J. Leparoux                       E. Kenneally                             5-1




Godspeed Margano...




















Also, PLEASE take a moment to look at the following, a HUGE thank you to Bea Gobee, Susan Rollison, Mercy Turano, Geralyn Hoffman, and other FOB's that made the shirts and brunch possible! 

ALL donations for the shirts and brunch benefits the Barbaro Laminitis Fund, THANK YOU in advance!!!!

Pictured above are the tee shirts for our Remembering Barbaro 2012 Event, April 2012 in Louisville, Kentucky.  It is a black tee shirt with our logo with the silhouette of Barbaro.  We were not able to use the actual photo of Barbaro due to copyright issues and cost of the ink to print his photo. The price of the shirt would increase.

Prices are as follows for sizes listed below. Larger sizes have additional cost and additional shipping.

$16.00 per shirt includes the shirt, shipping and a donation to the laminitis fund.

The shirt is a unicycle shirt, not a men’s nor a lady’s, it is a standard tee, 100% cotton.  It’s the same shirt as the blue Barbaro shirt that was for sale in 2009 at the statue unveiling.  Sizes are as follows:

Small  (S)     Medium  (M)     Large  (L)     Extra Large (XL)

Anyone wanting a Large Youth, the manufacturer suggests the Adult Small listed above.

Larger sizes are as follows along with the additional cost per shirt:

XXL - $2.00     XXXL - $4.00     XXXXL - $6.00     XXXXXL - $8.00

Shipping costs on the larger shirts are an additional $1.50 for XXL and XXXL, $2.00 additional for XXXXL and XXXXXL. Examples of total prices below include additional charge for larger shirts and shipping:

one XXL shirt would cost total: $19.50,

one XXXL - $21.50,

one XXXXL - $24.00,

one XXXXXL - $26.00.

Anyone interested in ordering a shirt can do so by sending me your name, address, phone number, email address, abr name,  amount of shirts ordering, sizes of shirts ordering along with a check for the full amount of the order made payable to me: Bea Gobee to my home address:

Bea Gobee

373 Saw Creek Estates

Bushkill, PA 18324

If anyone has any questions they would like to ask me, I can be contacted at my home phone number: 570-588-0880.

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Happy New Year! Come join us for Brunch at Wagner’s Pharmacy and Restaurant.

Remembering Barbaro 2012

There will be no racing at Churchill Downs that day, and Wagner’s would have been closed.  They are thrilled to honor Barbaro on his birthday and have agreed to open for us ONLY and host our private party.

Time: 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM       Date: Sunday, April 29, 2012

Location: Wagner’s Pharmacy & Restaurant

3113 South 4^th Street

Louisville, KY 40214-1710

Price Per Person Paid In Advance:  $22.50

Menu:

Scrambled Eggs

Bacon, sausage

Biscuits

Side gravy

FEATURING:  PAM'S famous grilled potatoes

Coffee / tea

Juice

Milk

Price also includes:

Cake - Wagners will be ordering the cake for us (Remembering Barbaro 2012 – hopefully with a photo of Barbaro on the cake)

Maintenance fee to the person doing the cleaning after we leave

Gratuity

Donation to New Bolton Center Laminitis Fund

For reservations: Email Geralyn Hoffman at: Geralynhoffman@yahoo.com with “Wagner’s Brunch” as the subject line, (no phone calls please). Then you will need to send a check payable to me: Bea Gobee (no paypal) at my home address.  Once your check is received, you have a guaranteed reservation and will receive an e mail confirmation so please provide Geralyn with your e mail address.

Wagner’s Restaurant is limited to 120 people max.  Paid reservations are on a first come first serve basis.

The deadline for paid reservations is Monday, April 2, 2012

THANK YOU !!!!!!!

A Early Christmas Gift, Lentenor Racing Friday, December 23rd

Lentenor wins !

Setting a new track record in the process!

He went 1 1/16 miles on the firm turf in 1:40.95, sweet!

Chart:

http://www.equibase.com/static/chart/pdf/TAM122311USA7.pdf









(Thanks Mary and Greg for the photo and video!)


What a smart, mature, and very impressive race by Luis Garcia and Lentenor.

Jockey Luis Garcia:

“Everything came out perfect,” said a beaming Garcia. “He got a clean trip and we got him to do what we wanted. He was just cruising, cruising, cruising, then I asked him at the end and he did it. I knew I had the horse so I was really just the passenger. He is a nice, nice horse.”

Trainer Leigh Delacour:

“We entered him at Laurel before we came here but the race was off the turf and we scratched him, so this horse has been ready to run for more than a month,” Delacour said. “I think Luis rode a superb tactical race. Congratulations to the Jacksons for being very patient with this horse. All the parts came together today.”

Delacour said she expects the son of Dynaformer-La Ville Rouge to stay on the turf for the foreseeable future. “We tried him once this summer on dirt and he ran evenly, and you see today he finished his race well. When you see a horse show that turn of foot on the turf, it behooves you to keep him there.”

Thank you to Roy and Gretchen Jackson, Arnaud and Leigh Delacour, and all involved for having Lentenor ready for this race, both mentally and physically, bravo!


A wonderful Christmas gift for all !!!


Merry Christmas...






It has been ten weeks since we last saw Lentenor on the track, a seventh place finish at Keeneland back on October 9th.  The wait is over as Lentenor makes his return today at Tampa Bay Downs, racing in a $32,000 Allowance optional claiming race on the turf at a distance of 1 1/16 miles, post time is about 3:12 eastern time and is the seventh race of ten on today's card.  Lentenor has been stabled at Tampa for just over a month and has been training well there, having recorded three published works, all on the dirt with the latest having him cover five furlongs in a breezing time of 1:02.60. 

On a side note, for those wondering about Lennie's big brother Nicanor, he is also in Tampa and we should start seeing some recorded works from him very soon.  If all goes well, Nicanor should make his return to the track as a six year old in late winter/early spring.  Nicanor was given the time off since his last race back in May to have some time just to be a horse, call it a mental/physical vacation if you will. 

Lentenor (#4), who will officially turn five years old in just over a week on New Years Day, will be facing nine  rivals in the field of ten older runners.  Luis Garcia will have the mount on Lentenor, they drew the four hole to break from, which I believe it is a good spot for the two of them.  Luis rides quite often for Lentenor's trainer, Leigh Delacour, and should be a good fit for Lentenor (I hope).  The turf should be fine, as today's weather calls for sunny skies with temperatures around eighty degrees.  The field is a pretty big drop in class from Lentenor's last race at Keeneland and is reflected in the morning line odds, where Lentenor was made the second choice at odds of 7-2 with Beckham Bend being the favorite at 5-2 odds. 

While looking at the field, I do believe everyone will be chasing the seven year old gelding Riversrunrylee(#7), who will be making his 67th start and is coming off two straight wire to wire victories.  Both of the races were taken off the turf and run on the dirt at both Calder and Delaware Park.  The question for Riversrunrylee, can he get the distance?  I don't believe he will, and we will see him fade coming down the stretch.  As far as the morning line favorite, Beckham Bend (#8), the six year old colt will be making his first start in eight months, having last race in April when he finished second at Gulfstream Park in the Island Whirl Stakes.  I honestly don't see him being a factor after the long lay-off, I believe he will need this race and I don't see him finishing in the top three, we shall see.  The wildcard in the race is the lightly raced three year old gray, Red All Over (#3).  Making just his fifth start, Red All Over does have two wins, the latest coming at Churchill Downs in an Allowance race on the turf at a distance of a mile last month.  If he runs back to that race, he could easily win this race, and at a morning line of 12-1, one could get a decent price on him (even though I fully expect those odds to come down).  The one that scares me the most is the five year old gray gelding Blazen (#10).  Blazen will be breaking from the tenth hole, if he can overcome that, he will be a force to reckon with.  If we see Blazen near the top three early in the race, watch for him to make a strong move turning for home.  He has run very well on the Tampa turf course in the past and he might be side by side with Lentenor, while in a stalking position most of the race.  The question is, who will have the bigger kick at the end?  My guess is Lentenor, with Blazen right there to finish a close second.  Obviously, a lot depends on Lentenor getting a good trip and staying out of trouble.  If that happens, Lentenor should be in a stalking position behind Riversrunrylee most of the race and come charging at the end to get his third victory in twelve starts and give his connections and all of us fans a wonderful early Christmas present!

With all that said, I see Lentenor earning  a hard fought victory, with Blazen a close second, and Red All Over rounding out the top three (even though he could also pull out a victory).  Bottom line, just hope it is a safe race for all and they all come out of the race safely!

Finish 4-10-3-7


Tampa Bay Downs, December 23, 2011
Race 7, Post time 3:12, Allowance Optional Claiming $32,000, Purse $21,400
One And One Sixteeth Miles On The Turf (rail at 22 feet)

P.P.     Horse                       Jockey                   Trainer                 Odds

1.  Presumptive                  A. Serpa                 R.S. Lerman               20/1
3.  Red All Over                M. Guidry               W.M. Catalano           12/1
4.  Lentenor                  Luis Garcia           Leigh Delacour          7/2
5.  Bridging                        R.D. Allen, Jr.         W.R. Helmbrecht        20/1
6.  Feels All Right              I. J. Rosendo           Y. Belsoeur                 6/1
7.  Riversrunrylee               L.A. Gonzalez          J. Camillo                    5/1
8.  Beckham Bend             R. Homeister, Jr.      J.K. Chapman             5/2         
9.  Striking Hight                H. Villa-Gomez        D.H. Hinsley               20/1
10.  Blazen                        L.R. Goncalves         A. Pecoraro                6/1
11.  Terriffico                    W. Martinez              A.J. Exposito             12/1

















Thanks to my friend Dewey Ford for the following wonderful photos of Lentenor:












The race can be see on the following link live, post time is about 3:12 eastern time...

http://www.tampabaydowns.com/tampa-bay-downs-live-video.aspx


Godspeed Lentenor...

Margano Wins!!!! Morning Line Favorite Margano Racing Saturday, Post Time 3:21

Margano wins!!!!

What a perfect race by Margano and Javier!  Margano stalked perfectly, then came flying home at the end!  More to follow...

Link to replay on Bloodhorse:

http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/race/USA/GP/2011/12/10/7/race-7


Photo of Margano entering the winner's circle (thanks to Alex Brown on twitter!).


Link: http://twitpic.com/7rip3f




Margano, the morning line favorite (3/1 odds), will be racing Saturday on the Gulfstream turf in race #7, at a distance of 1 1/16 miles (rail at 96 feet), post time is about 3:21.   Thank you to Margano for his return, since it marks my return to racing since his last start (R.I.P. Royal Brush...).


As most Gulfstream maiden races, the field came up extremely tough for Margano.  Javier Castellano will be guiding Margano from gate #9 in the field of twelve two year olds.  Margano is coming off a very impressive second place finish at Belmont Park back on October 15th.  Since then, he has had six solid works, with the last two at Gulfstream Park, all on the dirt.  Margano will be making his third start, out of his three older brothers before him (Barbaro, Nicanor, Lentenor), he has reached his third start quicker then all of them.  Which, to me, shows that Mr. Tagg thinks very highly of him, both in his maturity level and fitness level.  In his last race, which was a 1/16 of a mile shorter and on a yielding turf course at Belmont Park, Margano almost went wire to wire, tiring a bit at the end to finish a very impressive second place.  I love the fact that he was given a short break and has been down in Florida training, I fully expect Margano to run a huge race.


What can I say about this field?  I see plenty of potential in many, but, a majority of the field lacks the experience to show that potential tomorrow.  Out of the twelve, I see three or four that could challenge Margano.  There is plenty of speed in the race, where Margano runs will greatly depend on his break and how well Javier can guide him into the first turn.  I love his post position and think it will leave Javier with plenty of options. 


After looking at the field, my ideal scenario would be for Margano to be about third or fourth into the turn.  I see Silver Max going straight to the lead from the rail, with Get Right challenging him from the get go.  Margano should follow right behind those two, with maybe No Play involved early.  If Javier can get Margano to rate comfortably behind the leaders, I think the leaders will fight each other and Margano should be able to take advantage of this rounding for home.  Shaun Washington is the biggest threat to Margano, but, breaking from the eleventh hole could give Margano just enough of a advantage in the stretch.  If Shaun Washington can get ahead of Margano before the first turn, it could be very tough for Margano to catch him in the stretch.   So, with that said, I will go with Margano to break his maiden, Shaun Washington to come in second, and Godard coming on strong to take third.  Just hope it is a safe race for all, and it sure will be nice to see the Jackson's join Margano in the winner's circle!



Here is a link to watch the race live, remember, post time is about 3:21 eastern time!

Link to Margano's race:  http://www.gulfstreampark.com/portal/gulfstream-video-and-xpressbet-racechat



Race #7, 1 1/16 Miles On The Turf, Maiden Special Weight, Two Year Olds, Purse: $51,000

P.P.   Horse                       Jockey                  Trainer                    Odds

1.      Silver Max               M. Cruz                D. Romans               4-1
2.      Get Right                 Edgar Prado         J. Jerkens                10-1
3.      Kanati Kid               A. Solis                 C. Gambolati            12-1
4.      No Play                    J. Sanchez             E. Gray                    20-1
5.      Arthur                      P. Lopez                K. Ritvo                   15-1
6.      Awesome Life         J. Castanon           P. Byme                   12-1
7.      Godard                    J. Leparoux           T. Proctor                 6-1
8.      Optionality              E. Trujillo              T. Proctor                 8-1
9.      Margano                 Javier Castellano    Barclay Tagg          3-1
10.    Little Nicholas        J. Alvarez                L. Olivares             20-1
11.    Shaun Washington  J. Bravo                  J. Jerkens               5-1
12.    Privacy Invasion     J. Leyva                  D. Fawkes               20-1

Also eligible:

13.    Superiority               L. Panici                 J. Hennessy            10-1
14.    Pikestar                   J. Castanon            M. Nihei                  12-1
15.    Saturday Classic     L. Contreras          M. Casse                  8-1
16.    Super Saturday       J. Castellano          M. Trombetta          8-1



Here are some videos and photos I took from Margano's last race, enjoy...









































































Godspeed Margano...

Margano Today at Belmont Park, Post Time 1:32

Twenty eight days after his debut, Margano will be making his second start at Belmont Park in race #2, post time is about 1:32 for the Maiden Special Weight race.  A field of eight are scheduled to be in the gate for the race, to be run at a distance of one mile on the Belmont turf.  The weather here all week has been miserable, with rain on and off since Wednesday.  I would say there is about a 50/50 chance the race will be kept on the turf, but it is extremely windy this morning, which might allow for the course to dry out enough, we shall see.  Forecast calls for the wind to continue all day, with partly sunny skies and temperatures in the mid 60's.  As of 9:00 this morning, the turf is listed as "yielding", and race #7 and #10 have already been taken off the turf.  If the race is taken off the turf, it will be run at the same distance on the main track.


David Cohen gets the mount this time out on Margano.  Jose Lezcano, who rode Margano in his debut, will be on the morning line favorite, Liquidity Trap, trained by Chad Brown.  I really cannot criticize Mr. Lezcano too much on his ride on Margano first out, I will just say I am happy with the change to Mr. Cohen.  Mr. Cohen is currently tied for third in wins at the Belmont Fall meet, and this past Thursday he notched his 1000th career victory, doing it on the Belmont Park turf course.


I expect Margano to greatly improve of his debut race.  The one mile distance for this race is what his connections had hoped for in his debut, it just didn't come up.  I believe Margano's debut was just for him to experience everything for the first time, call it a extended work-out, if you will.  I fully expect a completely different race for Margano this time out.  I love the fact that it is a smaller field and that Margano drew the outside post.  While I don't expect Margano to be on the lead, I do expect him to break well and get to the front and stalk the leaders, and come flying home in a mad dash to the finish line. 


On paper, Liquidity Trap and  Knock Rock seem to be the ones to beat. Out of those two, Liquidity Trap is my biggest concern, coming off a second place finish on this course back on September 18th.  Knock Rock is coming off a fifth place finish in the Grade III Pilgrim Stakes here at Belmont two weeks ago.  Knock Rock is being raced too often and should be given a couple more weeks off, this being his third race in less then a month and fifth race in two months, too much for a growing two year old in my humble opinion.  The two wildcards are Festive Spirit and McKinley Square.  Festive Spirit is a first time starter, being ridden by Johnny Velazquez and trained by Todd Pletcher.  Mckinley Square will be making his second start for Darley Stables, ridden by Eddie Castro and trained by Kiaran McLaughlin.  Rounding out the field are Captain Fantasic, Matisse, and Odom.  Odom being trained by the disgraced Richard Dutrow, who was just banned for ten years this past week, which goes into affect on October 18th (pending appeal).  I will just say, I couldn't be happier on this judgement and I applaud the powers to be for getting rid of this so-called man.  I am sure Indian Tale feels the same way.  Wishing Odom and all a safe race today.


So with all that said, I will go with Margano winning the race, Liquidity Trap in second, and McKinley Square rounding out the top three.


So, I am now out the door for my trek down to Belmont Park on what could be an historic day.  If Margano breaks his maiden, I could be wrong here, but I believe it will be the first time in the history of the sport that four full brothers all registered wins.  If someone can prove me wrong, the first one who does so, I will gladly mail you out a full set of four Kentucky Derby glasses from Barbaro's Kentucky Derby Victory.  I haven't researched this at all, just going by my memory here, lol.  Good luck.



Race #2, Post time 1:32, $51,000 Maiden Special Weight, One mile on the turf

The full field:

1.  Captain Fantastic       Joe Bravo                 Nick Zito                     15-1

2.  McKinley Square      Eddie Castro             Kiaran McLaughlin       5-1

3.  Matisse                     Alan Garcia               James Lawerence         20-1

4.  Liquidity Trap            Jose Lezcano            Chad Brown                5-2

5.  Festive Spirit             Johnny Velazquez      Todd Pletcher              7-2 

6.  Knock Rock             Alex Solis                  Scott Schwartz            3-1 

7.  Odom                       Jeremy Rose              DICK Dutrow            12-1

8.  Margano                  David Cohen           Barclay Tagg             6-1












Godspeed Margano...

Lentenor Running Today at Keeneland!

In less then four hours, Lentenor will be giving it his all at Keeneland in race #10, post time is 6:15 eastern.

The race came up with a very tough field of twelve, to be contested on the Keeneland turf at 1 1/16 miles, Jesus Castanon will be on board  Lentenor for the first time.  Jesus has two mounts today, the first being in the race prior to Lentenor's.  In that race, he will be on Embur's Song, one of the favorites in the Grade One Spinster Stakes.  Lentenor is in good hands with Mr. Castanon, a very solid jockey.  Lentenor will be breaking from the one spot, with a large field, not an ideal spot for Lentenor at all.  Just hope he can save some ground while stalking the leaders, then he can find a hole to burst through, we shall see.

What can I say?  This field could easily be a stakes race, nothing will be easy for Lentenor today!  With a morning line of 12-1, he is a huge underdog against this field.  I look for him to run big, being third out, with a win and a third place finish, I have a gut feeling we will see a big effort from a physically and mentally fit Lentenor.  At least I hope so!

While not having time to look at the field in depth, the three that stand out are J.B.'s Thunder, Rescue Squad, and a colt I really like, Gautier. 

J.B.'s Thunder is looking to regain the form that earned him a victory in last year's Grade One Dixiana Breeders Futurity, a race that was on the Keeneland all weather surface.  Shaun Bridgemohan will once again get the mount, he has been on board J.B.'s Thunder in all four of his previous starts.  J.B.'s Thunder is the morning line favorite with odds of 3-1. 

Rescue Squad will be racing after almost a year lay-off, his last start coming last November at Aqueduct.  In that race, the five year old Dynaformer colt had the best race of his career.  He finished second in the Grade Two Red Smith Handicap, posting his best speed figure in fourteen starts.  Ironically, Jesus Castanon rode him on that day, Johnny Velazquez gets the mount today.  Rescue Squad is the fourth choice in the race with a morning line of 9-2 odds.

Gautier is a Peruvian star, having won the first four starts of his career in Peru.  This four year old colt will be making his fourth start stateside, having finished third in all those races.  I expect a huge effort today, and he is actually the colt I have finishing in the top two, along with Lentenor obviously, lol.  Manny Cruz will be on the Kenneth McPeek trained colt today, just like he has been in the three previous races.  Gautier is the second favorite today, with odds of 4-1.

Those are my three top contenders for Lentenor today, with a few others that could also step up and run huge.  One that I am hoping does well also is Oak Motte, a four year old colt that Edgar Prado will be riding.

Godspeed to Lentenor and Jesus today.  Hope it is a safe race for all, and Lentenor will be seen in the winner's circle moments after the race! 

The field:


1 Lentenor (KY) 4/C LA Jesus Castanon 120 Leigh Delacour

2 Redboard (KY) 3/G LA C J Lanerie 117 G W Simms

3 Rescue Squad (KY) 5/H L J R Velazquez 120 C R McGaughey III

4 Perregaux (KY) 3/C L J R Leparoux 117 N J Howard

5 San Antone (KY) 3/C LA J Graham 117 G R Arnold, II

6 Lighthouse Sound (KY) 4/G LA R A Dominguez 120 M J Trombetta

7 Gautier (KY) 4/C LA M R Cruz 120 K G McPeek

8 J. B.'s Thunder (KY) 3/C LA G K Gomez 117 A M Stall, Jr.

9 Oak Motte (TX) 4/C L E S Prado 120 K Gorder

10 Nikki's Sandcastle (KY) 4/G L R Maragh 120 D C Kassen

11 Fort Larned (KY) 3/C L R Albarado 117 I R Wilkes

12 Tonto Fontenot (KY) 4/G J K Court 120 B C Barnett

















Godspeed Lentenor...