Since this post I have learned two things:
(1) Find Your Spot worked 3 Furlongs at Emerald Downs which means she will be a player in the 3-year-old filly division. So it appears she will not be staying California.
(2) Quizzical did come up for the stakes race and so she would be a horse that is on the outside looking in. Does not change my ranking of the top 5 in the older mare division, but Quizz deserves her props if she going to be at Emerald for the season.
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Putting my pride on the line again and now ranking the Top 5 horses in each division at Emerald Downs. These rankings have been approved by an independent company (Brewer Thoroughbreds, LLC), which is bleeding more red ink than a 2008 Bears Stearns.
Future rankings will include 2 year-olds but there is nothing we can base a solid opinion on yet.
If you have a beef with my rankings, feel free to put your own list in the comment section below so I can discredit and mock you:
Older Males
(1) Mr. Bowling – Ran a good second in an Allowance race on April 20th
but was not able to get by Scat
Daddybaby. Ran terribly
in the Longacres Mile, but this horse is a Grade III winner of almost $275,000. Respect
this horse a good deal and I think he deserves to be at the top of the division
for now. Mr. Bowling does not roll on Shabbos.
(2) Stryker
Phd – Finished second in last year’s Longacres Mile. My only issue is that he has only two wins in his career. Still a very game horse and is up to 5
Furlong works so we should see him soon. $40,000 WTBOA Purchase.
(3) Jebrica –
Must respect Jebrica. The aforementioned Allowance race was too short for him and he still ran
a good fourth. I feel like this horse has been around forever and is older than Art Sherman. By Liberty Gold and out of Peaceful
Wings. As the races stretch out, he gets better. $15,000 WTBOA Purchase.
(4) Scat Daddybaby
– Won the opening weekend feature race but he got a clear lead. Wonder how he
will do as things stretch out against this group. The question is whether there
is any speed in this division to keep him honest? So far it does not look like
it.
(5) Finallygotabentley
– It sometimes takes a while for Bernardini’s offspring to get good. I believe
that is the case with Bentley. He ran a very good third in the April 20th
Allowance race coming from further back than he normally does and running against older horses for the first time. I expect a
breakthrough year from this horse and a move up the rankings.
Outside looking in: Why
Not Be Perfect (working well for return), Absolutely Cool (working and could be a threat at sprint
distances), Winning Machine (bad
break last time), Country Rules, Mike
Man’s Gold and my Dark Horse Pick
for this division is Perfect Night
(full to Wasserman who is just getting started. He is by Cahill Road after all
so you have to give him time.). No
workouts for Music of My Soul
recently.
Older Females
This division is basically the 3
year-old fillies from last year. EZ
Kitty retired and is being bred to Exchange Rate. Exclusive
Diva has also been retired. It also appears that Gosailgo, Cielator and Carrabelle Harbor have been retired
because they have not been on the workout tab for a long time. Champagneandcaviar appears to be
staying down at Santa Anita. So here we go with the most obvious #1 pick ever:
(1) Stopshoppingdebbie – The Queen reigns over her Emerald Castle until
defeated. With EZ Kitty no longer in
the division, it is hers for the taking. Her mom’s maiden victory in 1999 was
one of the better first-out performances I have ever seen at Emerald (I watched it live). Debbie went 6
Furlongs in 1:10.20 Handily from the gate on May 3rd. Enough said. She will be the best athlete playing sports
in Seattle on Sunday.
(2) Blueberry Smoothie – Love this horse.
She is a hard trier. As last year progressed, she started to out run her
stablemate, Goin to the Window.
Really like how she ran finishing second to the older Cielator in an Allowance Optional Claiming race last August. Works
have been a little slow, but her April 3rd work gives me confidence
to put her in this position.
(3) Finding More – A new shooter in this
division and Trickey Trevor’s best
progeny to date. Privately purchased by Blue Ribbon Farm, who bred and raised
her, she has been working very well (three straight bullets). She has been
nominated to the Hastings Handicap this weekend so maybe we will see her versus
the Northwest Farms triumvirate. $4,500 WTBOA Purchase.
(4) Goin to the Window – Stakes winner
comes back after chasing Debbie around the track last year. Besides winning the
Angie C. Stakes, she also placed in four other stakes. Also a good work on May 3rd
from the gate. Too bad Tapit is such a bad sire or else she would have a future as a broodmare.
(5) Madame Pele – Last year’s Washington three-year-old champion, Madame Pele appears
to be headed to the Hastings Handicap on Sunday. Has a recency advantage with
winning the Mesa Handicap at Turf Paradise on March 29th. $14,000 WTBOA Purchase.
Outside Looking In: Whiskey
Miner (working), Royal Moses
(working), and my Dark Horse Pick in
the division is Tabled with Gold.
3 Year-Old Colts
(1) Del Rio Harbor – His win last weekend in an Allowance race against
the likes of Strawberry Dawn, Kenai King and Redsolocup was impressive (1:03.65). Winner of the
Gottstein commands respect and the top spot.
(2) Illumination Road – Really looking forward to his return. He had only one start and that was a good
second to Del Rio Harbor in the
Emerald Express Stakes. T-Gil must have had mucho confidence in him to place him
there in his first start. Good thing is that he is back and has two 4 Furlong works.
(3) Mebossman – The
son of Peaceful Wings won a Maiden Special Weight ("MSW") on
April 27th. I totally forgot he was a maiden until the entries came
out because he already had three stakes placings as a two-year-old. If he takes
after his half-brother Jebrica, he
will do better as the distances get longer. $15,000 WTBOA Purchase.
(4) Noosito – He is
on the comeback trail. He’s had four 5 Furlong works. A stakes winner already,
I expect that he will also get better as the distances get longer. $55,000
WTBOA Purchase.
(5) Kamaaina Blue –
What? Are you crazy? The horse just finished fourth in a MSW and you have him
ranked 5th? Watch his last race and you will see what I am talking about.
This horse has lots of potential and closed furiously in a competitive MSW that
included Mebossman, Royale Tale and Trick or Retreat. My Dark Horse Pick in this division. $1,200
WTBOA Purchase.
Outside Looking In: Royal Tale (MSW races), Trick or Retreat (MSW races), Kenai King, Redsolocup and Smart Copy.
3 Year-Old Fillies
This division is difficult to
figure out right now because of Chu and
You’s last two performances. She finished last in the Ross McLeod Stake’s
at Hastings last weekend. Her workouts prior to the stakes race were swift so
we can maybe forgive the effort. I truly believe the best horse in this
division has yet to race. For now:
(1) Strawberry Dawn –
She won an Allowance race on April 13, 2014, running the 5.5 Furlongs in
103.08. Most importantly, she won by 8.5 lengths. She came back last week in an
allowance race against the boys, including Del
Rio Harbor and ran a respectable 4th. I viewed this as a prep
for the Seattle Handicap. As a two-year old, she was Multiple Stakes Place
behind Chu and You.
(2) Lotta Attitude – Smoked
a MSW race on April 12, 2014. She ran 5.5 Furlongs in a swift 102.99 for 5.5 Furlongs. We
will get to see her on Saturday race in an Allowance Optional Claiming Race
against Belladiva, Sunpenny, and Charismata. This horse has a very interesting pedigree and family,
which we will get into in the future. $15,000 WTBOA Purchase.
(3) Chu and You – She
was clearly the best 2-year old filly on the grounds last year, but the last
two races give me cause for concern. As stated above, she finished last in a stakes race at Hastings. Maybe we can throw that race out because she did not
like Hastings. For now, I will put her third. Her workouts prior to the stakes races were very good.
(4) Sunpenny –
Z Thoroughbreds has a good one here. Won a nice Allowance race last year and
then finished second in the Northwest Farms Stakes behind Chu and You, but ahead of Belladiva
and Sanibel Harbor. Finished second
in a MSW behind Strawberry Dawn
before her allowance win. $12,000 WTBOA Purchase.
(5) Charismata
– Finished second behind Strawberry Dawn
in the aforementioned Allowance race on April 13, 2014. Although this horse has
some speed, the pedigree suggests she will be even better on the stretch out so
we will see how she performs in route races later on.
Outside Looking In: Belladiva and Sanibel Harbor. Guinevere’s
Finale appears to be staying at Santa Anita. Tinkerbelle
Tops won a big race last year at the Maiden $25,000 level last year in her
only start. Quiet Wisdom and Timeless Pleasure are still maidens but that won't last long. My Dark Horse Pick has yet to appear in a race. Find Your Spot seems to be on break and could stay in California for all I know.
Note: Entries just came out and Lotta Attitude, Belladiva,
Sunpenny and Charismata are in an Allowance Optional Claiming race on Saturday.
Looks like a good race.
Always Love your Animals,
Will
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