SATANS QUICK CHICK SCORES ONE FOR THE HOME TEAM
Veteran trainer Eric Reed, who has horses stabled at Keeneland year-round, recorded the biggest victory of his career when he sent out Jerry Jamgotchian’s Satans Quick Chick to win the $300,000 Lexus Raven Run (G2) on Saturday. The victory marked the first stakes win for Satans Quick Chick, who won the race at odds of 23-1.
“She came back good, ate all her dinner and was standing at the front of her stall when I got here this morning,” said Reed about the 3-year-old Sky Mesa filly whose three previous wins came over the Polytrack at Turfway Park and the all-weather surface at Presque Isle Downs.
Ridden by Leandro Goncalves, Satans Quick Chick led a trifecta of high-priced horses across the finish line as 49-1 longshot Slides Choice ran second and 41-1 longshot Don’ttalktome was third. A $2 trifecta ticket was worth $35,149.
Sold for $37,000 at the 2007 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, Satans Quick Chick is among the 30-plus horses that Reed has for Jamgotchian, who lives in California, and is among the 17 horses the trainer has stabled at Keeneland’s training center adjacent to the racetrack. Because the training center, which has nine barns, is located on Rice Road, horsemen frequently just say “Rice Road” when referring to the facility, where the year-round occupants cheer each other on when they face horses that have shipped in from elsewhere to compete.
Trainers on Rice Road include Phil Sims, who sent out Hot Cha Cha to win the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1) here on October 17.
“I’m glad to see the guys stabled year-round at Rice Road do well,” Reed said. “Just goes to show you that staying at Keeneland and training on the track pays off.”
A day after the Lexus Raven Run, the connections of Satans Quick Chick had not settled on her future. She will spend a few days of R&R this week at Reed’s Mercury Equine Training Center in Lexington, where he has 90 horses. Options include selling her, sending her to Woodbine for her next start or giving her some time off.
LONGSHOT RUNNER-UP PROVES TRAINER RIGHT
Trainer Tim Hamm had faith in Slides Choice in Saturday’s Lexus Raven Run (G2) even though not many other people did. The Ohio-bred stakes winner went off at odds of 49-1 and was the longest shot of the 14 horses in the race.
“She’s just not done anything wrong in her racing career,” Hamm said about the daughter of Devil His Due. “Everything we ask her to do, she does. She’s trained well; she’s just got a perfect attitude. We had nothing to lose.”
A multiple stakes winner against Ohio-breds who was fourth in Churchill’s Dogwood (G3) in May, Slides Choice races for co-breeder Mary Crawford in partnership with Gerald Brown. Hamm said the filly, who has now won eight of 13 races and has earned $364,040, would receive a freshening with his string in Florida.
GALLOPING OUT
Julien Leparoux, currently the co-leading jockey at Keeneland by wins, made a quick trip to Texas on Saturday to ride in two $100,000 stakes during the evening at Retama Park near San Antonio—and he won both races. Leparoux rode the filly Lisa’s Kitten to take the M2 Technology La Senorita Stakes and two races later rode the colt Kera’s Kitten to a five-length win in the Skyy El Joven. Both horses are 2-year-old homebreds racing for Ken and Sarah Ramsey (Keeneland’s current leading owners) and trained by Mike Maker. Leparoux rode in six races here on Saturday afternoon and has five mounts today.
Jockey Leandro Goncalves won three races here on Saturday, including the $300,000 Lexus Raven Run (G2) aboard Satans Quick Chick for the first graded stakes victory of his career. Goncalves, who was the leading rider at Turfway Park earlier this year, now has four wins during Keeneland’s fall season. Through Saturday, the native of Brazil is the eighth-leading jockey by wins in all of North America with 226.
Trainer Joe Woodward scored his initial Keeneland victory on Saturday when he sent out Cirque Du Soleil (ARG) to win the first race. Jon Court rode the 6-year-old Lode gelding who won the 1 1/16-mile starter allowance by a head.
CELEBRATE BREEDERS’ CUP AT KEENELAND
Make plans now to enjoy the Breeders’ Cup World Championships simulcast at Keeneland on Friday and Saturday, November 6-7.
General admission and parking are free both days. Gates open at 10 a.m.; first Breeders’ Cup race is 1:45 p.m.
Concession areas such as the Sports Barn, Cantina, Mezzanine Barn and Finish Line Room in Keeneland’s Grandstand will be open both days. Dining reservations are being taken for Saturday in the Equestrian Room ($15 per person), Lexington and Kentucky Rooms ($120 for a table for four) and third-floor clubhouse ($30 per person). Reservations made be made by calling 859 288-4299.
Advance wagering on the Breeders’ Cup will be available beginning at noon on Friday, November 6.
WEDNESDAY HANDICAPPING CONTEST
Keeneland and its partner Daily Racing Form will host the final Wednesday handicapping contest, presented by Formulator, of the fall meeting.
Fans play to win $2,500 in prizes and to qualify for a chance to win an all-expense paid trip to the $1 million Coast Casinos Horse Player World Series in Las Vegas in 2010.
Registration will be held from 11 a.m. - 2:15 p.m. at the green and white tent adjacent to the Keeneland walking ring. Entry fee is $10; the first 200 participants receive a free Daily Racing Form.
2009 KEENELAND FALL MEET SPECIAL EVENTS
Thursday, October 29 –
Pink Day – Keeneland encourages fans to wear pink to the races in support of Keeneland’s second-annual Pink Day, held in partnership with First Lady Jane Beshear’s Horses and Hope program, aimed at creating breast cancer awareness among women who work on the backside of Kentucky’s racetracks.
Some 500 breast cancer survivors will be honored with a pre-race lunch in the Keeneland Sales Pavilion and featured in a group photo taken at the racetrack. A ladies only “Play the Ponies” wagering contest will be held, with $10 registration fees benefiting Horses and Hope.
Friday, October 30 –
See Blue Day – Kick off the University of Kentucky’s homecoming weekend with See Blue Day at Keeneland. Free general admission with a UK student, alumni or faculty ID. Check out See Blue Central on the North Terrace; fan activities include photos with the Wildcat mascot, autograph signings and face painting. Register to win a deluxe UK and Keeneland gift basket and a flat-screen TV, courtesy of Barney Miller. The first 1,000 to register receive a See Blue T-shirt courtesy of Hands on Originals.
$200,000-guaranteed Pick Four on races 7-10; presented by TVG.
2009 KEENELAND FALL MEET LEADERS
(Stats Through Saturday, October 24)
Current Meet Leading Jockeys
Name Sts 1st 2nd 3rd Purses
Robby Albarado 83 14 14 8 $844,164
Julien Leparoux 79 14 13 14 $762,905
Kent Desormeaux 56 10 3 16 $864,966
James Graham 72 8 8 3 $572,568
Jamie Theriot 60 7 5 1 $349,075
Jesus Castanon 54 6 3 2 $218,922
Rajiv Maragh 27 5 6 3 $966,855
Leandro Goncalves 48 4 9 4 $357,093
Calvin Borel 61 4 3 8 $186,795
Jon Court 34 4 3 3 $121,819
E.T. Baird 23 4 2 4 $109,347
Current Meet Leading Trainers
Name Sts 1st 2nd 3rd Purses
Ken McPeek 52 10 9 8 $769,942
Todd Pletcher 27 5 2 2 $324,257
George Arnold II 26 4 5 3 $304,931
Michael Maker 17 4 3 2 $119,453
Hugh Robertson 17 4 3 1 $111,193
Tom Proctor 17 4 2 2 $144,410
Dale Romans 22 3 4 4 $144,673
Bill Mott 31 3 3 7 $510,245
Graham Motion 19 3 3 5 $271,401
Merrill Scherer 18 3 3 4 $ 95,407
W. Bret Calhoun 7 3 1 1 $130,237
Jonathan Sheppard 9 3 0 3 $300,085
Kiaran McLaughlin 7 3 0 1 $202,509
Current Meet Leading Owners
Name Wins
Ken & Sarah Ramsey 4
Augustin Stable (George Strawbridge Jr.) 3
Darley Stable (Mohammed al Maktoum) 2
Glen Hill Farm (Leonard Lavin) 2
G. Watts Humphrey Jr. 2
IEAH Stables (Michael Iavarone) 2
Melnyk Racing Stables Inc (Eugene Melnyk) 2
Silverton Hill LLC (Bonnie & Tommy Hamilton) 2
Wertheimer & Frere (Alain & Gerald Wertheimer) 2
WinStar Farm LLC (Bill Casner, et al) 2