December, 2021 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Fast Boat Is ‘Living His Best Life’ While Working Towards Second Career With Rosie Napravnik

After an 11th place finish in the 2021 Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, multiple graded stakes winner Fast Boat has retired from racing. He has since taken up residence at record breaking female jockey Rosie Napravnik's Four Ponds Farm in Simpsonville, Ky..

Napravnik became the first female jockey to ever win the Kentucky Oaks in 2012 with Believe You Can. She was also the first female jockey to win more than one Breeders' Cup race, along with many other notable achievements. With lifetime earnings of $71,426,717 Napravnik is undoubtedly one of the most successful female jockeys the industry has seen, and she continues to pursue her passion for Thoroughbreds outside of the racetrack.

Since Napravnik's retirement from racing following the 2014 Breeders' Cup where she won the G1 Distaff aboard Untapable, she has started a new career of retraining off the track Thoroughbreds (OTTBs). In Napravnik's operation, the owners who send their racehorses to her continue to financially support them throughout their second careers as she offers owners the experience of Thoroughbred ownership from an entirely new perspective. This is the case with the newest addition to her herd, Fast Boat, who has spent time at her farm previously during his career following big performances on the track.

“He's a very happy horse in general, but he was the type where he could not wait to go out every single day,” Napravnik said about Fast Boat's personality. “It never wore off the entire time he would spend here (Four Ponds Farm). He was just as happy to go out every day, always ears forward. He loved the company of a pony. We have several ponies here so they all get to play the role of being the life coach for the racehorses. It relieves the anxiety for the racehorses when they're turned out.”

The 6-year-old gelding is a son of City Zip out of the Lemon Drop Kid mare, Yellow Boat. He was claimed by Joe Sharp in 2018 and went on to win the G2 Twin Spires Turf Sprint Stakes as well as the G3 Troy Stakes in 2021. He ended his career with a record of 10-1-3 from 28 starts and $706,349 in earnings. Fast Boat is now turned out with Napravnik's herd of “lifers” and will get a couple of months off before figuring out what his second career is.

“He's living his best life being turned out 24/7,” Napravnik mentioned. “He's kind of a boss out there, which I wasn't really sure he'd be. There's one pony out there and the pony doesn't really get grain so he's kind of the hungriest one, but now Fast Boat is the hungriest one, which is not usually the case when you turn a Thoroughbred out 24/7 for the first time. I would say he's adjusting well.”

Once Fast Boat does begin training for his second career, Napravnik said that he will follow the same routine that all of her new horses do.

“I start all their training off with flatwork, but first I take them all hacking and they go through water, up banks, and through ditches,” Napravnik said. “They do that until they can do it on the buckle and they're chilled out and trusting of any of these new questions that you're asking of them. So that's initially what I do to wipe the slate clean. It sort of opens their mind to the idea of 'we don't have anywhere to go.' They're in such a routine during their life on the track that they're used to always having something to do, so I let them figure out that we're just out here to enjoy ourselves. Then we start flatwork and I kind of let them take me from there.”

Napravnik is a regular competitor at the annual Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover at the Kentucky Horse Park. She has finished in the top ranks of multiple divisions and has her sights set on entering Fast Boat in the 2022 Makeover. This would not be Napravnik's first time entering with a high-profile racehorse, as she competed at the 2019 makeover with 2016 Kentucky Derby contender My Man Sam in the show hunters division.

“I have been itching to train a horse for barrel racing at the Makeover, which I know nothing about, so it would be kind of a fun experience to do that,” Napravnik said about Fast Boat's potential entry. “He's kind of built more like a Quarter Horse. He's got a huge hind end and he's built kind of downhill, so we might think about that. Like I said, he'll kind of tell me as we go.”

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$50,000 Road To Louisville Contest Includes Prize Package With Chance To Purchase Indiana Yearling

Up to $50,000 in prize money will be offered in a unique contest coming to Indiana Grand Racing & Casino in early 2022. “Road to Louisville,” featuring 18 weeks of action beginning Saturday, Jan. 8 leading up to the Kentucky Derby Saturday, May 7, will include $20,000 in prize money with a unique twist thrown into the mix. The winner of the contest will have the option to purchase a yearling package at the 2022 ITOBA Fall Sale valued at $30,000 courtesy of the Indiana Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (ITOBA) along with Indiana Grand.

“Road to Louisville” is open to players both online and on-track at Indiana Grand and Clarksville OTB. Weekly and monthly prizes will be provided as points are cumulative throughout the event. The contest, which will include numerous races each week from select tracks, will be completed on Kentucky Derby Day to crown the overall winner of the $1,000 prize money and a chance to own a future Indiana racehorse.

“Our contests both online and on-track have become increasingly popular, and we wanted to do something to raise the stakes next season,” said Eric Halstrom, Vice President and General Manager of Racing. “After talking with ITOBA President Tom Mosley, we decided to partner with them on our current breeding and racing program, which is so lucrative right now. The idea was created to get one of our loyal racing fans involved with a hands-on ownership experience and enjoy a risk-free way to enjoy the thrill of Indiana Thoroughbred racing.”

If the winner opts in for the purchase of a yearling at the ITOBA Sale, they will receive up to $15,000 to purchase a yearling out of the sale, plus an additional $15,000 for care and training of the horse leading up to its racing debut in the summer of 2023. ITOBA is facilitating the details and assistance for the new owner and their new purchase.

“We are always looking for ways to promote our breeding and racing program and when Eric (Halstrom) came to us with this idea, we couldn't think of a better way to introduce our program to new individuals,” said Mosley. “Giving someone a complete experience, from purchasing a yearling at the sale to watching it train and make it to the races is a great way to bring exposure to Indiana racing.”

“Road to Louisville” gets underway with the racing card from Gulfstream Park. Points are based on payouts for the selected horse in the contest races. Weekly prizes will be allotted to the top three players each week with the top handicapper receiving $150, second place receiving $100 and third place receiving $50. Prizes are doubled if the player is competing at either Indiana Grand or Clarksville OTB.

“We wanted to ensure the contest was available to all players everywhere who are 21 or older but we wanted to find a way to reward our racing fans who participate at Indiana Grand and Clarksville,” added Halstrom. “By doubling the prize money, this will entice those who live around either location to submit their entries in person. In addition to the weekly prizes, we will also offer a monthly prize of $250 for the player who has the most accumulated points. That amount will also double to $500 if the player is participating at Indiana Grand or Clarksville.”

A request for a list of rules and more details about “Road to Louisville” will be provided by sending an email to horseshoeindycontest@gmail.com. Entry forms and additional details will also be available soon on the website at www.indianagrand.com.

The 20^th season of Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing is set to resume Tuesday, April 19 and run through Wednesday, Nov. 23. Racing will be held Monday through Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. with Thursday racing beginning at 3:30 p.m. A total of 12 Saturday racing programs will be held in 2022. For more information on events and racing, go to www.indianagrand.com.

About Indiana Grand Racing & Casino

Indiana Grand Racing & Casino, which is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: CZR), holds multiple awards for customer service, entertainment, gaming, dining, and diversity. Located in Shelbyville, Ind., Indiana Grand features more than 1,900 of the latest slots and table games in addition to a one-mile dirt racecourse and a seven-eighths mile turf course providing live Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse racing each year. Simulcast and sports wagering is also offered year-round at Winner's Circle Race Sports Pub located on the casino floor as well as a Winner's Circle Race Sports Pub located in Clarksville, Ind. For more information, please visit www.caesars.com/indiana-grand. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing at racetracks and 21 or older to gamble at sports books and casinos. Know When To Stop Before You Start.® Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-9-WITH-IT (1-800-994-8448) ©2021 Caesars License Company, LLC.

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NYSGC: No Action Will Be Taken On Owner’s Appeal Of Remsen Finish

Owner Jeff Drown filed a protest with the New York State Gaming Commission over the finish of the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes on Dec. 4, 2021 at Aqueduct, in which his horse Zandon was beaten a nose by Mo Donegal. Stewards held an inquiry into the finish, looking at contact between the first and second-place finishers in the stretch run, but they ultimately upheld the original order of finish.

This week, a the NYSGC's communications director Brad Maione told bloodhorse.com that the commission will not take action on the protest, since there is no way to overturn the stewards' decision.

“The Remsen was declared official by the stewards. There is no process for appeal once the race is declared final by the stewards,” Maione said.

According to the Equibase chart notes of the race, second-place finisher Zandon “rallied to the lead in upper stretch, lost the advantage to the winner [Mo Donegal] before the eighth pole, dug in gamely on the inside in the final furlong, had the winner's rider [Irad Ortiz, Jr.] attempt to intimidate him late then bumped approaching the wire and just missed in a determined effort.”

Jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. was subsequently suspended 30 days for an incident that occurred on Friday, Dec. 3 at Aqueduct.

Consignor, Pinhooker Jerry Bailey Passes Away at 78

Jerry Bailey, whose varied career in the sport included stints as a veterinarian, breeder, owner, pinhooker and consignor, passed away Dec. 17 due to complications from pneumonia after a bout with COVID-19. He was 78.

Bailey started out on the racetrack as a veterinarian and took a position as the resident veterinarian for E.K. Gaylord's Lazy E Ranch in Oklahoma, later adding the role of general manager to his duties.

He moved to Florida in the late eighties and partnered with Ken Ellenberg to start Bailey Ellenberg Select, a partnership that focused on pinhooking. Ellenberg and Bailey bought eventual 1995 Grade I Kentucky Derby winner Thunder Gulch (Gulch) for $40,000 at the Keeneland July yearling sale with the intent to sell him a year later. They had a $125,000 reserve on him at the Keeneland April sale as a 2-year-old, but the bidding stopped at $120,000. After selling a 50% interest in him to Howard Rozin, they campaigned Thunder Gulch through his first three career starts before selling him privately to Michael Tabor.

Bailey would later partner with Lance Robinson, and the two started Gulf Coast Farms. It was another pinhooking operation, but they also got involved in breeding. Their biggest success story as a breeder was Lookin at Lucky (Smart Strike). Consigned by Bailey, he was sold for $475,000 as a 2-year-old at the Keeneland April sale. The winner of the 2010 GI Preakness S., he was named champion 2-year-old in 2009 and champion 3-year-old in 2010.

Bailey was involved with many top horses over the years. He consigned Grade I winners Honour and Glory (Relaunch), Deputy Commander (Deputy Minister), Henny Hughes (Hennessy) and Dubai Escapade (Awesome Again). Dubai Escapade sold for $2 million at the 2004 Barretts 2-year-old sale.

About 10 years ago, Bailey retired from the Thoroughbred game and moved back to his native Oklahoma. While there, he focused on roping competitions.

“Roping to him was what golf is to others,” said his widow, Leslie. “He roped every day there was. He just won a roping competition about five days before he came up sick.

“He was most proud of our success in the Thoroughbred business, his ability to pick out an individual, an athlete, and all his achievements in roping.”

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