Month: September 2022

Twin Creeks Banner Unfurled at Keeneland September

The Twin Creeks Farm name is a very familiar one in horse racing. Having been associated with a host of big-name horses in the past as both a breeder and owner, the operation will now venture into new terrain, offering it's first draft of yearlings on Day 4 of this season's Keeneland September Sale.

The initial seven-horse draft on offer is highlighted by five yearlings by WinStar sire Constitution.

“Overall, we thought this was a very solid group and these individuals were very similar,” Twin Creeks' Randy Gullatt said. “And they all have a very strong pedigree behind them. I hope we have already proven the point that we can breed and sell great horses, so I think they will be very popular here.”

In a fateful move that would pave the way for the string of successes that would come in the breeding shed and on the racetrack, Twin Creeks teamed up with WinStar Farm to campaign $400,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Select yearling purchase Constitution (Tapit), victorious in the 2014 GI Besilu Florida Derby and 2015 GI Donn H. Standing for an advertised fee of $85,000 in 2022, Constitution currently heads the earning's list of North American fourth crop sires with runners in both North America and Europe.

“He's been so important to us, both in racing him and now as a sire,” he said. “We've raced four graded stakes horses by him that we also bred.”

According to Gullatt, Hip 812 and Hip 888 are likely to garner plenty of attention next week. The former, who is out of Sharp Instinct (Awesome Again), is a half-brother to GSW Send It In (Big Brown). The latter is a half-brother to Grade II-placed Afleet Destiny (Hard Spun). Both yearlings are by Constitution.

Gullatt explained, “These colts in particular have a really special look to them. They both have that special physical that most of these buyers seem to be attracted to. I think being by Constitution and having that look, I would think they'd be very popular.”

Hoping to catch lightning in a bottle again, Twin Creeks has already tasted top-level success with another son of Constitution. Consigned on behalf of breeder Twin Creeks by Becky Thomas's Sequel New York in 2018 renewal of the Saratoga Preferred New York bred Yearling Sale, Tiz the Law–out of Tizfiz (Tiznow)–was purchased for $110,000 by Jack Knowlton's Sackatoga Stable. Trained by Barclay Tagg, the colt went on to win the GI Belmont S. In addition to the GI Runhappy Travers S., GI Curlin Florida Derby and GI Champagne S.

“Tiz the Law is a very different type of horse from the colts we are offering at Keeneland September,” explained Gullatt. “He was a smaller sort of horse and had an exceptional mind, but he wasn't a [physical] standout as a yearling. And Constitution was a relatively unknown stallion at the time that Tiz the Law sold.”

He continued, “But I think these colts are a step above [physically] than Tiz the Law was as a yearling. Obviously, Constitution's stature as a stallion has also grown since Tiz the Law sold.”

Another member of the Constitution brigade received a timely boost her page. Hip 1019–out of a half-sister to GISW Celestine (Scat Daddy) named Haunted Heroine (Ghostzapper)–is a full-sister to Law Professor, winner of the Sept. 1 Tapit S. at Kentucky Downs. Trained by Rob Atras, the Twin Creeks homebred is also responsible for a win in last season's GII Santa Anita Mathis Mile.

“I think he's going to be an exciting fall horse for us,” Gullat said of Law Professor. “We're quite high on him.”

Of his full sister, he added, “She should make an incredible racehorse, and hopefully, as a broodmare for someone one day.”

Among the Twin Creeks offerings not by Constitution, Hip 906 is by the recently deceased More Than Ready out of Baffling (Graydar)–a homebred, half-sister to Constitution out of Baffled (Distorted Humor). The immediate family also boasts Group 2 winner Boynton (More Than Ready) and Grade III scorer Jacaranda (Congrats).

“We had the mare Baffled for some time and sold a More Than Ready out of her named Boynton for $750,000 [at Keeneland September in 2015]. So, we know that the niche works.”

He added, “She is a big, strong, two-turn, classy filly. I think she can be a tremendous broodmare for someone someday.”

According to Gullatt, Hip 1093, by Catholic Boy (More Than Ready) out of May Night (Gulch), has been withdrawn from the sale and will be retained by Twin Creeks to race. Twin Creeks also campaigned the GI Travers S. and GI Belmont Derby winner with Bob LaPenta, Madaket Stables and Siena Farm.

“She's the only Catholic Boy that we have,” he said, explaining the decision to scratch. “It looks like it might be [dam Song of Bernadette]'s last foal, so we decided we want to keep that family.”

 

Planting the Seed

According to Twin Creek's Randy Gullatt, the addition of farm manager Ryan Bardin to the team was instrumental in facilitating the move to sell its own product at public sale.

“We have done occasionally in the past, but nothing to this degree,” explained Gullatt. “This year, I have a new farm manager to help out and we had a nice group of horses and we thought we could sell them all on the same day. And we thought, 'why not this year be the year we start selling our own in September'.”

Expanding upon the decision to assume selling duties at Keeneland September, Gullatt continued, “Sequel New York sells all of our New York breds, and Taylor Made sells our Kentucky horses. And we're still going to use them. Taylor Made sold a horse for us in July and they will sell something for us in October and November as well. Sequel sold a horse for us at Saratoga in August. September is just such a unique place. It's close to home and its something that we can do on our own now. We also thought the horses were all of similar quality and, being able to sell them on the same day, that played a role in the decision as well.”

Also on offer, next week are a pair of Constitutions–a filly, Hip 779 out of Grade II winner Pure Silver (Mission Impazible) and Hip 792, another colt by Constitution out of Remedy (Creative Cause) from the family of champion Beholder and Into Mischief. Rounding out the consignment is Hip 799, a daughter of freshman sire City of Light.

Underscoring the relevance of the younger sires, not only to Twin Creeks program, but also to the industry as a whole, Gullatt said, “Especially with the fillies, having these current horses on the track adds that 'sexy' value to these yearlings. I think this market always enjoys that fresh face. The first-year stallion, new horse or an up-and-coming stars like Constitution. Big names mean a lot to pedigrees. Having that current horse just gives you a family that people want to invest into. Those are the ones we want to bring here.”

The post Twin Creeks Banner Unfurled at Keeneland September appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Whimsical Dance, Swoop To Finish Give Gail Cox Two Good Chances As Canada’s Triple Tiara Concludes

This year's edition of the Canadian Triple Tiara concludes with Sunday's running of the $250,000 Wonder Where Stakes, at Woodbine.

Set at 1 ¼ miles on the E.P. Taylor Turf Course, the Wonder Where, for 3-year-old Canadian-bred fillies, drew six sophomores. Moira, who won the Woodbine Oaks Presented by Budweiser, went on to take the 163rd running of the Queen's Plate on August 21. Sister Seagull, in to contest the Wonder Where, captured the second jewel of the Triple Tiara, the Bison City, on August 14.

Whimsical Dance, a daughter of Distorted Humor-Danceforthecause, will make her first appearance in the series.

Trained by Gail Cox, the Sam-Son Farm homebred arrived in style, winning her career bow in impressive fashion on August 21.

Sent off at 20-1 in the 1 1/16-mile journey over the E.P. Taylor, Whimsical Dance, under Declan Carroll, rallied strongly down the lane to secure a 4 ½-length score in a time of 1:43.13 over firm ground.

“She comes from a really nice family,” noted Cox. “She's a half to Say the Word and Rideforthecause, so she's related to some very nice horses, who I was also lucky to have trained. I had taken a very long time to run her because I didn't think she was ready. She was quite immature, mentally and physically. I just didn't want to run her until I thought she had a good chance to win or at least run really well. She just started to work better and better and learned how to be more independent. I wouldn't say that I thought she was definitely going to win, but I did think she would run well just based off pedigree. David said that down the lane she was just gawking at everything. But she ran great and she's pretty talented.”

Now, the filly, unraced at 2, will step up to the stakes ranks and tackle a longer distance of ground.

Cox, seeking her first Oaks crown, expects Whimsical Dance to be up for the challenge.

“She came out of the race really well. Three weeks is a short time between races, but she had a nice breeze on Sunday [4 furlongs, breezing, in :50.00 on the dirt training track] and I think we have to take a shot at this race. I think it's the perfect race for her. Distance isn't going to be an issue and I don't think she'd care what kind of turf it is on Sunday.”

Swoop to Finish, a daughter of American-Pharoah-Swoop and Strike, will return to the turf after a sixth-place finish in the Woodbine Oaks.

Also a Sam-Son homebred, the dark bay has a career record of 1-1-0 from five starts, including a 1-1-0 record from three turf appearances.

She made her debut last July, finishing second in a 6-furlong E.P. Taylor Turf Course maiden special weight event, putting in a strong rally down the lane to secure the runner-up spot. Swoop to Finish closed out her rookie year with a fifth in a 7-furlong race over the E.P. Taylor one month later.

Finishing seventh in her sophomore curtain raiser, Swoop to Finish broke her maiden next time out, a 2 ¼-length win over 1 1/16 miles on the Woodbine Inner Turf.

“She won on the turf this year and then we made the decision to run her in the Oaks. She just doesn't like the main track as much as she does the turf. She's not the same on it. She ran not so great on it [Tapeta] once, but the race she won, we put blinkers on and thought that might really help her out. So, we had to try the Oaks, but she's not the same on the Tapeta. She's been working along since that race and she's doing really well. She's very nice and she's a more aggressive filly than Whimsical Dance. When she won, she was close to the lead. She's a big filly with a huge, long stride, and came to hand very quickly.”

A win by Whimsical Dance or Swoop to Finish would give leading Oaks' owner Sam-Son Farm its ninth victory in the preeminent race for Canadian-bred 3-year-old fillies.

“Having two chances to win – they both have different running styles – is a nice position to be in,” said Cox.

The race has also attracted the aforementioned Sister Seagull, who brings a record of 2-1-1 from seven starts, the two victories coming in her past three starts, which also includes the runner-up performance in the Oaks. The daughter of Hard Spun-Sweet Kitten, trained by Catherine Day Phillips, is a homebred for Sean and Dorothy Fitzhenry.

The race is named after champion filly Wonder Where, Canada's 1959 Horse of the Year and Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee.

Sealy Hill, Canada's Horse of the Year in 2007, took all three Triple Tiara races in that same year.

First post on Sunday's 10-race card is 1:00 p.m. The Wonder Where goes as the eighth race. The second leg of the Woodbine Turf Endurance Series is slated as race seven. Fans can watch and wager on all the action via HPIbet.com and the Dark Horse Bets app.

FIELD FOR THE $250,000 WONDER WHERE STAKES

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Swoop to Finish – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Gail Cox

2 – Strega – Rafael Hernandez – Kevin Attard

3 – Sister Seagull – Antonio Gallardo – Catherine Day Phillips

4 – Devil's Bit – David Moran – Roger Attfield

5 – Whimsical Dance – Declan Carroll – Gail Cox

6 – Keep It Neat – Kazushi Kimura – Barbara Minshall

The post Whimsical Dance, Swoop To Finish Give Gail Cox Two Good Chances As Canada’s Triple Tiara Concludes appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Outriders: More Than Just Top Horsemen At Del Mar

Outrider. Interesting word. Has a cowboy sort of feel to it – and you'd be right to think in that context. One of the dictionary definitions says: “A mounted official who escorts racehorses to the starting post.” That's correct also. Some think of them as safety riders. Yup, you could say that, too. The safety of horses (and jockeys) is a big part of their agenda.

Del Mar employs 13 outriders, though they normally use only nine of them — five in the mornings for workouts (four on the main track, one on the training track) and four in the afternoons for the races. You can spot them wearing their red Kevlar vests as a standard part of their uniforms. In the afternoons, they're also required to wear white shirts, khaki pants, black helmets and have red saddle cloths on their “ponies.” (Their mounts are referred to as ponies, but in fact they are almost all retired Thoroughbreds with some employing retired Quarter Horses.)

They are the ones who are the first into action when a racehorse loses his/her rider/jockey on the racetrack. They go to/after the loose horse, which, in its flight, is a huge danger to other horses, to people and, perhaps most of all, to themselves.

If you've spent any time at the races, you've seen an outrider go lickety-split toward a racehorse who, for whatever reason, has lost his/her rider and is running loose on the track. The outrider and his horse immediately go to max speed to catch up to the panicked animal, who is almost assuredly running somewhere between 30 to 40 miles an hour with no idea where it is going. Then – in a daring maneuver that would cause a real cowboy to nod his head in approval – they go just about side saddle to reach way down and grab the dangling reins and bring the loose horse to a slow and steady stop. It is a stirring sight to see and a demonstration of horsemanship at its very best.

Among its crew of outriders, Del Mar has two stars in a pair of old pros named Jesus Camacho and Jesus Calvillo. You'll see them in the paddock prior to each race leading the racehorses out and down the tunnel to the track for their pre-race warmups.

Jesus “Chewy” Calvillo

Camacho, 55, is Del Mar's “lead” outrider, the one who calls the shots when they need to be called. He rides a 13-year-old Thoroughbred named Justin. Calvillo, 59, is known to all as “Chewy.” He rides an 8-year-old Thoroughbred named Diamond.

Both are natives of Mexico, both grew up with horses all around them, both immigrated to the U.S. to work with horses. Both are good family men, married with children and, of course, both are terrific horsemen.

“I grew up on what basically was a Quarter horse farm,” remembers Camacho. “My grandfather was a Quarter horse jockey. My father was a Thoroughbred jockey both in Mexico and the U.S. I've got a brother who was a jockey. Horses were my life early on. I remember being on horses at the age of two or three. I remember once when I was five I galloped a horse on our farm and he started going really fast. I loved the feeling. But my grandfather told me 'No, he's going to run off with you and you're going to get hurt.' So I had to slow down and be more careful.”

Chewy says he recalls being on horses when he was just one. He adds that he rode a horse to school. There were lots of horses around his home, and lots of family, too. He has nine brothers and eight sisters. He brags that his mother was the best horse person in the family.

“Lots of horse, lots of family in my life,” Chewy says. “My Mom is 88 now and she still rides. She taught us all to ride. I rode in match races. When I was 13 I rode in Quarter Horse match races all the time. Horses were a big part of growing up.”

Both men first came to the racetrack in the U.S. as exercise riders. Both latched on to established trainers and had the established trainers latch on to them. Camacho was trainer Bill Spawr's man for 30 years. Chewy partnered up with Caesar Dominguez, who trained both Quarter horses and Thoroughbreds, for 30 years, also.

In the past decade, both shifted to their new roles as outriders.

“I love the job,” Camacho says. “It's important. I love the role as the lead; I want to do my best every day, every race. Whether it's a race for $10,000 horses or for a million bucks, it's all equally important. When I have to run down a loose horse and I'm able to get him under control, it makes me very happy. You can see it in the eyes (of the loose horse); they were afraid and now when you catch them they feel safe. It's one of the best parts of my job.”

Chewy likes his work too, of course. For years he not only was an exercise rider for Dominguez, but also “broke” his 2-year-olds, in other words he taught them to accept saddle and rider and be prepared for their roles as racehorses. Now, as an outrider, he gets to see the results.

“One of the favorite parts of my job as an outrider,” he notes, “is seeing the 2-year-old horses transform into mature racehorses. It is so rewarding.”

Del Mar's outriders have another role that they were never asked to do, but just naturally gravitated to it: Becoming some of the racetrack's best PR men by using contact with their horses to bring joy to racing fans, especially little kids.

You'll see them in the tunnel between races with their horses' heads and necks dipping into the crowds for lots of pets and oohs and aahs. Getting up close and personal with a big, ol' horse is a special happening in this day and age.

“I think that might be my favorite part of it all,” says Camacho. “When you see the eyes on the little kids light up, that's just the best. I love Sundays here. That's the day when lots of families come out and bring their kids. They love to touch our horses.”

Outriders. They're many things. And they're all good.

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