After trading his stopwatch for a trainer's license, Casey Schleis recorded his first career victory when Hoping for a Ring captured last Saturday's fourth race at Oaklawn under Elvin Gonzalez.
According to Equibase, racing's official data gathering organization, Hoping for a Ring ($15.40) represented the fifth career starter for Schleis, 47, previously a longtime clocker at Prairie Meadows in Altoona, Iowa.
“My dad trained and pretty much all I've ever done is work with horses and that's where I was really good,” Schleis said. “I got tired of moving around and I was able to take that job in Iowa and work it out where I could stay in Iowa year-round, and I bought a home and stuff there. When I sold the home (October 2021) is when I really decided that I was about to start doing the racetrack circuit again. Oaklawn seems like it's got more of a future than Iowa really does, so I'm trying to make my shift down here.”
Hoping for a Ring had made three previous starts at the 2022-2023 Oaklawn meeting for Schleis and owner Kenton Christensen. The 5-year-old daughter of Speed Ring, Schleis' lone horse on the grounds, won the $10,000 claimer by 2¾ lengths.
“That's a really hard-trying mare,” Schleis said. “It's just we've been having bad luck here, with the gates. She had a little bit of a gate issue. Run her over her head a couple of times and decided to get real and put her in a spot where she could probably win and there you have it. She tries hard.”
Although Schleis had a late start to his training career, his background in Thoroughbred racing is extensive. His late father, Jim, was a trainer. Casey Schleis was an assistant under the successful Midwestern-based trainer Jim Arnett, who started his last horse in 2006.
“He was kind of an old-timer and since passed a few years ago,” Schleis said of Arnett. “He retired 17, 18 years ago, something like that, and I started clocking at Prairie Meadows after that. That's what I've been doing and I just recently decided to make this switch, training for a guy (Christensen) that was a friend of my father.”
Schleis, on behalf of Christensen, claimed Hoping for a Ring for $12,500 April 22, 2022, at Oaklawn. Schleis started his first horse, Salty Jones, eight days later at Oaklawn.
After Schleis claimed Hoping for a Ring, the horse was campaigned by trainer David Tibbitts last summer and fall at Prairie Meadows. Hoping for a Ring returned to Schleis after his 16-year clocker run at Prairie Meadows ended last fall. Hoping for a Ring made her first start for Schleis Dec. 18 at Oaklawn. Schleis said his only other horse is General Shipman, a 2-year-old Midshipman colt for breeder-owner Jason Cline.
“Slowly but surely, trying to (add horses),” Schleis said. “Jason Cline said he's going to buy some 2-year-olds out of the sale and he's breeding horses still in Nebraska. I'm looking to maybe foal some horses in Arkansas as well.”
Schleis said he will probably run at Prairie Meadows and maybe at Canterbury after Oaklawn's meet ends May 6.
The post Clocker-Turned-Trainer Schleis Sends Out First Career Winner At Oaklawn appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
