Tag: far hills

“The Biggest Night Of My Life” – Hanlon Holds Back Tears At Eclipse Awards

Trainer John 'Shark' Hanlon was reduced to tears upon receiving his Eclipse Award on behalf of America's Champion Steeplechaser Hewick (Ire) (Virtual {GB}) and even labelled the evening as “the biggest night of my life.”

The County Kilkenny trainer sent out Hewick, a horse he famously bought for just €850, to win the American Grand National at Far Hills last October. 

Hanlon made the trip over to America for the awards ceremony where he struggled to hold back the tears.

“I don't know what to say. I can't believe that we came over here and won the American Grand National in Far Hills,” Hanlon said of his Grade I winner.

“He's been a very good horse for us, for the whole family. I bought him at my own local sales for 800 quid and he's after winning half a million. But tonight is definitely the biggest night of my life. Thank you everyone.”

Hewick has won eight times and recorded notable victories in Britain and Ireland, including the Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown and the Tote Galway Plate.

 

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Eclectic Mix Gathers For Inaugural John Forbes Memorial

As someone who worked tirelessly throughout his career to promote New Jersey racing, first as a trainer then as a horsemen's rep, John Forbes no doubt would have liked what's being offered Saturday at the Far Hills hunt meet in the race named in his honor.  The John Forbes Memorial is worth $100,000, has attracted an evenly matched field of 14 and, run at two miles on the flat, is at a distance that makes it a handicapping puzzle.

The Forbes Memorial is among the highlights on a card that also includes the $250,000 GI Grand National Hurdle.

Forbes, the late husband of the TDN's Director of Customer Services Vicki Forbes, passed away Jan. 31, 2021 at the age of 73 after a battle with cancer.

“John was New Jersey racing,” said Dennis Drazin, chairman and CEO of Darby Development LLC, operators of Monmouth Park Racetrack, said at the time.

Forbes won 2,174 races before he stopped training in 2012 to focus on horsemen's issues, becoming the president of the New Jersey Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association when the group took over the lease for Monmouth Park from The New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority. He was the leading trainer at Monmouth Park five times and won seven training titles at the Meadowlands. Forbes's best horse was GISW sire Tale of the Cat, and he helped launch the career of Hall of Fame rider Julie Krone.

The 3-1 morning line favorite is Cross Border (English Channel), a two-time winner of the GII Bowling Green S and an earner of $1,173,354. But he has not finished in the money in six tries this year and, at age 8, may not be what he once was. After racing for Mike Maker, he will be making his second start for Keri Brion, who has plans to convert him to a jumper. Like all 14 in the race, he has never won at the distance of two miles on the flat.

Trained by Michael Dickinson, Royne (Ghostzapper) should be in the mix. He was third in the Presious Passion S. last out at Monmouth and has done some of his best running in 11 and 12-furlong races. Then there's Agitare (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), who will be making his first start in the U.S. after racing in Ireland for James Bolger. Fearsome (GB) (Makfi {GB}) will return to the flat after racing over the jumps at Colonial Downs.

The jockeys will no doubt play a major role in a race that pits flat riders versus steeplechase jockeys. Flat riders Isaac Castillo, Nik Juarez and Feargal Lynch have mounts and will go against 11 regulars on the jump circuit. With the horses in the race carrying between 140 and 148 pounds, the flat jockeys could be carrying as much as 30 pounds of “dead weight,” perhaps a disadvantage.

Trainer Jack Fisher, who will send out Mystical Man (Mucho Macho Man), has given the mount to jump rider Graham Watters.

“They had a flat race for jumpers at Colonial Downs and I used a flat rider and I thought he made a huge mistake, leaving the horse with too much to do,” Fisher said. “I think the jump riders are probably better simply because they are used to doing that trip, two miles.”

Fisher has what will be a solid favorite in the Grand National Hurdle in Snap Decision (Hard Spun). The leading contender in his division for an Eclipse Award, he was upset last time out at odds of 3-10 in the GI Lonesome Glory H. at Aqueduct. The winner was Noah And the Ark (Ire) (Vinnie Roe {Ire}), who will be seeking his third straight win in Saturday's $250,000 race. The difference this time could come down to the weights. Snap Decision carried 168 pounds in the Lonesome Glory, giving away 28 pounds to Noah And The Ark. The Grand National Hurdle is a weight-for-age race and all seven starters will carry 156 pounds.

The second choice in the race at 3-1 in the morning line is Hewick (Ire) (Virtual {GB}), a seven-time winner over the jumps in Europe.

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2021 Full Of ‘The Stuff You Can’t Script’ For Trainer Keri Brion

Just two live race days remain in 2021 to complete a remarkable year of racing action on the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) circuit. The NYRA Press Office checked in with a selection of New York-based racing personalities to get their reflections on the memorable year.

Though steeplechase trainer Keri Brion is based in Virginia when in the U.S. and is currently scouting new racing prospects in Ireland, the 30-year-old conditioner enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2021, sweeping all three of NYRA's Grade 1 jump races and winning all but one of America's Grade 1 steeplechase events.

Brion, who worked for 11 years as an assistant to Hall of Fame trainer Jonathan Sheppard, has put together a quality stable in her first year on her own, becoming the first American-based trainer to win on the hurdle circuit in Ireland in April and conditioning Baltimore Bucko and The Mean Queen to Grade 1 wins in the second half of the year.

After picking up her first graded win with Galway Kid in the Grade 3 David Semmes Memorial in May, Brion won her first Grade 1 in the A.P. Smithwick Memorial at Saratoga Race Course in July, visiting the winner's circle with Baltimore Bucko.

Brion wrapped up 2021 with a record of 14-15-12 from 105 starts and earnings just shy of $800,000, thanks in part to a trio of Grade 1 wins by The Mean Queen in Saratoga's Jonathan Sheppard Memorial, Belmont Park's Lonesome Glory, and the Grand National at Far Hills.

How would you summarize your 2021 campaign?

Brion: “It's still hard to put into words even now. It was some year. It started when I was in Ireland this time last year and took over for Jonathan when he retired. I made history there this year as the first [American based] jumper and hurdle winner. Then I went back to America and won my first graded stakes in May. Things were going well and then Saratoga happened. You couldn't write that again and it will probably never happen again as long as I live. Being first and second in both Grade 1's is something I would have never dreamed of. It really helped my career and also to gain the support in the big races. It was important for me to have those horses win at Saratoga. It's mind blowing.”

How does steeplechase racing in New York compare to other prestigious meets?

Brion: “NYRA is where you dream of racing. Flat racing, jump racing, it doesn't matter. It's the best of the sport in America in my opinion. Obviously you're running for good money and that's always a big plus. NYRA does an amazing job of supporting steeplechase and we have really good purses for allowances and stakes races which is brilliant. This is my first year training, but going forward, you train for Saratoga. You start in the spring and you know you're prepping horses for Saratoga. That's the big stage and where you want to win. To have won both big races there and the Lonesome Glory at Belmont is amazing. There's not a better place to win a race than in New York.”

What does it take to reach the top level in steeplechase?

Brion: “It's finding horses of that caliber. I have been lucky enough to have a trainer in Ireland who helps me source horses. It's helped me get them young and to mold them and bring them along in my own way. Working for Jonathan Sheppard for all those years was the biggest thing. Happy horses really do run the best. The Mean Queen, for instance, ran every month from April to October and stayed sound, healthy, and happy. Listening to the horse as an individual is key. You also can't be the best if you don't have the best staff and best owners. Good horses are good horses, but there's a lot that goes into it as well.”

What advice can you give other women looking to build a career in horse racing?

Brion: “I feel like at this stage now I have gained the respect of a lot of people. I've worked very hard to get here and I hope that other women who want to be trainers, exercise riders, jockeys, or anything else in his industry can look to me as an example that women can do it. You can be successful if you work hard.”

Which win this year was the most meaningful to you?

Brion: “It's a toss-up between the Grand National and the Jonathan Sheppard, but winning the Jonathan Sheppard is the stuff you can't script. They had renamed that race after Jonathan and I had four runners in it. Three of them were first, second, and third. I was very proud of that and of my horses. It was a summer I will never forget.”

What do you hope to accomplish in 2022 and beyond?

Brion: “I won four of the five American Grade 1's this year so I really hope to win the Iroquois [at Percy Warner Park] too. I don't know if that will happen this coming year, but it's on my list. The biggest thing is to continue at this level. I'm not saying I'm going to keep sweeping four or five Grade 1's every year, but I just want to be successful at the higher levels. I don't want this year to be a fluke and I want to continue to prove that I can do it – not just with The Mean Queen, but with other horses.

“When I set out training, I said I would be happy if I could win an Eclipse Award within 10 years of training. Now I'm probably going to be getting on a plane to California in February to get a trophy for the Eclipse Award.”

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Former HOF President von Stade Dies

John T. Von Stade, the longest serving president of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame from 1989-2005, passed away Nov. 25 at his home in Lutherville, Maryland. He was 83 years of age.

Born June 28, 1938, in Old Westbury, New York, von Stade graduated from St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, and Harvard University, pursuing a passion for music while participating in and managing the choir at St. Paul's and the glee club at Harvard. After attending the Aspen School of Music and a stint in the Army Reserves, von State spent some time in the world of banking before opening the Essex Gallery of Sport in Far Hills, New Jersey.

Von Stade's father was a founder of the National Museum of Racing in 1950, president of the National Steeplechase Association and the final president of the Saratoga Association, which owned and operated Saratoga Race Course. In his youth, John von Stade drove a tractor at the track.

For a half-century, von Stade served as co-chair at Far Hills, helping to grow an event that early on attracted a few thousand spectators to the country's richest day of steeplechasing.

After serving more than a decade as a trustee of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, von Stade was elected as its president in 1989, succeeding Whitney Tower. During his tenure, von Stade oversaw an $18-million project that modernized the institution and increased the size of the facility to better than 45,000 square feet. In 1995, von Stade was the recipient of the F. Ambrose Clark Award, the highest honor in steeplechasing, given periodically to an individual who has done the most to promote, improve and encourage the growth and welfare of American steeplechasing.

Von Stade is survived by his wife, the former Phyllis Kaltenbach DuVal; his son, John von Stade Jr. and daughter-in-law Ann von Stade; Phyllis's daughters and son-in-law Anna DuVal, Olivia Duval and Joseph Cutrone; and six grandchildren. He was also the uncle to many nephews and nieces, including the opera singer Frederica von Stade.

Services will be held Sunday, Dec. 19 at 2 p.m. at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church in Ownings Mills, Maryland.

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