TRF Blackburn 2020 Horse Show Goes Virtual

Building on the success of the 20th Anniversary TRF Blackburn Horse Show hosted in 2019, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (TRF) and the Blackburn Correctional Complex (BCC) will host a virtual edition of the TRF Blackburn 2020 Horse Show. A global audience will tune in to experience a compelling demonstration of horse-handling skills, equine knowledge and transformational impact of the TRF Second Chances Program.

Event Details:

  • Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2020
  • 8pm Eastern Time (one hour duration)
  • Streaming live on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter (Thoroughbred Retirement accounts)
  • No Tickets or RSVP Required. Details at: https://www.trfinc.org/event/blackburn2020/

“Last year, we welcomed the Lexington community to Blackburn to see the men and horses of the TRF Second Chances Program “in action” and the response was extraordinary,” Paul Saylor, Chairman of the TRF Blackburn Advisory Committee said. “This year we've re-imagined the Horse Show and will make the experience accessible to individuals across the country and around the world.”

“The awareness and understanding created by the 2019 Horse Show has had a powerfully positive impact on the TRF Second Chances Program at Blackburn”, shared Acting Warden Abby McIntire. “By bringing employers and business leaders to meet the men and horses at the Second Chances barn last November, we have significantly improved the impact of the program on the long-term future of the offenders in our program. We are optimistic about the impact of this year's event, and hope it will inspire even more engagement in the program across Kentucky and the country.”

As a direct result of the 20th Anniversary Horse Show, three graduates of the TRF Second Chances program have received job offers from employers in the equine industry. Thus far in 2020, despite the challenges of COVID-19, two program graduates have completed their sentences at BCC and re-entered society with jobs in hand. These men will share their stories within the TRF Blackburn 2020 Horse Show program.

A Collaborative Cross-Industry Effort

Notable support from Horse Show Media Sponsor, the Thoroughbred Daily News (TDN), and Workforce Development and Promotional Partners, the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP), have contributed meaningfully to the 2020 Horse Show. The TDN editorial team has undertaken the filming and production of the live-action demonstrations and interviews which will be presented on October 20th via Livestream. This in-kind support has made the 2020 Horse Show possible. Meanwhile, the Horse Show Workforce Development Partner, the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce (through the work of the Kentucky Chamber Workforce Center and KEEP) has facilitated invaluable connections with employers across the Commonwealth of Kentucky to promote fair chance hiring in the workplace and connect Kentucky's returning citizens with meaningful employment.

Sponsorship donations received for the Horse Show directly support the care of the 49 horses residing at the program at Blackburn. The 2020 Horse Show has been generously sponsored by Mary and Gary West, the Heider Family Foundation with supporting sponsorship from Churchill Downs, Godolphin and the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.

More than fifty Promotional Partners have joined the TRF to promote the 2020 Horse Show to their audiences. Several partners will be cross-posting the livestream event on their websites on October 20th and more than a dozen “watch parties” have been scheduled across the country and around the globe. This diverse team of individuals, nonprofits, membership organizations, racing partnerships and businesses are expanding the reach of the livestreaming event to more than 250,000 people through their social media networks.

Promotional Partners include: America's Pastime Stables, Amplify Horse Racing, Belmont Child Care Association, Bergen Stables, Brookledge Horse Transportation, Community Ecology Institute, Dark Horse Mercantile, Denali Stud, DV8 Kitchen, Fasig-Tipton, The Fletcher Group, Florida Thoroughbred Owners' and Breeders' Association (FTBOA), Groom Elite, Herringswell Stables, Horse Country, Impressions of Saratoga, Jaeger 2, Joanne Y. Pierce Fine Art, Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP), Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, Kentucky Thoroughbred Farm Managers Club (KTFMC), Lex on Tap, Making Strides Therapeutic Horsemanship, Inc., Maryland Horse Council, Maryland Equine Transition Services (METS), Midway University, New York Racing Association (NYRA), New York Horsemen's Association, National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Old Smoke Clothing Co., Pierce the HeArt Lessons, Rainbow's End Racing Stable, Renaissance Equestrian Foundation, Retired Racehorse Project (RRP), Rood & Riddle, Semper Fortis Financial LLC, Spy Coast Farm, Stable Duel, Starlight Racing and StarLadies, Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA), Thoroughbred Charities of America, VisitLex, WinStar Stablemates and numerous passionate individuals are also spreading the word to their personal and professional networks.

Horse Show Media Partners include: At the Races with Steve Byk, The Daily Racing Form (DRF), The Equiery, Equidaily.com, Going in Circles Podcast, Horseracing Nation, In the Money Media, StreamHorseTV, The Paulick Report, Thoroughbred Daily News (TDN) and Wire to Wire.

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Singspiel Winner Count Again Headlines Sunday’s Northern Dancer Turf Stakes

Eight starters will chase the top prize in Sunday's $300,000 Northern Dancer Turf Stakes (G1T) this week at Woodbine, a 1 ½-mile grass engagement for 3-year-olds and upward.

Gail Cox will look to net the stakes double with E.P. Taylor Stakes favorite Rideforthecause's stablemate Count Again in the Northern Dancer Turf Stakes.

The lightly raced 5-year-old son of Awesome Again has been impressive over his six lifetime outings.

On Sept. 19, the bay gelding, despite being heavily steadied into the far turn, drove to the front outside of the eighth-pole and secured a 1 ¼ length win in the Singspiel Stakes (G3T).

The final time for 1 ¼ miles over a “firm” E.P. Taylor Turf Couse was 2:00.67.

“He ran great,” praised Cox. “Again, it was exactly what he wanted to do, which is to go a distance. A mile-and-a-sixteenth was always a little short for him. So, the added distance… he was really good. He did win pretty easily.”

It was the first stakes engagement for Count Again, who Cox is counting on once again to come up big on the Woodbine grass.

“He's a very nice horse. I know anyone that's trained him has really liked him. He just had this and that which had bothered him, which led to him having some time off. He needed to get really good and comfortable. He seems to like training here. He does a fair amount of training on the dirt here, but he's been happy here, and has come out of his races really well.”

The third Sam-Son Farm homebred to see action on Sunday is Say the Word, a 5-year-old son of More Than Ready.

Third to Count Again in the Singspiel, the dark bay gelding was sixth in the 2018 Queen's Plate, going on to finish second in the turf Breeders' Stakes, third jewel in the Canadian Triple Crown, in that same year.

The multiple graded stakes placed gelding, sporting a record of 4-2-4 from 24 career starts, is in search of his first stakes victory.

Cox believes Say the Word will relish the 1 ½-mile Northern Dancer distance.

“He was closing ground [in the Singspiel] and he didn't have the easiest of trips. I think he'll love this distance. He's another one that we had to send away to run farther. And that worked out. But he needs the distance and he doesn't like the Tapeta. He was originally set to run on it, but he just didn't like it.”

As for similarities between her trio of stakes hopefuls, Cox only sees a pair of obvious connections.

“Besides liking to go long and liking the turf, they don't really have anything in common. They're pretty different horses. Most of the time there's something that you're usually worried about, but they are all coming into these races well.”

Graded stakes champ Admiralty Pier, who won last year's Tampa Bay Stakes (G3T) at 21-1, will chase his sixth career victory in his 23rd start. Bred by Calumet Farm and owned by Hoolie Racing Stable and Bruce Lunsford, the son of English Channel finished second in both the Connaught Cup (G2T) and King Edward (G2T) before a sixth in the Ricoh Woodbine Mile on Sept. 19.

Ridgling Jungle Fighter, a 4-year-old son of Animal Kingdom, will get his fourth shot at graded stakes glory having contested last year's Ontario Derby (G3), and this year's Seagram Cup (G3) and Singspiel (G3T). Trained by Michael Doyle for Stronach Stables, the Kentucky-bred is 3-3-1 from 10 starts.

Staghawk Stables' 5-year-old Nakamura has never finished lower than fifth in his 17 career starts. The four-time winner, who won three straight races in 2019, will be making his second straight start at Woodbine after finishing fourth in the Singspiel (G3T) on September 19.

Peace of Ekati, owned by Colebrook Farms and bred by Charles Fipke, has eight top-three finishes from 16 starts. Trained by Ashlee Brnjas, the 5-year-old son of Tale of Ekati has finished second in his two previous starts. The Northern Dancer will be the chestnut gelding's first graded stakes appearance.

Five-year-old Sir Sahib, trained by Kevin Attard, looks for his first win since May 18, 2019. The Stronach Stables silk bearer has a 2-4-7 mark from 20 outings, and arrives at the Northern Dancer off a runner-up performance in the Singspiel. The son of Fort Larned will be ridden by Justin Stein.

An Ontario-bred 6-year-old son of Langfuhr, Woodbridge is 3-2-7 from 27 starts. The gelding, owned by the Estate of Gustav Schickedanz and Donald Howard, was fifth last time out in the Singspiel. The bay is trained by Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee Michael Keogh.

Sam-Son has a record seven Northern Dancer trophies, including three straight scores from 2002-04. Full of Wonder kicked off the natural hat trick, followed by back-to-back wins by Strut the Stage.

Fans can watch and wager on all the action via HPIbet.com. First race post time on Sunday is set for 1:10 p.m.

$300,000 Northern Dancer Stakes (Grade 1) – Race 5
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Say the Word – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Gail Cox

2 – Peace of Ekati – Daisuke Fukumoto – Ashlee Brnjas

3 – Sir Sahib – Justin Stein – Kevin Attard

4 – Jungle Fighter – Rafael Hernandez – Michael Doyle

5 – Nakamura – Kazushi Kimura – Graham Motion

6 – Woodbridge – Sahin Civaci – Michael Keogh

7 – Admiralty Pier – Steven Bahen – Barbara Minshall

8 – Count Again – Luis Contreras – Gail Cox

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‘Very Nice Filly’ Rideforthecause Enters Sunday’s E.P. Taylor On Two-Race Win Streak

Seven fillies and mares will vie for top honors in Sunday's $600,000 E.P. Taylor Stakes (G1T), while eight starters chase top prize in the $300,000 Northern Dancer Turf Stakes (G1T) this week at Woodbine.

The 64th running of the E.P. Taylor, a 1 ¼-mile turf test for fillies & mares, 3-year-olds and upward, is complemented by a trio of stakes events, including the 67th edition of the Northern Dancer, a 1 ½-mile grass engagement for 3-year-olds and upward.

Sunday's card will also see nine starters contest the $250,000 Nearctic (G2T), while eight hopefuls face off in the $100,000 Display Stakes.

Trainer Gail Cox has a trio of talented turfers taking up the Sam-Son Farm charge, namely, Rideforthecause in the E.P. Taylor, as well as Count Again and Say the Word in the Northern Dancer.

A 4-year-old daughter of Candy Ride (ARG), Rideforthecause rolls into the E.P. Taylor off two straight scores, both of them contested at Woodbine.

After an allowance victory at 1 1/16 miles on the Toronto oval Inner Turf on Aug. 1, the bay was back in the winner's circle on Sept. 12, winning the Canadian Stakes presented by the Japan Racing Association (G2) at the distance of about 1 1/8 miles on the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.

Sent off at 22-1, the second longest shot on the board, Rideforthecause, with jockey David Moran aboard, took the lead in mid-stretch and went on to a four-length score over mutuel favorite Cambier Parc.

“I always thought she was a very nice filly,” praised Cox. “I knew that she needed a distance of ground, and she never got to do that. A mile-and-a-sixteenth on our outer turf course isn't that far. He [Moran] had never ridden her before and he said that she just did it as easy as could be. He was quite impressed.”

“I thought she was being overlooked [in the Canadian]. That's all. I train her so I have a little different outlook. I thought she was being overlooked because it was such a perfect distance for her.”

Now, the Ontario-bred will go after her fifth win in what will be the 11th start of her career.

Cox, who campaigned Sam-Son's El Tormenta to a 44-1 shocker in last year's Ricoh Woodbine Mile (G1T), is hoping to add another graded crown to her list of accomplishments on Sunday.

“She has been doing really well this year. It seems like she has become a little more settled with age. She was, as a young horse, a bit of a handful. She was nervous, but she's become way more settled. She's doing great. I wouldn't trade places with anyone. She's training well and she looks good. I'm very happy with her.”

Court Return, a 4-year-old daughter of Court Vision, goes after her second (Eternal Search Stakes) added-money title and first graded triumph. Bred and owned by Ivan Dalos, the Ontario-bred is 3-2-1 from 11 career starts.

Etoile, from the stable of Chad Brown, will look to build off a second-place effort in the Dance Smartly Stakes (G2T) on Aug. 15 at Woodbine. The 4-year-old French-bred daughter of Siyouni has three wins and a pair of seconds from nine lifetime starts for the ownership group of Peter Brant, Mrs. M.V. Magnier, and Mrs. Paul Shanahan.

Multiple graded stakes winner, 4-year-old Elizabeth Way, goes for her third graded title. Trained by Roger Attfield, the daughter of Frankel won The Very One Stakes (G3T) and Nassau Stakes (G2T) this year. Owned by John McCormack, the chestnut is 3-2-2 from 12 career starts.

Pretty Point, trained by Patrick Gallagher, goes after her first stakes crown. The 4-year-old daughter of Point of Entry launched her career with three starts at Woodbine before heading to California. She arrives at the Northern Dancer off a fifth in the Rodeo Stakes Drive (G1T) on Sept. 26.

Secret Message, a 5-year-old daughter of Hat Trick (JPN), seeks her seventh win in what will be the 19th start of the dark bay's career. Trained by Graham Motion, the well-traveled dark bay mare won the 2019 running of the Nassau (G2T).

Bred and owned by Augustin Stable, Theodora B. aims for her third straight stakes score after taking the Dance Smartly (G2T) on Aug. 15 at Woodbine, and the TVG Stakes on Sept. 15 at Kentucky Downs. The daughter of Ghostzapper has a record of 6-5-3 from 18 lifetime starts.

The E.P. Taylor Stakes is the final event in Woodbine's Ladies of the Lawn Series. At the conclusion of the series, the connections of the top three point-earners will receive $75,000 in bonuses ($50,000 for first, $15,000 for second, $10,000 for third). Elizabeth Way (18 points), Rideforthecause (10 points) and Theodora B. (10 points) are the top three point-earners to date. The inaugural winner of the 2019 Ladies of the Lawn Series was Starship Jubilee, Canada's reigning Horse of the Year.

Flying Trapeze won the inaugural running of the E.P. Taylor Stakes (known as the Nettie Handicap until 1981) in 1956. Trainers Lou Cavalaris Jr., Frank Merrill Jr., and Maurice Zilber have won three editions of the race. Kitty Girl (1957, 1958) is the only two-time winner.

$600,000 E.P. Taylor Stakes (Grade 1) – Race 7
Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Rideforthecause – David Moran – Gail Cox

2 – Pretty Point – Luis Contreras – Patrick Gallagher

3 – Etoile – Rafael Hernandez – Chad Brown

4 – Theodora B. – Justin Stein – Michael Dickinson

5 – Court Return – Daisuke Fukumoto – Josie Carroll

6 – Secret Message – Kazushi Kimura – Graham Motion

7 – Elizabeth Way – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Roger Attfield

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Friday’s Stronach 5 Features Four Tracks, Four Tough Maiden Races With $100,000 Guarantee

The Stronach 5 will feature races Friday from Santa Anita Park, Golden Gate Fields, Laurel Park and Gulfstream Park West along with an industry-low 12-percent takeout and a $100,000 guaranteed pool.

Four of the five races in the popular Stronach 5 will be maiden events. Races from Santa Anita and Golden Gate will feature 2-year-old maidens while races from Gulfstream West and Laurel will feature maiden 3-year-olds and up. The only race in the sequence not for maidens will be the second leg, Laurel's seventh race, an optional claimer at six furlongs on the main track.

Friday's races and sequence

· Leg One – Gulfstream West 8th Race: (12 entries, 7 ½ furlongs turf) 3:58 ET, 12:58 PT

· Leg Two –Laurel Park 7th Race: (8 entries, 6 furlongs) 4:04 ET, 1:04 PT

· Leg Three –Laurel Park 8th Race (9 entries, 1 mile) 4:49 ET, 1:49 PT

· Leg Four –Santa Anita 3th Race: (10 entries, 5 ½ furlongs turf) 5:08 ET, 2:08 PT

· Leg Five –Golden Gate Fields 3rd Race: (8 entries, 1-mile) 5:25 ET, 2:25 PT

Fans can watch and wager on the action at 1/ST.COM/BET as well as stream all the action in English and Spanish at LaurelPark.com, SantaAnita.com, GulfstreamPark.com, and GoldenGateFields.com.

The Stronach 5 In the Money podcast, hosted by Jonathan Kinchen and Peter Thomas Fornatale, will be posted by 2 p.m. Thursday at InTheMoneyPodcast.com and will be available on iTunes and other major podcast distributors

The minimum wager on the multi-race, multi-track Stronach 5 is $1. If there are no tickets with five winners, the entire pool will be carried over to the next Friday.

If a change in racing surface is made after the wagering closes, each selection on any ticket will be considered a winning selection. If a betting interest is scratched, that selection will be substituted with the favorite in the win pool when wagering closes.

The Maryland Jockey Club serves as host of the Stronach 5.

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