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The TDN Derby Top 12 for August 4

There are now three remaining “Road to the GI Kentucky Derby” qualifying points races on the schedule, and six horses within this week’s TDN Derby Top 12 are slated to compete in two of those races this weekend.

1) TIZ THE LAW (c, Constitution—Tizfiz, by Tiznow)
O-Sackatoga Stable. B-Twin Creeks Farm (NY). T-Barclay
Tagg. Sales History: $110,000 yrl ’18 FTNAUG. Lifetime
Record: MGISW, 6-5-0-1, $1,480,300.
Last Start: 1st GI Belmont S., BEL, June 20
Accomplishments Include: 1st GI Curlin Florida Derby, GP, Mar.
28; 1st GI Champagne S.; 1st GIII Holy Bull S. GP, Feb. 1; 3rd GII
Kentucky Jockey Club S., CD, Nov. 30
Next Start: GI Runhappy Travers S., SAR, Aug. 8.
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 272

Tiz the Law is decisively parked at the crop of the crop, with Nos. 2, 3, and 4 on this list more or less on even footing and everyone from No. 5 on back scrambling for a firm spot in the pecking order. Will 10 furlongs at Saratoga be the stumbling block for this $110,000 Fasig-Tipton New York-Bred Sale graduate (cue the “graveyard of favorites” cliches)? Or will Saturday’s GI Runhappy Travers S. serve as yet another launch point for Tiz to widen the gap between him and his peers? Right now there are no soft spots evident on Tiz’s resume. He breaks adeptly from the gate and dictates the tempo even when he’s just stalking, and when this colt fully uncorks deeper into his races, it is with enough gusto to win by open lengths and with no one even close to him in the final furlong. Early in his career, Tiz had a knack for finding trouble and (mostly) overcoming it. As he’s matured, he and regular rider Manny Franco have instead learned to channel that keenness into a confident assertiveness that forces others to conform to Tiz’s menacing presence. Tiz the Law will be solidly favored on Saturday, but he’s no mortal lock. Yet if he does win, it will set up the highly unusual circumstance of the Derby fave already having won at 1 1/4 miles. Then, of course, with that all-important distance question answered, the focus will shift to how Tiz’s only loss to date was at Churchill Downs, the site of the Derby.

2) ART COLLECTOR (c, Bernardini—Distorted Legacy, by Distorted Humor)
O/B-Bruce Lunsford (KY). T-Thomas Drury Jr. Lifetime Record:
GSW, 8-4-1-0, $548,475.
Last Start: 1st GII Toyota Blue Grass S., KEE, July 11
Next Start: Runhappy Ellis Park Derby, ELP, Aug. 9
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 100

Art Collector goes in Sunday’s Ellis Park Derby as the horse to beat. But he’s not on the hunt for qualifying points (currently fifth with 100), so he needn’t be fully cranked when the true target is really four weeks later in Louisville. His 103 Beyer Speed Figure, 3 1/2-length breakout win in the GII Blue Grass S. was admirable for the sustained pressure Art Collector applied over nine furlongs before out-torqueing a very game Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil) in the stretch. Yet until we see more stakes-quality horses run back from Keeneland’s July mini-meet, it will be hard to quantify how many performances over those five days were affected by a perceived bias that at times seemed to favor pace-pressers. Even if Art Collector did win under ideal circumstances, the overall body of work for this athletic-framed Bruce Lunsford homebred does not stamp him as a one-race wonder. He’s crossed the finish wire first sprinting on the turf, in in the slop, and on a dry track, and then scored by open lengths in both his route attempts. If you’re a firm believer in the “what have you done for me lately?” angle, it’s also worth noting that Art Collector and Tiz the Law are the only Top 12 contenders with perfect three-for-three records in 2020.

3) HONOR A.P. (r, Honor Code—Hollywood Story, by Wild Rush)
O-C R K Stable LLC. B-George Krikorian (KY). T-John
Shirreffs. Sales History: $850,000 yrl ’18 FTSAUG. Lifetime
Record: GISW, 5-2-3-0, $382,200.
Last Start: 2nd Shared Belief S., DMR, Aug. 1
Accomplishments include: 1st GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby, June 6; 2nd GII San Felipe S., SA, Mar. 7.
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, CD, Sept. 5
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 140.

Honor A.P. ran second and earned a 102 Beyer Speed Figure for his effort in the Shared Belief S. at Del Mar. But he never looked comfortable at 1-5 odds, and even before the race went off it had an aura of being one of those preps where the circumstances weren’t going to be ideal for this $850,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga acquisition. Honor A.P. has demonstrated he wants more ground, not less, and he was cutting back half a furlong to 1 1/16 miles from his nine-furlong GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby score. The dynamics of the four-horse Shared Belief meant he would have be closer to the pace than he preferred, but Honor A.P. had little choice but to work from the back of the pack after getting solidly bumped at the start by one Bob Baffert trainee while another darted to an uncontested lead. Jockey Mike Smith opted for the three path on both turns with Honor A.P. while race winner Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile) rode the rail all the way around. Honor A.P.’s so-so late surge to get second was visually amplified by Cezanne (Curlin) backpedaling out of contention. “I haven’t been able to get on him in the mornings [because of pandemic protocols] and I think that’s made a difference,” Smith said. “He’s just been going along there not doing much in the mornings. I need to be on him and get more out of him…. This distance is too short for him, too.” Except a tighter and mightier Honor A.P. in Louisville.

4) KING GUILLERMO (c, Uncle Mo—Slow Sand, by Dixieland Band)
O-Victoria’s Ranch. B-Carhue Investments, Grouseridge Ltd. &
Marengo Investments (KY). T-Juan Avila. Sales History: $90,000
RNA yrl ’18 KEESEP; $150,000 2yo ’19 OBSAPR. Lifetime Record:
GSW & GISP, 5-2-1-1, $340,350.
Last Start: 2nd GI Arkansas Derby, OP, May 2
Accomplishments Include: 3rd Pulpit S., GP, Nov. 30; 1st
GII Lambholm South Tampa Bay Derby
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, CD, Sept. 5
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 90.

King Guillermo shipped from his Florida base to Churchill Downs last week, settling into the next phase of his purposely planned (yet still unconventional) quest to win the Derby off a 127-day gap between starts. Regret won the 1915 Derby off a 259-day break, and Sir Barton won the 1919 Derby off a 238-day rest. Since 1929 (when more complete records began being kept), the longest winning layoff has been 42 days, equaled by Needles in 1956 and Animal Kingdom in 2011. This bay colt won the GII Tampa Bay Derby off a 97-day respite back in March, registering a 49-1 shocker that was both visually impressive and the third-fastest clocking of that stakes in 40 runnings (99 Beyer). Trainer Juan Carlos Avila then shipped him to Oaklawn, where King Guillermo ran a gutsy second in the faster division of the split GI Arkansas Derby, responding to a very aggressive ride from the far turn home. If heavy favorites in the remaining prep races start to wilt in the August heat, Avila’s “less is more” Derby training plan could end up looking pretty shrewd come the first Saturday in September and not as strange as when he first publicly announced it in May.

5) COUNTRY GRAMMER (c, Tonalist—Arabian Song, by Forestry)
O-Paul P Pompa Jr. B-Scott & Debbie Pierce (KY). T-Chad Brown. Lifetime Record: GSW, 5-2-0-1, $117,320.
Sales History: $60,000 Ylg ’18 KEESEP; $450,000 2yo ’19 OBSAPR. Last Start: 1st, GIII Peter Pan S., SAR, July 16
Next Start: GI Runhappy Travers S., SAR, Aug. 8.
Equineline PPs. Derby Points: 50

Country Grammer has the most realistic chance of upsetting Tiz the Law in Saturday’s Travers. This colt’s stalking/grinding win in the GIII Peter Pan S. on opening day at Saratoga (95 Beyer) caught the eye because of the deft, corner-cutting move turning for home executed by jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. And when a fresh threat emerged in deep stretch, Country Grammer was emboldened by the challenge, digging in and ripping back the lead before edging away to a neck victory under confident handling. Trainer Chad Brown said post-race that his colt seems suited to longer distances, and he also noted that Country Grammer just didn’t seem to care for the Belmont Park surface, over which he trained only okay and finished third in a contentious June 4 allowance. This is a fresh face within the Top 12 who is two-for-two over nine furlongs by a sire who won the 1 1/2-mile GI Belmont S. Now he’s stretching out again over a racing strip he seems to relish for a trainer who generally doesn’t wheel horses back this quickly–look out.

6) THOUSAND WORDS (c, Pioneerof the Nile–Pomeroys Pistol, by Pomeroy)
O-Albaugh Family Stables & Spendthrift Farm. B-Hardacre Farm (Fl). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $1,000,000 yrl ’18 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: MGSW, 7-4-1-0, $327,000.
Last Start: 1st Shared Belief S., DMR, Aug. 1
Accomplishments Include: 1st GIII Robert B. Lewis S., SA, Feb. 1; 1st GII Los Alamitos Futurity
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, CD, Sept. 5
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 83.

Which is the real Thousand Words? The million-dollar Keeneland September purchase who reigned as the No. 1 kingpin on this list for most of the winter and wired the Shared Belief S. with a 104 Beyer on Saturday? Or the well-backed Pioneerof the Nile bay who lost two important preps in March and April by a combined 41 lengths? In the Shared Belief, Thousand Words broke professionally and assumed command at the head of the four-horse field, dictating a moderate tempo while not seriously pressured until the top of the lane. Stablemate Cezanne briefly seized the lead, but Thousand Words clawed it back in workmanlike fashion, responding to repeated urging while the top two threats, Cezanne and Honor A.P., both seemed sapped in deep stretch. The victory wasn’t exactly a display of dominance, but Thousand Words didn’t need to tower over his foes to be considered a legitimate threat for the Derby. He’ll be heading to Churchill on the upswing with a bit of last-race momentum on his side.

7) UNCLE CHUCK (c, Uncle Mo—Forest Music, by Unbridled’s Song)
O-Karl Watson, Michael E. Pegram & Paul Weitman. B-Stonestreet Thoroughbred Holdings LLC (KY). T-Bob Baffert.
Sales History: $250,000 yrl ’18 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW, 2-2-0-0, $120,000.
Last Start: 1st GIII Los Alamitos Derby, LRC, July 4
Next Start: GI Runhappy Travers S., SAR, Aug. 8
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 20.

Uncle Chuck, undefeated in a pair of West Coast two-turn efforts, will get an immersion in the deeper end of the Derby prep pool when he travels cross-country for Saturday’s 10-furlong Runhappy Travers S. at Saratoga. This colt’s form got a boost this past weekend when stablemate Thousand Words, who had finished second to Uncle Chuck in the July 4 GIII Los Alamitos Derby, came back to wire the Shared Belief S. at Del Mar at 9-1 odds. This Bob Baffert trainee has fired three straight training bullets at Del Mar, but don’t overlook the in-race stamina seasoning Uncle Chuck got when he raced over the Los Al strip. At 1,380 feet, it’s the longest in North America.

8) SHARED SENSE (c, Street Sense—Collective, by Bernardini)
O/B-Godolphin LLC (KY). T-Brad Cox. Lifetime Record: GSW, 8-3-2-0, $322,112.
Last Start: 1st GIII Indiana Derby, IND, July 8
Next Start: Possible for Runhappy Ellis Park Derby, ELP, Aug. 9
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 20.

Shared Sense broke through the Kentucky Derby relevance barrier with a track-record win in the nine-furlong GIII Indiana Derby July 8, but the race in his past performance block that might end up being the truer benchmark for where he belongs in the Kentucky Derby picture is his second-place effort two starts back behind Art Collector. Shared Sense was 6 1/2 lengths behind that fast-rising foe back on June 13 in an allowance/optional claimer. Has he improved enough in the last two months to be on even terms with the No. 2-ranked contender? This Street Sense homebred for Godolphin could get a shot at a rematch if he’s entered in Sunday’s Runhappy Ellis Park Derby. Shared Sense breezed a half mile in :50.40 (54/75) on Sunday at Churchill Downs.

9) AUTHENTIC (c, Into Mischief–Flawless, by Mr. Greeley)
O-SF Racing LLC, Starlight Racing, Madaket Stables LLC, Fred
Hertrich III, John D. Fielding & Golconda Stables. B-Peter E. Blum
Thoroughbreds LLC (KY). T-Bob Baffert. Sales History: $350,000
yrl ’18 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GISW, 5-4-1-0,
$1,011,200.
Last Start: 1st GI TVG.com Haskell Invitational S., MTH, July 18
Accomplishments include: 2nd GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby, SA, June 5; 1st GII San Felipe S., SA, Mar. 7; 1st
GIII Sham S., SA, Jan. 4.
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, CD, Sept. 5
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 200.

It’s not often that a Derby contender wins a million-dollar race yet gets downgraded within the Top 12 pecking order. But that’s the case with Authentic’s GI Haskell S. victory. Even though he got the job done and earned a 100 Beyer, he left the overall impression of needing to step up his game if he’s to withstand intensified pace pressure in a 20-horse field going 10 furlongs. Authentic was 3-5 against a field of six and secured an easy lead through tepid fractions. He was home free by three lengths at the eighth pole, but caved in the final furlong before being reawakened by a desperate flurry of right-handed stick work from jockey Mike Smith to salvage a nose victory. In the aftermath of the Haskell, both Smith and trainer Bob Baffert referenced focus issues that included Authentic gawking around, shying from shadows, and “playing” when he should have been working. Authentic has considerable pace-pressing talent, but also a history of tardy breaks and losing concentration in the stretch. Smith said he intentionally rode Authentic assertively for about a pole past the finish as a schooling measure that might pay off next time. Baffert suggested blinkers could be next.

10) ENFORCEABLE (c, Tapit—Justwhistledixie, by Dixie Union)
O-John Oxley. B-Clearsky Farm (KY). T-Mark Casse. Sales History:
$775,000 RNA yrl ’18 KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW & GISP,
10-2-2-2, $367,150.
Last Start: 4th GII Toyota Blue Grass S., KEE, July 11
Accomplishments Include: 1st GIII Lecomte S., FG, Jan. 18; 3rd GI
Claiborne Breeders’ Futurity, KEE, Oct. 5, 2nd GII Risen Star S.
Div. 1, FG, Feb. 15.
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, CD, Sept. 5
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 43.

If the Derby were run today, Enforceable would be about 30-1. But he would still be tough to exclude from exotics because both his stamina-centric pedigree and running style suggest that when pace and trip circumstances align, the tools are there for this colt to run right by everybody in the stretch over 10 furlongs. Even though the race record of this expensive KEESEP buyback isn’t stellar (2-for-10 with only a MSW and the GIII Lecomte S. to his credit), do you really want to toss out a Mark Casse-conditioned horse who will have had six weeks of training over the Churchill surface by race day? Especially if the race ends up being front-loaded with sacrificial speed? Enforceable seemed to be fighting a significant first-flight bias at Keeneland while adrift on both turns when fourth in the Blue Grass S. behind duelers who finished 8 1/2 lengths clear of the pack. He breezed five-eighths on Saturday in 1:02.60 (14/19), starting two lengths behind a fellow Tapit-sired maiden workmate, then finishing about a half-length to the good at the wire before continuing in front through a six-furlong gallop out of 1:15.80.

11) SOLE VOLANTE (g, Karakontie {Jpn}—Light Blow, by Kingmambo)
O-Reeves Thoroughbred Racing, Andie Biancone & Limelight
Stables Corp. B-Flaxman Holdings Limited (KY). T-Patrick
Biancone. Sales History: $6,000 yrl ’18 KEESEP; $20,000 2yo ’19
OBSAPR. Lifetime Record: GSW, 7-4-1-1, $323,310.
Last Start: 6th GI Belmont S., BEL, June 20
Accomplishments Include: 1st GIII Sam F. Davis S., TAM, Feb. 8,
1st Pulpit S., GP, Nov. 30, 2nd GII Lambholm South Tampa Bay
Derby, TAM, Mar. 7.
Next Start: GI Kentucky Derby, CD, Sept. 5
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 30.

Sole Volante will be up against the grain of conventionality as he points to the Derby as the lone remaining Top 12 contender still based in Florida: he’s a gelding who generally trains over the turf at Palm Meadows, he’s cutting it close for eligibility points (currently 19th on the cutoff list with 30), and he’ll be sporting a 78-day layoff line by the time the first Saturday in September rolls around. Yet the son of Karakontie had a solid-enough early-career foundation of turf and dirt races (all at 7 1/2 furlongs or longer)–replete with Beyers in the 90s range (four times)–to think that he should be able to bounce back off a summer freshening better than some of his peers. Sole Volante is a light-framed stayer who probably won’t require a ton of work to get race ready over the next 4 1/2 weeks. Even though his Breeders’ Cup Mile-winning sire’s sweet spot was eight furlongs, his dam’s only win in England was in a 14-furlong race, so the 10-furlong Derby is theoretically within his scope.

12) MAX PLAYER (c, Honor Code—Fools in Love, by Not For Love)
O-George E. Hall & SportBLX Thoroughbreds Corp. B-K&G
Stables (KY). T-Linda Rice. Sales History: $150,000 RNA yrl ’18
KEESEP. Lifetime Record: GSW & GISP, 4-2-1-1, $273,500.
Last Start: 3rd GI Belmont S., BEL, June 20
Accomplishments Include: 1st GIII Withers S., AQU, Feb. 1
Next Start: GI Runhappy Travers S., SAR, Aug. 8.
Equineline PPs. KY Derby Points: 40

This first-crop Honor Code colt ($150,000 KEESEP RNA) currently rates as a “work in progress” type of sophomore, and Saturday’s Runhappy Travers S. should provide a clearer read on where he stands and where he’s headed, progression-wise. He has yet to run a poor race (2-1-1 from four starts). But one of those wins was a Parx maiden against only five rivals and the other was in the Feb. 1 GIII Withers when he pressed a tiring favored pacemaker into submission through moderate fractions. Max ran third in the Belmont S. behind Tiz the Law, and that effort was credible considering this inexperienced colt was coming off a 4 1/2-month layoff. But now that five horses have run back out of the Belmont, that race doesn’t look as strong on paper as did six weeks ago: Four Belmont starters have come back and lost next-out graded stakes, while one returned to win an allowance at Colonial Downs.

The post The TDN Derby Top 12 for August 4 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Behind The Lens: Kurtis Coady

This is the fourth installment in a series highlighting racetrack photographers.

Around 1960, a funeral director decided he’d had enough of the cold Chicago winters, so he uprooted his family to Phoenix to ply his trade in a warmer clime. Upon arrival, Jack Coady, Sr. learned his Illinois mortician’s certification didn’t match Arizona’s requirements, so he set out to look for another line of work. He liked photography and caught on with the Arizona Republic newspaper. On one of his very first assignments, he was sent to shoot the races at Turf Paradise.

Jack Sr. enjoyed the racing so much that he accepted a position as the Turf Paradise track photographer in 1962. As the years went on, sons Jack Jr. and Jeff helped to expand the family business, taking winner’s circle pictures, operating the race timing, and later providing video services for numerous small tracks across the Southwest.

By the 1990s, a third generation of Coady photographers started getting involved. Jeff was based primarily in Texas, and his sons, Shawn (now 44), and twins Kurtis and Kevin (now both 40) took turns behind the lens while also learning the bookkeeping and how to move the whole operation from meet to meet.

In high school Kurtis wanted to be an architect. But then he took an advertising design class that was progressive in 1996 because of its use of computerized technology to edit and lay out photos. This sparked an interest in computer programming, and even before Kurtis started pursuing an information systems degree at the University of Texas, he began laying out for his father a vision of how digital photography and transmitting images over the internet was about to revolutionize the industry.

The Coadys bet big on that transition to digital, and the gamble paid off in the form of landing more track contracts. The family decided to get out of the timing and video end of the business to concentrate on what it did best: shooting and supplying racetrack photography for 32 venues across the country, including all the Kentucky tracks and as the official photographer of the GI Kentucky Derby.

Kurtis now splits the shooting with Shawn, and together they oversee a staff of 50 Coady photographers who rotate from track to track. Kevin handles the accounting while Jack Jr. remains involved as an ownership partner. Jack Sr. (2008) and Jeff (2013) have both passed away. But speaking from his home and horse farm in Fisherville, Kentucky, Kurtis detailed how the third-generation family business still resonates with their founding spirit. An edited and condensed transcript follows.

TDN: Describe the “Ah-ha!” moment when, as a kid in high school, you convinced your dad to alter the fundamental way the family had run its family business for close to four decades.

KC: At the time, we were all film. And that jump into digital, at that time, was very expensive. The very first professional body camera was the Nikon D1, and it was stupid expensive. Especially if you consider that we owned all the film equipment and had no overhead. But my father said, “We need to do this big. We need to go big.” So we went full-steam ahead; a huge investment for my father. But we went from a handful of contracts to the point where we now serve 32 tracks. My father, he’s second generation. I’m third generation. That was very inspirational, because all we did day and night was work together to make that transition.

Compared to other photographers, we’re very data-oriented. So much so that everything we do is on one server out of Phoenix that we built ourselves. It’s 120 terabytes. And every Coady computer across the country is synched to it. So if I’m at Keeneland and an owner walks into the office who just had a horse win at Indiana Grand, no problem. I can print those photos in two minutes. I programmed our first six generations of websites along with my father and Shawn. On our current website, we have 250,000 races available for sale. And some of those races have 30 photos posted.

TDN: Coady Photography’s first all-digital meet was Delta Downs in 2001. But it still took a few years for larger tracks to embrace that format. Where and when was the big breakthrough?

KC: Our biggest, biggest break was getting the Oaklawn Park contract in 2003. At the time, I always thought we we’re a mom-and-pop business. And, at the time, I didn’t want to be a photographer. I wanted to be an architect and go off and do my own thing.

Then we went to Oaklawn and we had Azeri, Smarty Jones, Curlin. All these big horses just kept hitting, year after year. And as the racing got better for us and the bigger tracks started noticing us, I kind of just realized that this was my calling and what I was born to do. It was so amazing for us. You just felt so alive. And that’s pretty much the same for my brothers. Shawn has worked for the family company since he was 16 years old. And Kevin’s actually a commercial pilot. He quit flying cargo planes and working as a flight instructor to come work for the company.

TDN: To what extent, if any, do emotions creep in now that you’re routinely shooting elite-level horses at history-making events?

KC: My first Derby [that Coady Photography had under contract] was Nyquist in 2016. I wasn’t nervous, and neither were my brothers or my staff. We were just meant to be there. We were ready. And it didn’t hit me–at all–until the crowd started singing “My Old Kentucky Home.” Then I had to turn away. I was a wreck. I just started bawling. Because my dad missed it. When my father died, it was before the Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland. He had shot the Breeders’ Cup before, but never as the official photographer of the host track. And that was hard, knowing he had missed both his first official Derby and his first official Breeders’ Cup. Those were his gigs as much as mine.

TDN: What are some shots you’ve taken that stand out?

KC: The most important photo I ever took in my life was Justify [at the 2018 Derby] with the rain coming down; the toughest lighting. And everybody on my staff nailed it. You would have thought it was full daylight outside. It was beautiful. My shot, the shutter was perfect. I stopped the rain. The background with the military personnel standing at attention. Everything in my picture was perfect.

I also had a shot of American Pharoah in the [2015 GII] Rebel S. at Oaklawn. It had rained really bad. A small puddle settled on the track after they floated it. And he hit that puddle and broke his shoe. So in my shot going to the finish, his shoe’s halfway off. You can see it perfectly. And the way he stumbled just a little bit, yet prevailed with that monstrous energy, I remember thinking, “This horse is going to be the only Triple Crown winner I’ll see in my lifetime.” And that was at the Rebel S. in March. Then Justify came around the corner three years later to win his Triple Crown, and that too was life-changing.

TDN: Lately there hasn’t been much energy at tracks because fans either aren’t permitted or attendance is scaled back because of COVID-19 restrictions. What was it like this spring shooting big races in front of empty grandstands?

KC: For a while, we just had Oaklawn and Will Rogers going. Normally, we would have had about 16 tracks running at that time. I was shooting at Oaklawn, and it was tough. It was weird. And all I could think of every day was, “I wish so many people were here.” So many great fans, people I’m friends with, horse owners who couldn’t get in because of the lockdown. I was just thinking how fortunate I was to be one of the ones actually allowed on the grounds.

TDN: Your work takes you to far-flung tracks that most people only see on the simulcast feed. Can you list a few that stick with you because of either the background or the ambience?

KC: It’s so hard to nail them all. Shooting at Hialeah, very briefly in 2001–the flamingoes and the absolute beauty of all of it. And then you go out west and see a place like Sunland Park. It looks like it’s in the middle of the desert. You watch it on video, but it doesn’t do it justice with the mountains in the background.

Turf Paradise–the amount of work they put in that infield and the condition of that turf course. And everything there is that 1960s architecture. It’s like going back in time.

Then you have the small tracks like Delta Downs. It’s just a little bullring. But the feel is amazing–it just feels “Louisiana.” The same with Evangeline Downs.

It’s neat because we get to see every bit of this country going to all these tracks. And every track has an appeal. There are so many things that people don’t get a chance to appreciate.

TDN: What advice do you have for photographers who aspire to shoot horse races for a living?

KC: I think the best advice I could give is come shoot with us. Drop me a note saying, “I just want to shoot for the weekend to learn how to get into this.” We’ll teach you the ins and outs. We love it. We’re happy to help. We want to be there for the community of horse racing photographers. And the same thing goes for amateur photographers. If you can actually show to me that you’re dedicated and I feel it, I’ll put you on the track right next to me and we can shoot together.

TDN: What about words of wisdom for fans who just want to get decent shots on their phone cameras from either the stands or near the rail?

KC: Of all the cell phone shots I’ve ever seen, the shots that really hit home are the shots where the crowd stands out. Get that finish with the crowd in front of you. Show that excitement. Show those hands in the air, the screaming, the cheering. Everybody gets the shot of the horse. But get the shot of the reason we’re running that horse–the crowd. Those are the best shots.

The post Behind The Lens: Kurtis Coady appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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A Spotlight on Stress in the Era of COVID: Price Bell

Working in racing has always been a stressful occupation; a roller-coaster of emotions, triumphs and tragedies, long hours and travel. Add a global pandemic and unprecedented economic worry, with many participants fearing for their health, livelihoods and businesses, and the stress can become almost overwhelming. It’s the sort of topic many people don’t like to talk about, but we asked several industry participants to open about what particular stresses they were feeling during these very concerning times, and how they were dealing with them.

PRICE BELL, Mill Ridge Farm

We are very lucky. My godfather spent 20 days in the ICU due to COVID-19 and twice was presented DNR papers to sign, giving him 30 minutes to improve his oxygen saturation levels prior to intubating him.

He is home- still recovering, but home. He was diagnosed on March 16^th. We spoke on March 18^th and at that time, “it was not as bad as the flu, just more aggravating.” On March 20th he was admitted to the hospital, March 22nd the ICU and discharged home on April 12th. He is still recovering, but can now walk for 30 minutes. He played fullback for Coach Parcells at Vanderbilt, and on March 15th he was in the best shape of his life. We are lucky.

It is really hard. Like many, Beth and I both work full-time. Trying to excel in our professions, parent/teach/keep it on the rails with our two children (five and three) and have a relationship is impossible. The peace of two sleeping children is often our greatest victory.

Perspective, patience and community have been key to “handling” the stress of the pandemic.

Perspective that our health, the health of our team, the health of their families and the health of our families and loved ones is paramount.

Patience that we are all going through this together. We have to be patient with each other because it’s impossible to know if someone is up or down on the “coronacoaster.” I can’t say that I always have perspective and patience, but it’s something I am consciously working towards.

Our community has provided us with plenty of silver linings. We have felt great joy in sharing Mill Ridge on virtual tours, we have had many family picnics that never would have occurred because we would have been “too busy” in the past and we have forged relationships with plenty of neighbors with whom we would have normally only shared a passing hello. And, the love I felt at the outpouring of support when I tested positive for COVID-19 recently and had to isolate away from my family for 11 days. I was lucky and asymptomatic.

We will get through this and be stronger together.

Would you be willing to share your thoughts on stress during this particularly difficult time? Email the TDN’s Katie Ritz at katieritz@thetdn.com or Sue Finley at suefinley@thetdn.com.

The post A Spotlight on Stress in the Era of COVID: Price Bell appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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Week in Review: Faves Fail to Show on Saturday, but Excuses Abound

This past Saturday wasn’t a great day to be a favorite in an open stakes race at the nation’s premier race meets. Chalk horses went a collective one-for-seven at Saratoga and Del Mar, and the list of excuses included stutter-step starts, bumps leaving the gate, stretch-run roughhousing, getting disqualified, and being dueled into defeat in internal pace battles.

Tight finishes in several stakes elevated the interest level, although the results in general did not lend clarity to the nationwide divisional races with the GI Kentucky Derby inside the five-week mark and the Breeders’ Cup Championships now three months out.

At the Spa, faves went zero-for-five, with the GI Personal Ensign S. setting the tone early in the day. The 9-1 Vexatious (Giant’s Causeway), who hadn’t won since scoring in a 1 3/8 miles turf stakes at Del Mar two summers ago, ran the race of her life at age six while attending the pace over nine furlongs on dirt. She got first run on a tiring speedster, then braced for the onslaught of heavy favorite Midnight Bisou (Midnight Lute). Last year’s distaff champ looked like she’d inhale the determined bay, but Vexatious dug in for a spirited fight, shifting outward and exchanging bumps in deep stretch before prevailing by a neck and surviving a foul claim and inquiry.

The win was a first Grade I triumph for both Vexatious and trainer Jack Sisterson, who also picked up his first career win at Saratoga in the Personal Ensign. Vexatious earned an automatic entry to the GI Breeders’ Cup Distaff Nov. 7 at Keeneland, where Sisterson is primarily based.

In the nine-furlong GI Whitney S., the 3-1 Improbable (City Zip), who has a history of getting hot and bothered in the starting gate, held up the start. The Bob Baffert trainee eventually settled down, but the delay might have contributed to the unraveling of even-money favorite Tom’s d’Etat (Smart Strike), who missed the break and came out four lengths behind the field. This altered the pace complexion of the Whitney, leaving 29-1 long shot Mr. Buff (Friend or Foe) sailing solo on the lead through soft splits with Improbable tracking in second and Tom’s d’Etat relegated to the back of the pack.

Improbable, on his way to a 106 Beyer Speed Figure, swatted away Mr. Buff at will on the far turn, opening up by two lengths in the stretch under steady urging. By My Standards (Goldencents) picked up the pieces in second. Tom’s d’Etat checked in third, ending his four-race winning streak, but with an asterisk attached because of his trip woes.

The 7-1 upset by Echo Town (Speightstown) in the seven-furlong GI H. Allen Jerkens S. Presented by Runhappy didn’t at all seem fluky despite another favorite–the 2-1 No Parole (Violence)–faltering. The Jerkens was a deep 11-horse affair, and Echo Town broke with alacrity and was initially within three lengths of a hotly contested lead. But he settled nicely at the tail of the main flight on the inside, then edged outward for clear passage, commencing a rally a half-mile out that quickly picked off most of the pack.

The leaders lined up four across the track at the sixteenth pole, but Echo Town’s widest bid included a deep-stretch resurgence that none of his peers could match, and the Steve Asmussen trainee ended up drilling a pretty good bunch of 3-year-old sprinters by 3 1/2 lengths.

Shifting, drifting, bumping, and grinding through the final furlong of the GII Bowling Green S. at 11 furlongs on the turf affected five of the six starters, and the stewards placed the blame on Sadler’s Joy (Kitten’s Joy), who was DQ’d from his neck win and placed fourth. New York-bred Cross Border (English Channel) was elevated to victory after crossing the wire second. The result could portend a nice August start at the Spa for New York-breds, as fellow state-bred Tiz the Law (Constitution) figures to start heavily favored in this Saturday’s GI Runhappy Travers S.

In the nightcap, 4-1 Cariba (Cairo Prince), completed the stakes blanking of Spa faves with a half-length tally in the Caress S. over 5 1/2 furlongs on the lawn.

Meanwhile, on the Left Coast…

Honor A. P. (Honor Code) looked flat and unmotivated when checking in second at 1-5 odds in the Shared Belief S. at Del Mar. But even before he encountered trip trouble on the track, the pre-race vibe signaled that this could be a “trap” race for the top West Coast candidate for the Kentucky Derby.

Honor A. P., who previously performed like a more-distance-the-better type of 3-year-old, was cutting back half a furlong to 1 1/16 miles from his GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby score on June 6, and the dynamics of the four-horse Shared Belief meant that the ridgling would have be closer to the pace than was ideal for his running style. It didn’t help that Cezanne (Curlin) swerved directly into him at the gate break, and jockey Mike Smith (as he often does aboard odds-on favorites in route races) guided Honor A. P. to the back and outside of trouble, even though this meant giving up three paths of real estate into the clubhouse bend.

Thousand Words (Pioneerof the Nile), meanwhile, broke fluidly and settled in at the fence to be the 9-1 pacemaker. Entering the backstretch, Honor A. P. advanced under his own power to shadow the speed a half-length back, but Cezanne again became a pesky presence about a half mile out when he pushed up from between rivals to claim second, causing Honor A. P. to lose a position while edging outward again for another three-deep journey through the far turn.

Cezanne narrowly led off the bend, but Thousand Words punched back under urging at the rail while Honor A. P. couldn’t gain any traction on the outside. Honor A. P. re-engaged late to finish second, three-quarters of a length behind Thousand Words. But his resurgence had more to do with Cezanne backpedaling out of the picture than it did with Honor A. P. finding that unmatchable late gear he displayed in his Santa Anita Derby win.

In the aftermath of the Shared Belief, Thousand Words (104 Beyer) has regained some of his early-season luster after the Bob Baffert trainee fell off the Derby radar for a stretch between March and June. But Honor A. P. is likely to emerge as the more dangerous threat heading to Louisville, because trainer John Shirreffs didn’t have him fully cranked for his final Derby prep, and nothing about his taxing trip worked in his favor.

Later on the card, the 19-10 Collusion Illusion (Twirling Candy) emerged as the lone unscathed favorite on Saturday’s slate of national stakes, rallying from out of the clouds (or out of the Del Mar fog, to be more precise) to nail a GI Bing Crosby S. photo-finish win by a nose after patiently watching a six-way scramble for the lead disintegrate. The Mark Glatt trainee was the lone 3-year-old in the six-furlong field of nine.

Turfway Park Update

During the same earnings conference call last Thursday in which Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI) chief executive officer Bill Carstanjen detailed long-term plans for the gaming corporation’s desire to rid itself of Arlington International Racecourse, Carstanjen also provided an update to the redevelopment of Turfway Park and its “extension” betting facility a dozen miles to the northeast in Newport, Kentucky, that will be generating purse money for the track’s Dec. 2-31 holiday meet.

“We finished demolishing the existing grandstand at Turfway Park in the second quarter, and the racetrack itself with a new state-of-the-art artificial racing surface called Tapeta will be completed by the end of August,” Carstanjen said. “During the second quarter, we completed the architectural design and site development plans. We will begin construction of the new horse racing machine (HRM) and grandstand facility as soon as we obtain the required permits and complete the necessary site improvements. The updated design reflects a floor plan of approximately 155,000 square feet and includes a simulcast facility, a racing grandstand and event space for groups and banquets, racehorse owner and VIP player accommodations; 44,500 square feet of gaming floor that can accommodate up to 1,200 HRMs, and three food and beverage venues, including a sports bar designed to accommodate sports wagering in the event it is approved in Kentucky.

“Based on the finalization of the design for the facility, total project capital for Turfway Park is projected to be approximately $200 million, which includes the Turfway Park acquisition costs and other previously approved capital. This capital investment will be completed over the next 15 to 18 months. The increase of approximately $45 million over previously provided estimates is primarily driven by increased site work requirements and a larger racing and gaming facility. Our team completed an additional analysis of the Northern Kentucky market and believes that the market demographics and competitive landscape can clearly support this level of investment and will generate a strong return on capital for our shareholders.

“With respect to our Turfway Park extension in Newport, Kentucky, we’ve made excellent progress on this project. Our team has completed all of the site work and the structural improvements needed to the building. We anticipate that the additional interior construction will be completed by the end of September in preparation for a grand opening [with up to 500 HRMs] by early October. This timing will provide two months of operations to generate much needed purse money for Turfway Park’s December live Thoroughbred race meet.”

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