steeplechase racing | Horse Racing Free Tips

Sunday’s Steeplechase of Charleston to Allow Spectators

The Steeplechase of Charleston, to be held Sunday, Nov. 15, at Stono Ferry Racetrack in Hollywood, S.C., will allow spectators and will also be streamed live via the National Steeplechase Association (NSA)’s website. Sunday’s racecard will be just one of two sanctioned steeplechase events this year to admit fans due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Unlike flat racing, steeplechase racing does not depend on pari-mutuel wagering for purses, but instead on admissions, parking, and tailgating income.

Spectators at the Steeplechase of Charleston will be accommodated in single vehicle spots with small groups up to five permitted for tailgating. There will be double the normal number of restrooms with additional cleaning throughout. Guests must wear masks when moving away from their tailgate spots and can bring their own food and beverages. Half the usual capacity of spectators will be allowed.

More than two-thirds of the scheduled steeplechase meets have been cancelled in the U.S. this year. Sunday’s meet, consisting of five races on the card, will be just one of two to admit fans. First post is at 1 p.m. ET.

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National Steeplechase Association To Livestream Saturday’s Races From Middleburg

Nine races with purses totaling $115,000 are up for grabs at Saturday's Virginia Fall Races at Glenwood Park in Middleburg, as the National Steeplechase Association (NSA) returns to the Old Dominion for the second straight week. Because of ongoing COVID-19 protocols, the event will be run without spectators, but you can still enjoy the races in real time via live stream broadcast.

All told, 94 horses were entered in the final overnights. The expansive nine-race card, with a first-race post time of 12:30 p.m., is anchored by the National Sporting Library and Museum Cup (the fourth race of the afternoon), which will be run as a timber stake as a result of a purse bump from $15,000 to $25,000.

The 3 ¼-mile test features a lineup of eight veterans including Irv Naylor's Super Saturday, runner up to Andi'amu in last year's running, and Armata Stable's Grand Manan, who finished second in the race in 2017. Two other contenders, S. Rebecca Shepherd's Curve of Stones, and Sheila J. Williams' and Northwood Stable's Storm Team had previously broken their timber maidens over the course. Charlie Fenwick's Royal Ruse comes into the stake off of a 15-length triumph in a non-sanctioned open timber event at Shawan Downs two weeks ago. Up-and-coming apprentice Skylar McKenna has the mount for her aunt, trainer Sanna Neilson. Also in the field is Upland Partners Mystic Strike, winner of the 2019 Pennsylvania Hunt Cup. Mystic Strike finished second to Royal Ruse at Shawan.

The card also includes three maiden hurdles, a handicap for horses rated at 115 or lower, a timber maiden, steeplethon over natural brush and timber fences, and a timber race and training-flat contest, both restricted to apprentice jockeys.

There's an interesting footnote to the fifth race, the $10,000 Daniel P. Sands Cup maiden hurdle for 3- and 4-year-olds. One of the entries making his debut over jumps is Irv Naylor's Junior Senator. If the name conjures memories of another horse with a similar name, it's not a coincidence. Junior Senator, a 4-year-old gelded son of Smarty Jones out of the mare Queen Kennelot, is a half brother to the legendary Senior Senator, the three-time winner of the Maryland Hunt Cup. Junior Senator ran eight times at Laurel over the flat for trainer Billy Meister, winning once.

Looking at the leaderboard entering Saturday's races at Middleburg, trainer Jonathan Sheppard, who had a hot hand at Saratoga and saddled one winner at the Foxfield Fall Races in Charlottesville, Va., last Sunday, has an 11 to 10 edge in victories over conditioner Jack Fisher. Among jockeys, Gerard Galligan has eight victories, one more than Michael Mitchell, and two more than Tom Garner and Sean McDermott.

If you choose to watch the races via the live stream, you can print print out the program entries by going to the NSA web site, www.nationalsteeplechase.com, and clicking on the link for Entries. The livestream is sponsored by Brown Advisory, Charleston's The Post and Courier, Bruton Street-US, and the Virginia Equine Alliance.

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Moscato Aims for Sweet Win in A. P. Smithwick

The spring steeplechase season was compressed by the coronavirus pandemic into 21 races at two June race meets, but it had some sweet moments.

Perhaps none was as satisfying as the GIII Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase H. victory by Bruton Street-US’s Moscato (GB) (Hernando {Fr}), named after the sweet Italian wine. Moscato will have an opportunity to make his season even sweeter in Saratoga Race Course’s GI A. P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase H. Thursday.

Second in the weights to Rosbrian Farm’s Optimus Prime (Fr) (Deportivo {Fr}), 9-year-old Moscato very likely will be favored in the 2 1/16-mile Smithwick off his 11-length victory in the Temple Gwathmey June 13.

The victory was everything that was expected of Moscato since his arrival in leading trainer Jack Fisher’s barn in early 2017. Bred by Kirsten Rausing and formerly trained by Oliver Sherwood, Moscato bolted through the novice division with three New York stakes victories and was American jump racing’s leading earner going into the fall season.

Fisher and the Bruton Street partners-Maryland neighbors Charles Fenwick Jr., Mike Hankin, and Charles Noell entered Moscato for the GI Grand National, but he was scratched on the eve of the Far Hills, N.J., race with an injury that kept him off the racecourse for all of 2018.

He won his comeback race, the 2019 Temple Gwathmey, but did not return to the winner’s circle until his repeat victory last month.

In between, he was unplaced only once, an eighth-place finish in Belmont Park’s GI Lonesome Glory H. behind Wendy Hendriks’ Surprising Soul (Perfect Soul {Ire}), the likely pacesetter in Thursday’s Smithwick.

Bruton Street also entered Pravalaguna (Fr) (Great Pretender {Ire}), a front-running mare formerly trained by Willie Mullins. Shipped in for last fall’s Far Hills meet, she demolished an overmatched group of fillies and mares in the Peapack S.

The 8-year-old has not started since the Peapack. Fisher also entered Riverdee Stable’s Gibralfaro (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire}), who found a sweet spot in the International Gold Cup’s GII David L. “Zeke” Ferguson Memorial Hurdle S. last October.

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Rescheduled Virginia Gold Cup Plans Virtual Tailgate, Hat And Trivia Contests

Having been rescheduled from May 2 to running without spectators on June 27, the Virginia Gold Cup is celebrating its 95th year. The event usually draws around 60,000 participants and its tailgate and hat contests are exceptional.

On Saturday, June 27, the Virginia Gold Cup will be livestreamed starting at 12:30 p.m. EDT. This is the first time the event has been run without spectators, due to COVID-19. Jockeys, trainers, grooms and only essential personnel are allowed on the race grounds. The livestream is available at no cost and may be seen at this link: http://nsa.network.video/.

Typically, the Virginia Gold Cup is run in May on the same date as the Kentucky Derby, and is one of the largest steeplechase events in the nation. It has often been considered Virginia's answer to the Kentucky Derby.

Virtual tailgate and hat entries will be accepted by uploading photos to Virginia Gold Cup social media: www.facebook.com/vagoldcup, www.instagram.com/virginiagoldcup/ or @vagoldcup. Be sure to include #vagoldcup2020. Entries must be sent by midnight Saturday, June 27. Winners will be selected by 5 p.m. on Monday, June 29 and notified on the week of June 29.

The winning tailgate (first place) will receive an Oakwood Box to the 2020 International Gold Cup. Runners up and hat contest winners will receive Gold Cup t-shirts, commemorative cups, and Gold Cup hats. For the tailgate contest, three winners will be selected in first, second and third place based on creativity, theme and quality of menu. For the hat contest, five winners will be selected—most glamourous, most outrageous, best racing theme, best men's hat and best child's hat.

In addition, the Virginia Gold Cup will run trivia questions on its social media platforms throughout the day asking questions about the livestream. First respondents with correct answers will be able to win tickets to future Gold Cup races, hats, shirts, etc.

“We hope some of our many Virginia Gold Cup fans will celebrate the day with safe-distancing watch parties, tailgating and hat contests,” stated Dr. William Allison, chairman of the Virginia Gold Cup Association.

With race meets having had to cancel all spring, many in the horse industry are facing unprecedented hardship. The steeplechase community has come together to try to maintain the employment of more than 1,000 jockeys, trainers and many others on farms who exercise and care for the horses. The 95th running of the Virginia Gold Cup will provide purse money for participants. Even more importantly, it will provide a viable and tangible boost to keep many working in the equine industry employed.

The equine industry is important to Virginia's economy. A 2018/19 report by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services reported that the horse industry brings more than $2 billion annually in economic development to the Commonwealth. The report noted that there are more than 183,643 horses in the state that provide approximately 38,874 jobs. It also stated that there are 30.5% or one million households that contain horse enthusiasts.

“The viability of the horse industry is an important component for the Commonwealth's economy,” Allison added.

For more information on the 95th running of the Virginia Gold Cup, visit vagoldcup.com.

The 2020 Virginia Gold Cup Races are presented by Brown Advisory, the Virginia Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, the Virginia Thoroughbred Association, Virginia Equine Alliance and the Virginia Breeders Fund.

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