Hometown Hero Wild On Ice Stuns In Sunland Derby

Once a year, a small track in New Mexico plays host to some big names as everyone chases points on the Road to the Kentucky Derby in the GIII Sunland Park Derby. While Tim Yakteen scratched his transfer in Fort Bragg (Tapit) Saturday, the field still included Bob Baffert's Hard to Figure (Hard Spun) and Steve Asmussen's How Did He Do That (Good Magic), as well as local Mine That Derby winner Henry Q (Blame). But for all the big connections, it was the longest shot on the board that took home the prize –Texas-bred Wild On Ice (Tapizar) at 35-1.

After a brief gate delay caused by One in Vermillion (Army Mule), the speed took off with top choices Hard to Figure and Henry Q taking it to one another from the opening strides. Wild On Ice was three wide with that pair into the first turn but wisely took back under jockey Ken Tohill to race with Low Expectations (Nyquist) in the second flight. The first quarter blitzed by in :20.58 but the top four stayed compact with two rivals distanced out the back.

Kept outside in the clear the whole way, Wild On Ice stayed right off the favorite's flank into the far turn and pounced as the speed began to fade with a quarter to run. Low Expectations kept him honest to the line but Wild On Ice was clearly best to win going away. The gelding, who is not currently nominated to the Triple Crown, picked up 50 points for his effort.

Pedigree Notes:

GI Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile winner Tapizar, who we tragically lost in 2020, is best known for siring dual Eclipse champion Monomoy Girl. Wild On Ice becomes the 7th individual graded-stakes winners for his sire who has one more crop of 2-year-olds to race. Dam Slamitagain, herself a half-sister to the dam of MGSP Pioppo (Brz), has now produced three winners from as many foals. This is also the family of GI Florida Derby and GI Fountain of Youth hero Vicar (Wild Again) as well as French Two Thousand Guineas winner Astronomer Royal (Danzig).

Sunday, Sunland Park
SUNLAND PARK DERBY-GIII, $600,000, Sunland, 3-26, 3yo,
1 1/8m, 1:51.39, ft.
1–WILD ON ICE, 122, g, 3, by Tapizar
          1st Dam: Slamitagain, by Grand Slam
          2nd Dam: Oonagh, by Wild Again
          3rd Dam: Escrow Agent, by El Gran Senor
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN, 1ST GRADED STAKES WIN. O/B-Frank
Sumpter (TX); T-Joel H. Marr; J-Ken S. Tohill. $356,400.
Lifetime Record: SP, 5-3-0-1, $405,400. Werk Nick Rating: A+.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Low Expectations, 122, g, 3, Nyquist–Eloquent Tribute, by
Tapit. 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($192,000
Ylg '21 FTKOCT; $17,000 RNA 2yo '22 OBSOPN). O-Reddam
Racing LLC; B-Mount Riga Bloodstock (KY); T-Antonio C. Garcia.
$130,680.
3–Henry Q, 122, c, 3, Blame–Lunar Empress, by Malibu Moon.
1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE. ($125,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-The
Del Mar Group; B-Fred W. Hertrich lll & John D. Fielding (KY);
T-Todd W. Fincher. $59,400.
Margins: 1 1/4, 2HF, 6 3/4. Odds: 35.40, 21.00, 1.60.
Also Ran: How Did He Do That, One in Vermillion,
Hard to Figure. Scratched: Fort Bragg.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs.
VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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OBS Grad Practical Move Looking for Roses

Pierre Jean Amestoy Jr. has never been to the Kentucky Derby. Not even as a spectator. However, the 2023 renewal may very well change that fact after Practical Move (Practical Joke), who he owns in partnership with his wife Leslie and Roger Beasley, stamped himself a major Classic contender with a victory in last weekend's GII San Felipe S. at Santa Anita.

“My wife and I were very emotional after the win,” said Pierre Amestoy. “It was phenomenal. It was exhilarating. We're just elated.”

“I guess we're heading to the Kentucky Derby!” he laughed.

Adding some dramatic flavor to the story, the Amestoy's trainer, Tim Yakteen, had just taken over several of Bob Baffert's Classic contenders, including three colts that would make it into the San Felipe lineup on race day.

Was Amestoy worried?

“It was all about the trip,” he said. “As long as we didn't get stopped, or bumped or fall down out of the gate. It was more about something silly happened rather than fearing any of the other horses.”

He added, “Tim told us that this horse has been maturing and coming along, getting stronger and better. We were really confident in our horse going into the race.”

“He will point him toward the Santa Anita Derby [Apr. 8], that is the right progression. Hopefully, everything goes good there and then on to the Kentucky Derby. And if we can get a good trip there and get up to the top third of the pack, then I think we have a real chance. I think our style has been working and I think it often works in the Kentucky Derby too.”

 

Coming up Aces in the First Sales Foray
Up until last year, the Amestoys bred their own state-foaled runners at their five-acre farm in Albuqurque, New Mexico. However, once they determined they wanted to dive into the 2-year-olds in training sales scene, and branch out beyond the New Mexico racing scene, it didn't take long to hit paydirt.

Teaming up with Beasley last spring at the OBS Spring Sale, the Amestoys extended to $230,000 for the son of Practical Joke, who was represented by his first 3-year-olds in 2022. The final price represented the second highest priced offspring by his sire at that venue. Offered as Hip 97 by Eisaman Equine, the late Apr. 30 foal covered an eighth of a mile in :10.1 during the breeze show.

“That was the only box we could not check,” said Amestoy of the late foaling date. “We much would have preferred to have had a Feb. 30 colt than an April foal. But physically, he didn't look behind. Yes, it was a concern at first, but Tim said, “let him take us there.” If we needed to, we were prepared to back off and wait. We let him tell us.”

Extolling the colt's virtues, he continued, “He was never undersized and we could see the maturity in him even at that point. He was big enough, he had enough bone and a great foot. He had the scope and the walk. Most importantly, he had the mentality. We went and saw him every day we were there. We watched him and we thought there would be room to improve being that he was young.”

Ack Naughty selling at the 2023 Keeneland January Horses of All Ages Sale | Keeneland

Adding some nuance to the colt's page, New York-based Ack Naughty had amassed over $300,000 during her racing career while competing mainly on the turf for Sol Kumin and partners and trainer Chad Brown, who had Practical Joke in the barn at the same time. Later combining their resources when both sire and dam had retired, Brown and Kumin are registered as the colt's breeders

After producing a Complexity colt in 2022, Ack Naughty sold for $500,000 at this year's Keeneland January sale, however, the foal she was carrying at the time was stillborn. Practical Move is from the family of champion Vino Rosso.

“We liked his sire because he was a speed sire,” he said. “He was a good miler and a three-time Grade I winner and by one of the hottest horses in the world, Into Mischief. So the top side was strong. On the bottom, we liked that the mare was stakes placed and earned over $300,000. She is by Afleet Alex, so there was distance there. We were hoping that the top side would bring the speed and the bottom side the stamina. So this time, it looks like it worked out.”

Once hitting the racetrack, Practical Move showed talent early, finishing second behind the Bob Baffert-trained Cave Rock (Arrogate)–a subsequent dual Grade I winner–going 6 1/2 furlongs in his debut at Del Mar before finishing third next time over that same track and distance. Second under the wire but later promoted to first after the disqualification of Baffert trainee Fort Bragg (Tapit) while stretching to a mile at Santa Anita last October, he was third behind two more Baffert runners–Havnameltdown (Uncaptured) and Newgate (Into Mischief)–in the seven-panel GIII Bob Hope S. at Del Mar Nov. 20. Given one more start at two, the bay proved an easy winner of the 1 1/16-mile GII Los Alamitos Futurity Dec. 17.

“After the Los Alamitos Futurity we gave him a little time off, and he actually blossomed over that time,” said Amestoy. “He put on 45 pounds and he kept it. He is all muscle and has turned into an absolute specimen.”

 

“We've always been Thoroughbred people”
Following their latest win, much has been made of the  Amestoy's involvement in Quarter Horse racing. Indeed, they have held a significant stake in the Quarter Horse industry over the past two decades, having campaigned the likes of champions First to Flash (2002) and First Moonflash (2009). However, Amestoy is quick to point out that Thoroughbreds was always the main attraction.

“Even when my wife trained in the 70s and 80s, she trained Thoroughbreds. And even today, we probably have 3 to 1 more Thoroughbreds than Quarter Horses,” said Amestoy.

He continued, “We have done very well in the Quarter Horse industry. We've had two champions, lots of graded and Grade I wins, but Thoroughbreds have always been our first play.”

Explaining the decision to venture into Quarter Horses over a decade ago, he explained, “When you race in New Mexico, there is a lot of Quarter Horse racing. So even though we were winning Thoroughbred races in New Mexico, there were still four to five races a day for Quarter Horses. So, we thought, 'Heck, why don't we play in there?' There are a lot of races and money we can be playing for and it's right at home.”

Practical Move's co-owner Pierre Amestoy, Jr. and jockey Ramon Vazquez | Benoit Photo

Following the Amestoy's marriage in 1988, the couple purchased a farm in Paris, Kentucky, Lobo Farm, while choosing to reside in New Mexico, where Pierre operated his construction and development company.

“We stood stallions, had broodmares and pinhooked yearlings, we just about did it all,” said Amestoy of his Kentucky-based operation.

Despite all their success with Quarter Horses, it was their Thoroughbred operation that yielded of the couple's biggest coups in either industry. In 2008, Irish Cherry (Irish Open) sold for $2.7 million at the Keeneland January sale. Sold in partnership with Mike Abraham, the then 14-year-old mare was best known for producing MGISW Spun Sugar and GSW Daaher.

“We bought Irish Cherry in foal to Storm Cat [for $800,000 at KEENOV in 2006] and we bred her back to Ghostzapper. We had a very nice pinhook there. We did very well at the sales. We also sold several high-dollar yearlings in Kentucky as well.”

After selling Lobo farm in 2011, the Amestoys opted to focus on their Quarter Horse operation as well as their small group New Mexico-based Thoroughbred mares, usually numbering about five to six. The resulting yearlings were sent to the Amestoy's training center next to Sunland Park, and from there, the youngsters would either go to the sales or the remain in training with the Amestoy's New Mexico-based trainer, Todd Fincher.

When asked why much of the post San Felipe news led with the narrative describing the Amestoys as 'Quarter Horse owners', he said, “We had the farm in Kentucky for 12 years. We bred there, we raced there. We've done it all there. We have a substantial background with Thoroughbreds. It's probably because this is the first time that we got to this level [in Thoroughbred racing]. But we've been doing this a long time and have been good at it.”

 

Sales Savvy
While all roads lead to Thoroughbreds, the Amestoy's most important Thoroughbred to date was derived through a connection made via their Quarter Horse dealings. And that important alliance spearheaded the decision to take a swing at the Thoroughbred sales in search of a Classic horse.

“After we sold our farm, we concentrated on racing in New Mexico because the purses were very good. That's when I met my current partner, Roger Beasley, through a mutual friend and we bought some Quarter Horses together. We did really well together. [Early last year, we were just talking and [Beasley] said, 'Pierre, why don't we get a couple of Thoroughbreds and let's try and go for the big races.' So I said, “I have the experience and I'll do the work.” There was a sale [OBS] coming up in Florida and Leslie and I said we would go down for a week and find a couple.”

And the venture proved fruitful.

“We went out there, and found Practical Move and we found another, Blessed Touch [Girvin], who ran third [in the GIII Santa Ysabel S.] last Sunday.”

The $140,000 OBS Spring buy, who won second time out at Santa Anita last October, subsequently finished runner up in the Desi Arnaz S., in November. Additionally, the partnership purchased a colt by Valiant Minister for $38,000 and, in conjunction with Mike Abraham, secured a $50,000 colt by Munnings, who had been slated to run on the San Felipe undercard and was scratched because of a minor issue but is expected to return.

“He appears to have some talent,” said Amestoy of the Munnings colt.

While breeding to race had been the Amestoy's M.O. for much of their past involvement in the Thoroughbred game, the sparkling success of their first foray into public sales last season makes it a safe bet that they will be returning to the well this year.

“Roger and I were just talking the other day and he asked, Partner, do you want to go back [to OBS]? In order to find another one we would have to go back!” he said with a laugh. “We might go back to OBS and sniff around and see what we can find.”

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Noffsinger Named Prairie Meadows Track Superintendent

Ryan Noffsinger has been named track superintendent at Prairie Meadows. A third-generation horseman, Noffsinger has worked at tracks from California, Arizona, New Mexico and, most recently, in Florida.

“In my 18 years working in various roles with track maintenance, I've been able to gain valuable knowledge at tracks like Del Mar, Turf Paradise, Zia Park, Sunland Park, Gulfstream Park West and Palm Meadows which will serve me well as Track Superintendent for Prairie Meadows,” Noffsinger said.

Prairie Meadows Vice President for Racing Derron Heldt added, “Ryan brings so much to the table with his experience, dedication and love of the industry as a third-generation horseman and having worked in various roles in track maintenance, I feel confident in his abilities to provide a solid and consistent racing surface for the horses, jockeys and racing industry participants that come to race in Iowa.”

Prairie Meadows' live racing season begins with 20 days of Thoroughbred-only racing from May 12-June 17 and is followed by a mixed Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse schedule of 60 race days from June 18-Sept. 30.

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Jockey Scriver From ICU: ‘Getting Better And Better Each Day’

The Week In Review

On Saturday, six days after Joree Scriver got hurtled to the Sunland Park dirt in a violent, one-horse spill, the 21-year-old jockey was able to report good news: For the first time since her accident and emergency surgery to fix spinal damage, she was able to discern a bit of sensation in each of her legs.

“I'm a little rough, but I'm alright,” Scriver told TDN via phone from the intensive care unit at Las Palmas Medical Center in El Paso, Texas, about five miles over the New Mexico border from the track.

“The surgery went well. I had a few vertebrae cracked in my back. And then I cracked a few ribs. My lung wanted to collapse. It didn't quite collapse, but I'm good now. I have air in my lungs.

“They're waiting for the swelling to go down in my back. That's pretty much it right now. But actually, everything's turning out pretty good. I've been getting better and better each day,” Scriver said.

That's immense improvement from even just the day before, Friday, when Daily Racing Form quoted Scriver's sister, Nicole West, as saying Joree had no feeling from her belly button down.

“As of [Saturday], I felt a little tingling on my left leg, early in the morning,” Scriver explained. “It was like when your leg falls asleep. You know that fuzzy feeling? Like it's trying to [wake up]? And I'm hoping that the swelling's going down, and that's why it's doing that. And then my right leg did it later on [Saturday] afternoon.”

Given the gravity of her injuries, a TDN reporter didn't expect to be speaking with Scriver on Jan. 7 when he phoned her boyfriend, the jockey Luis Fuentes, seeking an update. But instead of Fuentes answering his own phone, Scriver took the call herself.

Fuentes, 22, said well-wishers who called hm and instead got Scriver this past weekend had been pleasantly surprised to hear her voice.

“When people call, they're like, 'Wait, is this actually Joree?'” Fuentes said. “They're surprised because her voice sounds so good. Her progress looks good. The swelling in her face is going down, too. She's been able to move a lot better. So we're hoping for recovery, and she's in really good spirits right now.

“For her only being in horse racing for about three years, she's had a lot of [racetrackers from around the country] caring about how she's doing, and that's nice to hear,” Fuentes said.

Fuentes has been by her side in the hospital for the better part of a week. He was also by her side, nearest to the rail, when Scriver's mount, No Huddle, went down abruptly nearing the entrance to the far turn in Sunland's third race Jan. 1.

That contest was a six-furlong NW3L $5,000 claimer. The 4-year-old No Huddle had been in good form, winning his most recent two starts at Zia Park in November and December. Fuentes himself had even ridden the gelding on four previous occasions, never finishing worse than second.

It is impossible to tell what happened from the pan shot. The head-on replay has been removed from the sites of at least three major industry replay providers. The Equibase chart caller's comment was simply “raced in mid-pack early, fell and was vanned off.” TDN could not obtain a veterinary update for No Huddle in time for deadline for this story.

Asked if she felt up to talking about the spill, Scriver didn't hesitate.

She said remembers everything about the race right up until the fall. Then “only flashes.”

“All I remember is my horse's head went down, and I went down,” Scriver said. “I don't remember going down, but I remember seeing my horse's head dip down. I remember being in the ambulance. And then going for surgery, I remember them putting on that breathing mask thing that makes you go to sleep. And that was it. Then I was out of it.”

For Fuentes, the aftermath of the accident was also a blur. His mount finished last, and all he could think about was dismounting and getting out to see Scriver as fast as possible.

“I was right next to her. It was like a freak accident that happened so fast. The horse never gave her a warning or anything, just went down,” Fuentes said.

'All smiles and ponytail'

Read through news clippings about Scriver that track her progress from tracks in the Pacific Northwest to New Mexico, or scan through the comments written about her on a GoFundMe page that has been set up to help pay for her recovery costs, and determination, work ethic, a passion for going fast on horseback, and a genuine love all things equine are what shine through.

The New York Times even profiled Scriver barely two years into her career within a larger piece about women and the horse-first culture at Grants Pass Downs in Oregon written in 2021. “In the mornings, the track's leading jockey, Joree Scriver, all smiles and ponytail, pedals a banana bike from barn to barn,” wrote Joe Drape.

That profile detailed how Scriver “has been atop a horse since learning to walk,” advancing from 4H Club riding near her home up by the Canadian border in Curlew, Washington, (population 51) to barrel racing as an adolescent, then galloping Thoroughbreds by age 16 for twelve bucks a pop while also competing on her high school's volleyball, softball and basketball teams. She got her jockey's license at 18, and won for the first time with her 11th mount on Aug. 10, 2019, at Oregon's Tillamook County Fair.

Scriver rode as an apprentice on the Oregon fairs circuit, at Emerald Downs, and Turf Paradise, which is where she and Fuentes first met. They started dating a bit later, after they each moved their tack to Zia in New Mexico.

Fuentes was born and raised in El Paso and comes from a racing-centric family of horsemen and jockeys, with a father, three uncles, and two brothers in the business ahead of him. He started riding at Sunland in 2018, then traveled to Parx, Santa Anita, Oaklawn and Prairie Meadows, among other venues, before settling in back home on the New Mexico circuit.

After closing out the Zia meet on a high note Dec. 20 (Fuentes won with his final four mounts to be leading rider; Scriver also won on the last day of the season and was fourth in the standings),  the couple had taken a brief break before looking forward to the Sunland meet's opening. As fate would have it, they got caught in a travel snafu.

“We flew back home to her house in Washington and spent the holidays there,” Fuentes said. “They cancelled our flights coming back on Southwest. So we had to drive, and it was like a 27-hour drive. And because there was a bunch of snow, the only thing the car rental had available to rent was a rear-wheel-drive truck.”

Fuentes isn't the type to complain. He instead referred to their travel ordeal as a “strong week” that at least ended favorably with them being able to celebrate New Year's Eve safely back home with his family.

In Sunland's first race of 2023, Fuentes and Scriver ran second and third, respectively.

“We were ready to start off the new racing year good,” Fuentes said. “Now I'm just glad she's alive and here.”

'Thankful for everyone'

The first week of the New Year in America was dominated by the devastating news of a 24-year-old National Football League player suffering cardiac arrest on national TV Jan. 2 after making a tackle.

Inside the stadium, tens of thousands watched as medical workers performed CPR and used a defibrillator to restore his heartbeat. Players and coaches wept and prayed, as did millions watching the tragedy unfold live and via social media.

Toward the end of the week, Damar Hamlin began showing remarkable progress, just like Scriver has.

The difference, of course, is that while one athlete's pain and recovery played out squarely in the media spotlight, another's unfolded privately and with little news coverage.

Fuentes said he was well aware of the juxtaposition of the two medical emergencies each athlete suffered. But he chose not to dwell on those differences.

“It's crazy…” he said, his voice trailing off in thought when asked about was going through his mind when he compared the two cases. “The risks we take as jockeys…”

Scriver's family had rushed down from Washington to be with her as soon as they got the news. But on Saturday, Scriver said she might be on the move soon.

“I'm thinking of going to Colorado, to Craig Hospital,” Scriver said, referring to the world-renowned spinal and brain injury rehab center just outside of Denver.

Although initially the online fundraising effort was established to defray travel costs for Scriver's family to make it to El Paso, donations are now being redirected to help Scriver's rehab.

“I'm thankful for everyone that's reached out to me,” Scriver said. “There's been a lot of people from everywhere. There's a GoFundMe account, and I know that some people have helped out in that sort of way, and it's really much appreciated.”

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