Aces N Kings must complete work for Springboard Mile

Aces N Kings, who lost both his action and rider, Calvin Borel, on the final turn of last month’s Grade 3, $1 million Delta Downs Jackpot, is to work Wednesday at Remington Park for a possible start in Saturday night’s $250,000 Springboard Mile.

The Springboard is for 2-year-olds, and it will close out the meet at Remington.

Aces N Kings is one of the top young horses in the region, with three stakes wins between Louisiana and Texas. But he did not run his race in the Jackpot, when he drifted off the rail and unseated Borel, who suffered a broken jaw in the Nov. 20 incident.

“He kind of kept running straight instead of making the turn,” said Jimmy “Scooter” Dodwell, whose family bred and races Aces N Kings. “The ground broke out from underneath him behind, he was slipping, and Calvin said it felt like his stifle may have locked up on him. We’ve been over him head to toe, and he’s fine.”

Dodwell said Aces N Kings will ship from his family’s farm in North Texas to trainer John Lowder in Oklahoma on Tuesday. Aces N Kings will then work before Remington officials Wednesday.

“He has to work out in front of them before they’ll let him enter,” Dodwell said. “If everything goes well with the workout, he’ll run. He’s doing great. I look for him to be very competitive.”

Aces N Kings won the first five races of his career, including the $50,000 Sunny’s Halo at a mile on turf at Louisiana Downs in August. Eguard Tejera, who was aboard, will reunite with him for the Springboard Mile, Dodwell said.

Fred Hutton, the racing secretary at Remington, said early indications are that there will be a full field for the Springboard. Entries are Wednesday. Hutton said the race will share a card with a newly created stakes, the $50,000 End of the Trail at seven furlongs for 3-year-olds bred in Oklahoma.

Handle skyrockets at Remington

Remington will close its meet with significant gains in handle. Heading into the final week of racing, Remington is averaging $801,500 a card in handle on its live races from all sources, up 50 percent from the $531,635 during the corresponding period in 2009. The meet is the first under the ownership of Global Gaming.

“As far as our growth, I think that our ontrack handle is up because the investments that Global Gaming has made in the facility,” Remington president Scott Wells said. “They’ve put about $15 million into this place this year. It’s more upscale and more inviting than its ever been before, and people are booking more events here because of it.

“And I think the growth in our export is due to a couple of factors,” he continued. “No. 1, it’s a credit to our horsemen because we have a great group of owners and trainers who have chosen to race here. We’re averaging 10 horses per race and good, competitive fields. No. 2, we’ve increased the number of outlets taking our signal from about 300 to over 800, and as pool sizes have grown, we’re attracting more players.”

Wells is hoping for an ontrack crowd of more than 12,000 on Saturday. The track is giving away calendars that feature coupons for free play at both the races and its casino in 2011.

Jockey Cliff Berry, who won four races Saturday, has a six-win lead in the rider standings over chief challenger Ramsey Zimmerman. Steve Asmussen is poised to win the training title, while Poindexter Thoroughbreds leads all owners by two wins heading into the final week, with 11.

◗ Jockey Jeff Faul won his first race since 2003 on Saturday night at Delta Downs, aboard G Rated. Faul was recently relicensed after serving a six-year suspension for carrying an electrical device in an August 2003 race at the now-shuttered Great Lakes Downs in Michigan. He is from Louisiana and resumed riding in the state last month, at both Delta and Fair Grounds.

◗ The Arkansas Racing Commission will conduct a public hearing Wednesday, when it will consider the adoption of a number of rule amendments. One proposes allowing superfectas with a minimum of seven betting interests in a race, while another would increase the maximum toe grab height on front shoes from 2 to 4 millimeters.

◗ Chuck Trout has been named interim executive director of the Texas Racing Commission, following the recent retirement of Charla Ann King. Trout joined the commission staff in 1994.

◗ Copper Crowne, a refurbished training center near Evangeline Downs, has been approved for published works by the Louisiana Racing Commission.