Apprentice Keith Asmussen aboard Vangilder in feature race

Apprentice Keith Asmussen will be riding Vangilder in a race for the first time in Wednesday’s feature at Lone Star Park, but he’s quite familiar with the stakes winner.

“I’ve worked him multiple times,” he said.

Vangilder goes in a no-conditions allowance for 3-year-olds and up at a mile. Other stakes winners making up the field of six are Sheriff Brown, who is a half-brother to Grade 3 winner Runaway Ghost, and Kenai Bob, who accounted for the $75,000 Star of Texas in June at Lone Star.

Vangilder and Asmussen have been morning training buddies since last summer, when the horse won the Charles Taylor Derby at the Downs at Albuquerque and finished second by three-quarters of a length in the Grade 3 Super Derby at Louisiana Downs. Asmussen, who long has galloped horses for his father, trainer Steve Asmussen, began race riding this summer at Lone Star.

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Vangilder, who is trained by Asmussen, is a son of Paynter owned by Charles Hovitz.

“He’s a cool horse,” Keith Asmussen said. “His temperament is very laid back. When it gets down to business, he’s very focused and professional.”

Vangilder is coming off a third-place finish in the $75,000 Lone Star Mile on June 28. The fifth-place finisher from the race, Mocito Rojo, came back in his next start to win an Evangeline Downs allowance with a Beyer Speed Figure of 84.

Vangilder, a closer, could get a decent pace setup courtesy of Violent Ridge, who stretches back out around two turns following a first-level allowance win at 6 1/2 furlongs, and Kenai Bob, who wired the field in the Star of Texas.

Vangilder will break from the rail Wednesday.

◗ Trainer Karl Broberg won five races Sunday at Lone Star.