Barkley, Belvoir both well after Longacres Mile triumph

Following Barkley’s 1 1/2-length win over Alert Bay in the Grade 3 Longacres Mile Sunday, his trainer Howard Belvoir said, “I am so high right now I’ll need a parachute to come down.”

“I’ve landed,” Belvoir said Wednesday morning. “That was a big one.”

Belvoir also said that Barkley came out of the race in excellent condition, but he wasn’t sure when the 5-year-old Kentucky-bred son of Munnings would make his next start.

“He’s not a Washington-bred, so he’s not eligible for any of the stakes left at Emerald,” he said. “I am not fond of a bullring, but if he’s going to run again this year it would probably be at Hastings.”

More importantly, Belvoir, 74, apparently came out of the race in good shape. A week prior to the Mile he was rushed from the track to the hospital after feeling serious pain around his heart.

“I’ve had my knees and hips replaced but I’ve never felt pain like that,” he said. “They did some kind of procedure and I feel great. I think they said I had a weak aorta, but I was more concerned about getting back to the track. I will be going back for more tests, but right now everything looks good.”

Barkley gave Belvoir his third win in the Mile, which is the most prestigious race at Emerald. He won it with Wasserman in 2008 and Assessment in 2009.

“Barkley was similar to Assessment,” he said. “They both had bad trips when they finished fourth the year before they won it. “

Belvoir’s son, trainer Vann Belvoir, won the race last year with Gold Rush Dancer. Vann Belvoir also won the Mile as a jockey aboard Want a Winner at Yakima Meadows in 1994.

“Vann bought Barkley, and he said he was tied with me with three wins as a rider, trainer, and bloodstock agent.”

Barkley equaled his career-best 94 Beyer Speed Figure, which he received in his runner-up finish in the $50,000 Mount Rainier on July 15. With just five starts this year, he’s still a relatively fresh horse.

“Some people think I should send him to Vann in California,” said Belvoir. “But, he doesn’t train very hard at Emerald and I think it helps keep him sound. He’s kind of choppy, and if he went to California he would have to train a lot harder. I might just turn him out and bring him back next year. We’ll see.”

Trainer Blaine Wright said Alert Bay also came out of the race in good shape and would return to California where he would “regroup.”

A multiple graded winner with $1.29 million in earnings, Alert Bay was making his first start in more than a year and he ran a huge race, losing by less than two lengths after going five wide around the stretch turn while Barkley was skimming the rail.

In one of the three supporting stakes, the Wright-trained Reginella and Top Quality finished first and second in the $50,000 Emerald Distaff.

“They both are doing well and will be nominated to the Delta Colleen at Hastings,” said Wright.

The $50,000 Delta Colleen is one of five supporting stakes for the Grade 3, $150,000 British Columbia Derby on Sept. 8.

◗ Friday’s feature at Emerald is a $20,000 claiming race for 3-year-olds and up. Post time for the first of seven races is 6:30 p.m. Pacific.