Charlie's Penny impressive in debut win

During the summer of 2019 at Arlington Park, a 2-year-old Bob Lothenbach homebred filly trained by Chris Block, Mom’s Red Lipstick, followed a debut win with a victory in the Arlington-Washington Lassie. There is no Lassie this year – nor any another stakes race at Arlington – so Charlie’s Penny can’t follow exactly the same path, but Mom’s Red Lipstick’s full sister shined in her career debut Sept. 17 at Arlington.

The filly broke sharply from the rail in a five-furlong Polytrack maiden race, outdueled a pace rival, and burst into the clear in upper stretch, going on to a seven-length score. The Beyer Speed Figure she earned, 82, is the highest for an Arlington 2-year-old during this abbreviated meet.

“I had some expectations going into the race, but I didn’t know she’d run like that. She really impressed me the last three-sixteenths of a mile,” Block said.

Charlie’s Penny, like Mom’s Red Lipstick, is by Race Day out of Sweet Lorraine, by Warrior’s Reward. The filly’s legs turn over quickly and she doesn’t have a ton of scope; she looks more like a sprinter, and that’s how Block sees her.

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“Probably most of her best performances will be at one turn,” he said.

The seven-furlong Glorious Song Stakes on Oct. 17 at Woodbine is under consideration for Charlie’s Penny’s next start. Block also wants to take Charlie’s Penny to Churchill Downs and see how she trains on dirt.

Meanwhile, another Block-trained, Lothenbach-owned filly, Winning Envelope, finished a fine second in the Ladies Sprint on Sept. 15 at Kentucky Downs, beaten only by the top-class mare Got Stormy. Winning Envelope got a career-best 95 Beyer while racing in only her second turf sprint, and Block said that’s the type of race on which her connections now will concentrate, beginning with the Buffalo Trace on Oct. 9 at Keeneland.

◗ Synchrony, a 7-year-old Pin Oak Farm homebred, was retired late this summer. Trained by Mike Stidham, Synchrony, a son of Tapit and Brownie Points, won nine races, including several Grade 2s, and just short of $1 million.