Code West proves a smart buy for new owner

Code West opened up a host of options for his new connections Saturday night, when he won the $175,000 Governor’s Cup at Remington Park in Oklahoma City. He was a half-length winner over pacesetter Right to Vote in the 1 1/8-mile race during opening weekend and earned one of his best career Beyer Speed Figures, a 95, for his effort.

Code West was a private purchase by Bryan Hawk following a fifth-place finish in the Grade 3 Salvator Mile at Monmouth Park on July 6. Boyd Caster now trains the horse, whose other career stakes win came in last year’s Grade 3 Matt Winn at Churchill Downs. Code West previously raced for Gary and Mary West. He is a 4-year-old ridgling by Lemon Drop Kid.

“We’re all excited,” Caster said. “We’re very fortunate to have him. We’re just kind of breathing in and breathing out right now, figuring out what our next move is going to be. The whole thing about having a good horse like this is getting him spotted right, where he could make money.”

Caster said one of the races under consideration for Code West is the $125,000 Homecoming Classic at 1 1/8 miles at Churchill Downs on Sept. 27.

“We’re kind of looking at that race, got that in mind,” he said. “There’s also a race similar to that one over in Indiana.”
The $100,000 Michael G. Schaefer Memorial is at Indiana Grand on Oct. 4. Another race in the conversation right now is the $100,000 Downs at Albuquerque Handicap, a 1 1/8-mile race in New Mexico on Sept. 21.

Caster said he was pleased to see Code West win right out of the box for Hawk.

“He was ecstatic over the deal,” Caster said. “He wasn’t expecting to go out there and win. He’s a great owner.”
Hawk, who last year bought the Red Earth Training Center near Norman, Okla., has previously purchased horses from the Wests. Caster has known the couple’s bloodstock agent and racing manager, Benny Glass, since 1979, when he purchased a horse from Glass in Nebraska.

Caster is based at Remington Park.

◗ A memorial service for Rita Danley, the wife of New Mexico-based trainer Fred Danley, will be held in the Ruidoso Downs winner’s circle at 11 a.m. Mountain on Thursday, according to the New Mexico Horse Breeders Association. Danley, 67, was a longtime breeder and owner and a 19-year trustee of the NMHBA. She was married to Fred Danley for 49 years.

◗ Pride and Gioia, a half-sister to millionaire Palladio, and Midge’s Magic, whose dam, Midge Too, was a popular stakes winner of more than $500,000, will both launch their careers in the sixth race Thursday at Louisiana Downs.

◗ Bobby Walker Jr., the retired jockey diagnosed with cancer while working as an agent at Canterbury, on Saturday returned home to Louisiana, according to is daughter, Brittany Walker.