Derby speed a nice setup for local pair

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Locally based Krazy Koffee and Texas Wildcatter appear to have the edge over the five horses shipping in for the Grade 3, $250,000 British Columbia Derby at Hastings on Sunday.

The 1 1/8-mile British Columbia Derby is the final leg of a $25,000 guaranteed Win-4 that includes three $50,000 stakes races, the 1 1/8-mile Sir Winston Churchill for 3-year-olds and up, the six-furlong Derby Bar and Grill Express, and the 1 1/16-mile Derby Consolation.

In all likelihood there will be a fast and contested pace in the derby, and it should set up nicely for either Krazy Koffee or Texas Wildcatter. Forest Prince and Papa Time also have good late moves and should appreciate the fast fractions that will be set by Fear No Evil and Wink At the Girls.

Trained by Cindy Krasner, Krazy Koffee has won the last three stakes races for 3-year-olds at Hastings. According to Krasner, he is coming into the derby in excellent shape.

"He has improved with every start, and hopefully we haven't seen him run his best race yet," she said.

With Dave Wilson aboard for the first time, Krazy Koffee came from off the pace to beat Forest Prince in the Richmond Derby Trial on Aug. 31. Wilson retains the mount. He picked up Krazy Koffee when the usual rider, Chad Hoverson, opted to ride Texas Wildcatter.

The first time Hoverson rode Texas Wildcatter, he came close to upsetting Spaghetti Mouse in the B.C. Cup Classic on Aug. 4. Spaghetti Mouse, who won the 2005 B.C. Derby, has won every middle-distance stakes race for older horses at Hastings this year. Hoverson also rode Texas Wildcatter to a second-place finish in the Grade 3 Canadian Derby at Northlands Park on Aug. 23.

Texas Wildcatter is trained by Troy Taylor, who has also entered Forest Prince.

Owner K.K. Sangara, who won the B.C. Derby for the first time with Celtic Dreamin last year, has entered two horses - Dancingall Theway, who is based at Woodbine with trainer Lorne Richards, and Wink at the Girls, who is coming off of a second-place finish in the Jim Kostoff Stakes at Fairplex Park where he led every step of the way except for the final one. Wink at the Girls is trained by Rafael Beccerra.

The undefeated Bears Home Run helps make the derby an intriguing race.

All nine horses in the field will carry 126 pounds.