Ever So Lucky arrives at Gulfstream Park

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Ever So Lucky, who ran two bang-up races in a span of 15 days last November at Churchill Downs, arrived at Gulfstream shortly after 6 a.m. Friday following a 12-hour van ride from Camden, S.C. After getting a little rest, Ever So Lucky went to the track for a mile gallop.

Trainer Jonathan Sheppard was scheduled to arrive in south Florida in time for training Saturday morning. He said Ever So Lucky could work Sunday or Monday. Sheppard is targeting the Grade 2 Hutcheson Stakes, a seven-furlong race Feb. 11, for Ever So Lucky’s 3-year-old debut.

On Nov. 11, Ever So Lucky won a maiden race by 3 1/4 lengths. On Nov. 26, he finished second to the undefeated Gemologist in the Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club. Both races were at Churchill Downs.

Ever So Lucky came out of the Jockey Club with a little heat in an ankle, and Sheppard backed off the horse for a couple of weeks, leaving him at his farm in Pennsylvania. In late December, Ever So Lucky went to Camden, where he breezed three times, according to Sheppard.

Sheppard said that the seven-furlong Hutcheson “seems to be a nice fit to start him back at.”

“He’s had his two-turn race, so we don’t have to start off there,” Sheppard said.

Sheppard said Ever So Lucky’s performance in the Hutcheson will determine his next start.