Ex-champs square off in mile race

PORTLAND, Ore. - Former Portland Meadows champions Chinquapin Charlie and Tomtom Tommalice head an intriguing cast of seven in Friday's $7,500 Thanksgiving Handicap at a mile.

Friday's nine-race card has a special first-post time of 1 p.m.. The Thanksgiving Handicap goes as the eighth race.

Chinquapin Charlie was named the meet's top handicap horse last year, after winning both the one-mile Polynesian Flyer Handicap and the Portland Meadows Mile. He then underlined his affinity for the mile distance by winning the Longacres Mile Consolation at Emerald Downs in August this year. He carries high weight of 122 pounds because of those accomplishments, but he has not raced since Sept. 3 and could be a little shy of his best effort.

Tomtom Tommalice was the top 3-year-old at Portland Meadows in 2000, when he capped a string of three consecutive stakes wins with a victory in the 1 1/8-mile Oregon Derby. Tomtom Tommalice showed versatility in his first start at this meeting, winning the Inaugural Handicap at five furlongs on opening day, Oct. 27.

The two highweights in the Thanksgiving Handicap will meet a trio of 3-year-olds, a mare, and one other older horse, the speedster Bold Chant. The field's lone female is Constantly Classy, a 5-year-old daughter of Desert Classic who has been racing without success against tough allowance and stakes company in California. Constantly Classy gets in light at 114 pounds with Bob Webb to ride, and could be a threat to upset with her best effort.

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