Gal in a Rush ships in for Seaway seeking second stakes win of meet

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Gal in a Rush returns to Woodbine for another stakes engagement in Saturday’s Grade 3, $135,000 Seaway for fillies and mares.

Based at Saratoga with trainer Christophe Clement, Gal in a Rush’s first Woodbine foray of the meet in the Grade 3 Hendrie on July 6 was impressive. She was 3-1 throughout most of betting before drifting up to 6-1 when the 6 1/2-furlong sprint was being run. After trailing some six lengths off the lead on the turn under Kazushi Kimura, she mounted a wide rally to prevail with a career-high 94 Beyer Speed Figure.

“She’s the type who loves to take it easy for the first part, then finish up strong,” Kimura said. “She just really responds so well.”

Leading rider Sahin Civaci inherits the mount Saturday from former leading Woodbine jockey Kimura, who is currently based at Del Mar. The daughter of Ghostzapper drew the outside in post 11.

Trainer Mark Casse sends out Ticker Tape Home and Time Passage in the seven-furlong event.

Ticker Tape Home wound up fourth in last year’s Seaway as a 3-year-old. After returning from a layoff in the spring at Gulfstream Park, she missed the board in back-to-back five-furlong allowances on turf. When reunited with Patrick Husbands here July 21, she notched a six-furlong conditioned allowance on the main turf.

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“Patrick just loves her,” Casse said. “She loves Woodbine. We ran her short on the turf at Gulfstream. It takes a special kind of horse [for that], and it just wasn’t her cup of tea.”

Time Passage is adding Lasix off a five-month break in her first start for Casse. The front-runner was a stakes-winning miler over Gulfstream’s Tapeta last fall. She went to the sidelines after folding in a pair of turf stakes in Florida in March.

“She’s done everything right,” Casse said. “I expect her to run well.”

Owen’s Tour Guide led throughout in a conditioned allowance/optional claimer three starts back before a front-running second in the Hendrie. She faded from fourth to finish eighth most recently in the Sweet Briar Too Stakes on the main turf.

“Last year, we changed her running style where she went on the lead, and she gets more aggressive when she’s out there,” trainer Willy Armata said. “I’m not saying that she can’t run from off the pace anymore, but she likes to be out there and be the boss.”

Kentucky-based Nom de Plume has been idle since a neck loss behind a next-out winner in a June 16 conditioned allowance with a $100,000 claiming option at Churchill Downs. She posted two wins and a second from three Tapeta excursions at Turfway for trainer Paulo Lobo.

Swall, who was stakes-placed at Turfway in March, is coming off two consecutive seconds in dirt stakes at different tracks. She’s reacquiring Lasix for her first start for trainer Julia Carey, who has fared well with new acquisitions.

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