Galic Boy makes the grade

STICKNEY, Ill. - Thirty-one starts into his career, the 6-year-old Galic Boy won his first graded stakes race Saturday, beating heavily favored Where's Taylor in the Grade 3 $150,000 Robert Carey Memorial Handicap at Hawthorne.

Galic Boy, owned by Arthur Appleton and trained by Mickey Goldfine, got a perfect trip under jockey Ray Sibille, passing the tiring Where's Taylor in deep stretch before drawing away to win by 1 1/4 lengths. Where's Taylor finished second by a neck over Good Journey, who loomed up at the stretch call but couldn't sustain his bid. The winner ran a mile on firm turf in a good 1:35.01.

Because he was unproven at this class level, and because he was coming off a sub-par effort in his last start, Galic Boy was a huge price. He paid $50.60 to win, topping the $40 he paid winning the ungraded John Henry Stakes at Arlington over the summer.

"He didn't run as well last time, but we thought we figured out the reason for that," Sibille said.

Goldfine explained: "He likes to have more time in between his races," he said. "Given the proper time, we thought he could win a race like this."

The proper time, and the proper trip. The Carey set up perfectly for Galic Boy when Where's Taylor, breaking from post 1, was forced into a fast pace. Where's Taylor is a front-runner capable of setting a quick pace and having something left for the finish, but the early pressure he took from Langston, and to a lesser extent, Conserve, was too much. The opening quarter-mile was a moderate 24.06 seconds, but the pace quickened, with the half-mile going in 47.15 and three-quarters in 1:11.09.

Meanwhile, Galic Boy and Sibille waited in fourth place, just behind the pacesetters. "When [Langston] started to stop, I came right through the hole," he said. "It worked out perfectly."