Meadowlands: Ryder found the key to Stonebridge Reef

Though trainer Chris Ryder has a stable made up predominantly of 2- and 3-year-old prospects on both the trotting and pacing side, he has kept active this winter racing at the Meadowlands. On Saturday night his Stonebridge Reef will once again do battle over a surface he's become accustomed to throughout his career.

The son of Somebeachsomewhere has been a staple on the circuit and will be making his sixth start of 2024 after a record 36 trips to post in 2023. The number of starts is a radical change for Stonebridge Reef, a nice stakes-caliber horse that made but 12 starts combined during his freshman and sophomore season.

"He was chronically unsound," said Ryder of the early years that didn't allow Stonebridge Reef to maximize his earning potential in stakes action. "He just didn't stand up to heavy training."

Over time Ryder had to change something, and that's what he's done.

"We just stopped training him. We started in the pool and then put him on the sand track," said Ryder of the change in tactics that has ultimately worked to the advantage of both horse and trainer. "That's why I don't like to give him a week off very often. Sometimes he missed a week because a race doesn't fill."

With 36 starts last year, Stonebridge Reef was first or second 19 times and earned $135K, by far his best season on the racetrack. Ryder has kept him going and doesn't want to keep him idle too long, otherwise risk he'll gain weight and get out of condition. Entering Saturday's contest, he's won twice this year and finished on the board in four of his five starts. He landed post seven in Saturday's tenth race, a non-winners of $10,000 conditioned affair with a purse of $18,000.

Stonebridge Reef has made a majority of his lifetime starts over the mile track at the Meadowlands, winning his first race as a 2-year-old in 1:54 in 2020.

"We've tried him on the five-eighths tracks and he's not as good," said Ryder, conceding that Stonebridge Reef did race at both Harrah's Philadelphia and Pocono over the last few years.

Lisa Lane, a Lazarus-sired mare, has been a solid family horse over the last two years racing primarily in New Jersey. She'll look for a second straight win on Friday night in a non-winners of $5,000 for fillies and mares carded as race six. Owned by Chris, his son Patrick and Patrick's wife Nadia, Lisa Lane enters Friday's contest with $212K banked, a solid return on the $21,000 yearling investment in the fall of 2021.

Patrick has been quite active on the Meadowlands circuit this winter and enjoyed his best night ever last Saturday (February 10) with two victories on the Big M card for trainer Michael Calderone.

"I think he's getting more confidence," said Ryder about his son's driving. "I guess that comes with winning."

As for winning a pair of races on a single Meadowlands card, the younger Ryder now has something on his dad.

"I've won more than one race as a trainer," said Ryder, "But never as a driver."

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As for returning horses in 2024, Breeders Crown champion Gem Quality has begun training back with an eye on a May return.

"We had some hiccups with him mid-season but when we figured it out, he was great at the end," said Ryder of the son of Captain Crunch that, although victorious in the Crown, will still need to prove himself as a sophomore.

Gem Quality has only been in 2:30 thus far.

Twin B Joe Fresh returns from a vintage sophomore season where she had to settle for bridesmaid honors behind champion Sylvia Hanover. Both horses return for the 2024 season and Ryder is hopeful his 4-year-old mare by Roll With Joe will have better results.

"I've talked with Dexter [co-owner and driver Dunn] about it, and we think she's just got to time her move differently," said Ryder. "In the Crown she sped away from her and just got tired at the end."

While a meet-up with Sylvia Hanover likely won't happen until the two collide in the Roses Are Red at Woodbine Mohawk Park in June, Ryder is looking forward to some Kentucky-sired events at Oak Grove this spring for Twin B Joe Fresh.

Always in search of a top trotter, Ryder is hoping to bounce back after the tail end of 2023 left him a little short of racing stock.

"It was a tough day seeing both Walner Payton and Eternal Lee leave to become broodmares," said Ryder of the trotting filly and mare that had so much success for him over the past two seasons but have gone on to a second career.

It's a bit early to be certain how this year's crop of 2-year-olds will pan out, but Ryder likes what he sees in a pair of trotting fillies under his care, one by Tactical Landing and the other a Southwind Frank-sired filly that's out of a sister to 2023 champion Bond. The $310,000 yearling now known as Soupie J also hails from the same immediate family as Bella Bellini.

On the pacing side, Ryder likes a Captaintreacherous-sired colt and a Bettor's Wish-sired colt and filly. There's a daughter of Papi Rob Hanover, as well as two fillies by Captaintreacherous. Just a few years back Ryder made headlines with the Captaintreacherous-sired Party Girl Hill.

Ryder sounded enthusiastic that the lightly-raced 4-year-old Lukes Bar could emerge this year. The son of Bar Hopping finished second in Grand Circuit action at The Red Mile in 2022 and has only made one start since.