New horse emerges in 2yo picture

EDMONTON, Alberta - The $50,000 Canadian Juvenile at Northlands Park last Saturday was expected to provide a view to the 2002 Canadian Derby.

But the race provided more questions than answers after Crescent Remark, lightly regarded at 9-1, surged down the lane to overtake heavy favorite Dance Me Free at the wire.

Entering the race, Crescent Remark had just one win to his credit in his first campaign but the Rod Haynes-trained colt was not to be denied down the stretch.

The upset tarnished a spectacular year by Dance Me Free, who was looking to put an exclamation mark on a season that saw him win over $97,000 while establishing himself as the most likely contender for the Derby next August.

In the Canadian Juvenile, Dance Me Free took the early lead from post position 7 and looked strong through the first six furlongs before fading down the stretch with jockey Peter Wong aboard. He finished second by a head and the question about his ability to run longer distances now has to be asked, although the early fractions were testing.

In other action here last weekend, three of this year's Canadian Derby entrants made their final appearances of 2001 in an allowance race for 3-year-olds and Bubblegum Kid stole the show after chasing down Candid Remark.

Bubblegum Kid, trained by Joan Petrowksi, ran fourth in the Derby and finished the year with just under $50,000 in earnings.

The favored Kid Copper finished a disappointing third.