Orseno still trying to figure Sticky McShnickens out
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Staying true to his name, 4-year-old gelding Sticky McShnickens seems to be making up the rules as he goes along. After 12 career starts, trainer Joe Orseno still doesn’t understand everything about his hard-knocking Florida-bred, but he knows he has a fast horse.
On Friday, Sticky McShnickens will stretch out to a mile on turf in a $43,000 statebred allowance at Gulfstream Park. He has not run in a route since April and seems to be settling in as a sprinter, but Orseno said that trying a longer distance was the best alternative.
“There was no other race for him short, and he’s training so well that it was between this and trying the dirt short,” Orseno said. “I opted to go the mile with him.”
The gelding is named after a scene in “The Ridiculous 6,” a 2015 Western comedy in which John Turturro plays Abner Doubleday and improvises the rules of baseball, a sport he refers to as “Sticky McShnickens.” It’s the perfect name for Orseno’s versatile runner, who has been a puzzle since his February 2024 debut.
Sticky McShnickens’s move to statebred competition earlier this year coincided with his cutback to sprints, and the two changes clearly led to improvement. He finally earned his maiden victory after 10 attempts in May and took a nice step forward later in the month to finish second by a head behind improving gelding Fast Fixer in a 5 1/2-furlong synthetic sprint.
“I really haven’t figured out which one he likes more,” Orseno said of the gelding’s form on turf and synthetic. “He runs pretty well over both of them.”
Switching back to turf in June, Sticky McShnickens turned the tables on Fast Fixer but had to settle for second again, as second-time starter Pajaro beat him to the early lead and prevailed by a length at the wire. Orseno said he blames himself for the back-to-back runner-up finishes.
“The truth is that I trained him too much like a sprinter,” Orseno said. “I backed up on him a couple days before. Going into this one, I decided that he’s going to train. Maybe some of that was just what I did to him. This game is so much trial and error, and I haven’t quite got him figured out.”
The Florida-bred’s four prior attempts on turf between 7 1/2 furlongs and a mile were all against stronger maiden fields, but he should have a more distinct opportunity in the field of seven on Friday. His tactical speed could prove to be an overwhelming factor, as jockey Edgard Zayas will take the reins from the far outside post.
Sticky McShnickens will be a new face challenging a trio of rematched rivals on Friday. Smart Striker, Drink N Wink, and Jack Kerouac will all face off again after finishing within a length of one another in a similar allowance last month.
Smart Striker, a 5-year-old gelding trained by Carlos David, prevailed by a head that day in a bumping stretch run, but all three contenders will likely have to deal with a more dangerous pace presence this time.
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