Rice enjoying a December to remember

OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Mother Nature, the racing schedule, and herself appear to be the only things that can slow trainer Linda Rice down these days.

Since Dec. 7, Rice has won 11 races from 20 starters (encompassing 18 races) at Aqueduct. That includes three-win days on Thursday, Dec. 8, and Dec. 7. Racing was canceled due to high winds on Wednesday, a card on which Rice had four runners. Rice won with her sole starter on Friday and had only one horse entered Saturday. Following Sunday’s card, on which Rice has three starters, there are only three racing days between Monday and Dec. 27.

“We had a little bit of a slow November; we’re making up for it in December,” Rice, who in November won nine races from 46 starters, said of her recent run.

Rice has won 13 races from 32 starters (in 29 races) in December. She has lost four of her winners – and six horses overall – at the claim box while claiming four herself. Rice said she also was outshook by other trainers on several other potential claims.

Among Rice’s three winners on Thursday was Do Share, who despite coming off a 165-day layoff ran down Angry Moon to win a third-level allowance race by a head. The final time of 1:19.48 for 6 1/2 furlongs was decent on Thursday’s slow track and translated to a 96 Beyer Speed Figure.

“I was very pleased,” Rice said. “Coming off a layoff and everything, I was a little concerned if I had him tight enough. The way he ran down that horse to win by a head I imagine I had him tight enough.”

Rice said Do Share would be pointed to the Grade 3, $100,000 Toboggan at seven furlongs here on Jan. 27.

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Looking ahead, Rice said one horse she is bringing back to the races soon is Holiday Disguise, who could be pointed to the $100,000 La Verdad Stakes for New York-bred fillies on Jan. 6. The La Verdad is a new stakes, named for the champion female sprinter of 2015 trained by Rice and owned by Sheila Rosenblum, who also owns Holiday Disguise. Due to an ankle issue, Holiday Disguise has not run since winning the Bouwerie Stakes at Belmont Park on May 29.

One of the few disappointments in December for Rice was Seymourdini, who finished ninth of 10 in the Grade 1 Cigar Mile. Rice said Seymourdini came out of the race in good order, but she has no firm plans for his next race.

“We’ll train him for awhile, get him to a breeze or two, and see how things unfold,” Rice said.