Shadowbdancing runs off with Rasmussen
Shadowbdancing ran his rivals off their feet Saturday at Prairie Meadows in the $50,000 Jim Rasmussen Memorial Stakes, the co-feature on the card along with the $50,000 Wild Rose Stakes.
After sprinting clear from the Rasmussen field through a half-mile in a lively 46.27 seconds, Shadowbdancing may have appeared vulnerable to his quartet of pursuers. However, when he extended his advantage to three lengths turning for home, his regular rider, the veteran Randy Meier, sneaked a peek back for threats - and no one had enough to catch him. The Don Von Hemel-trained Sebastian County closed ground steadily through the stretch but could only cut Shadowbdancing's winning margin down to 2 1/4 lengths.
Shadowbdancing, a 4-year-old son of Montbrook, was pointed to this race by trainer Terrel Gore since a similar front-running score in Hawthorne's Bonasera Stakes on April 11.
Collecting $30,000 for owner Robert E. Bartels' RNB Racing LLC, Shadowbdancing had carried high weight of 123 pounds, six to nine more than his rivals. He clocked an excellent time of 1:42.06 for the 1 1/16-mile distance. As second choice in the field of five, the Arlington Park-based colt paid $6.40 to win.
Now victorious in all three of his stakes tries here around two turns, Shadowbdancing could do a lot more than ensure a fast pace if he returns for the Grade 2 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap on June 27.
Wild Rose: Celeritas grabs an upset
As the field of seven in the Wild Rose Stakes passed the quarter pole, the 1 1/16-mile race for fillies and mares was up for grabs. Under a determined ride from Glenn Corbett, the Prairie Meadows-based mare Celeritas proved most resilient, outstaying her foes for an 18-1 upset as the longest shot on the board.
In the process, Celeritas, a 5-year-old daughter of Stephen Got Even, gained her first black-type victory by half a length. Her chief rival, the favored Rasierra - the only other entrant in the field stabled here - finally gave way in the last 70 yards after a solid effort for trainer Ray Tracy.
Of the others, the Steve Asmussen-trained Lone Star invader Nice Inheritance made a sweeping move into contention at the furlong marker but flattened out to finish fifth. Chicago shipper Sweet Aptitude, handled by Bobby Springer, weaved her way through traffic to get up for third by a nose from Boston Cat.
Trained by Jason Mamakos for his wife, owner Christine Hicklin Mamakos, Celeritas earned $30,000 and will be aimed for the June 27 Iowa Distaff. The "all Prairie Meadows exacta" returned a generous $141.40.