Silver Dust wins Mineshaft in another professional effort

NEW ORLEANS – Twenty-six races into his career, 6-year-old Silver Dust seems to have finally figured this game out. After requiring 16 tries to win two races, Silver Dust had won half his last 10 starts coming into Saturday’s Grade 3, $150,000 Mineshaft Stakes. Make that six for 11, as Silver Dust, taking a step forward from his Louisiana Stakes win here Jan. 18, won the Mineshaft by three-quarters of a length over longshot Gun It.

Talent has never been the issue for Silver Dust. It’s the mental side of racing that has proven far more difficult to master.

“The things he’d do in the morning – every morning – were just unbelievable,” said trainer Bret Calhoun.

But in afternoon racing, Silver Dust would act up on the paddock, lash out on the starting gate, fail to translate his ability to capability.

In the Louisiana last month, Silver Dust acted perfect in the paddock and did all the pre-race stuff professionally, to the extent Calhoun wondered if his horse was going to show up at all. It was more of the same Saturday – good in the paddock, good in the gate, and good out on the track. Gelding Silver Dust was the first step in tempering his hot-blooded behavior, but the transformation has taken plenty of work and patience from Calhoun’s operation.

“He’s almost starting to make me a real believer,” said Calhoun.

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Silver Dust ($5.60) showed a new dimension past the three-furlong pole in the Mineshaft, leaping into the bridle to attack pacesetting Pirate’s Punch, who had set a moderate tempo to that point, considering the headwind that slowed his opening fraction of 24.41 seconds and quickened the pace to a 47.25 half-mile split. In a flash, Silver Dust was up on Pirate’s Punch’s flank, and if one were to fault Silver Dust’s performance Saturday, it might be for idling, at least slightly, after taking over so assertively.

Jack Gilligan has been Silver Dust’s regular rider, but Gilligan is out with an injury and Brian Hernandez got the mount Saturday. Hernandez had ridden Silver Dust once before, in the 2017 West Virginia Derby, and knew what the gelding, still a colt then, had been like in younger years.

“He’s gotten so good. I was a little worried that [Pirate’s Punch] had gotten an easy lead, but when I came to him so easy, I knew it was going to take a good horse to beat me,” said Hernandez.

Silver Dust, who had to be checked between horses before the first turn, was timed in 1:43.40 for 1 1/16 miles on a fast track. Gun It, who loomed a potential upsetter before being turned away by Silver Dust, made huge strides Saturday to run easily the best race of his life, though, as always, he failed to change leads in the home stretch. Pirate’s Punch might have still been feeling the effect of a very fast allowance win here about a month ago but plugged along gamely to finish third. Captivating Moon finished fourth, followed by Cutting Humor, Sleepy Eyes Todd, Hofburg, Winning Number, and Mocito Rojo. Blended Citizen and Roiland were scratched.

Tom Durant owns Silver Dust, a son of Tapit and Filare d’Oro. Calhoun said the New Orleans Classic here on March 21 probably is next on Silver Dust’s agenda. After years of frustration, the horse’s connections finally are feeling more elation than frustration.