Soft Touch bumps up against course bias

When Soft Touch and Trail Ridge Road met Sept. 6 at Colonial Downs in a 1 3/16-mile turf allowance, Soft Touch proved the superior horse, winning by one length with Trail Ridge Road fourth. We’ll find out Friday if the gap between the pair really is that wide.

The fillies are among eight horses in the main body of a second-level turf-route allowance race also open to $50,000 claimers. Showers were possible Thursday in New Orleans and it’s uncertain the featured seventh of eight races Friday stays on grass. Field size is limited to eight with the temporary turf rail placed at 34 feet.

Outside closers have dominated the handful of grass races run so far this meet, possible trouble for Soft Touch, a Godolphin homebred with positional pace who drew the rail. Soft Touch won a maiden turf race over nine furlongs at Colonial before the 9 1/2-furlong allowance victory, but trying 1 1/2 miles in October at Keeneland she contested the pace and faded to 10th.

:: DRF Bets players have exclusive access to FREE DRF Past Performances - Classic or Formulator! Join today. “Better horses and she doesn’t want to go that far,” trainer Michael Stidham said. With no turf racing early in the Fair Grounds season, Soft Touch went to Turfway for a Tapeta start Dec. 8, running evenly for third. “Better on grass,” said Stidham.

While Soft Touch found a sweet outside stalking trip winning the Colonial allowance, Trail Ridge Road got bottled up on the rail racing mid-pack while pulling too hard for her head. With clear running at the five-sixteenths pole, she came with a good burst that propelled her nearly to the lead before flattening out late. Cut back to 1 1/16 miles in an Illinois-bred turf stakes Oct. 8, Trail Ridge Road came with an eye-catching run to win easily. A dirt experiment Dec. 2 confirmed the filly prefers grass, and her style plays to the course bias.

“I’ve been excited about this filly since I got her,” said trainer Chris Block. “She’s lightly raced, and I expect her to move forward.”

Dreamworker hasn’t started since September but exits four stakes tries, employs closing tactics, and is drawn in post 8 as the third key contender in the Friday feature.

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