Trainer Wes Hawley claimed Get in Da House for $10,000 this past spring with one race in mind – the $150,000 A.L. “Red” Erwin at Louisiana Downs on Saturday. The fact that the horse has already won two stakes for Hawley and partner Bob Orth has been a bonus.

“We were kind of taking a shot,” Hawley said of the claim made at Fair Grounds in March. “I figured he was worth $10,000, maybe more, when I took him. I thought he might win a few races. I never dreamed he’d be this good.”

Approaching the quarter pole of last month’s Travers Stakes, Rattlesnake Bridge was making a four-wide bid into contention, seemingly about to set up a dramatic stretch drive with Stay Thirsty at Saratoga.

But in the final furlong, Stay Thirsty ran away from Rattlesnake Bridge and the remainder of the Travers field, putting himself among the leaders of the 3-year-old division. After drifting out somewhat in the stretch, Rattlesnake Bridge righted himself and finished a clear second.

FLORENCE, Ky. – Mike Maker must see dollar signs when he drives north on Interstate 71 from his home in Louisville to Turfway Park. The 42-year-old trainer has developed a knack for taking down the bigger prizes at Turfway, having twice won the track’s premier race, now known as the Vinery Spiral, with With a City (2006) and Dean’s Kitten (2010), as well as the last running of the Kentucky Cup Classic in 2009 with Furthest Land.

Suffolk Downs has announced a new stakes race, a purse increase, and the continuation of four-day racing weeks for the final two months of the 2011 season with the inaugural $100,000 Robert O’Malley Sprint Stakes set to be held on Oct.  22.

As in years past, the track didn’t announce a stakes schedule at the start of the season, waiting instead to gauge business trends. The new race, named for the longtime track executive who died in 2007, will be six furlongs for fillies and mares with nominations closing Oct. 8.

FLORENCE, Ky. – Realistically, it might not prove to be a springboard for the Breeders’ Cup this year, but the Kentucky Cup has to start somewhere.

Make that restart.

Having gone dormant a year while Turfway Park dealt with ongoing financial difficulties, the Kentucky Cup resurfaces Saturday with an interesting and competitive – if not star-studded – revival of a five-race, $600,000 series.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Last year, Kentucky-based trainer Mike Maker shipped up Stately Victor to capture Woodbine’s $150,000 Ontario Derby.

On Saturday, Maker will be looking to follow that blueprint with Derby Kitten in the 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds.

Stately Victor had come with solid Polytrack credentials, having won the Grade 1 Blue Grass over 1 1/8 miles at Keeneland.

Derby Kitten also is a stakes winner at Keeneland, having captured the Grade 3, 1 1/16-mile Lexington in his only start to date on a synthetic surface.

OCEANPORT, N.J. – Terri Pompay trains Currency Swap, who emerged as one of the nation’s leading 2-year-olds following a victory in the Grade 1 Hopeful Stakes earlier this month.

There is more than one 2-year-old colt in her barn. Pompay sends out two members of her supporting cast – Managed Account and Dangerous Trick – in the National Association of Two-Year-Old Consignors Futurity on Saturday at Monmouth Park.

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Moonshine Mullin, who ran hot and cold at Saratoga, will shed blinkers for Saturday’s $150,000 Ontario Derby, a nine-furlong stakes that drew nine 3-year-olds.

Moonshine Mullin served notice that he was among the elite 3-year-olds at Woodbine when he took the nine-furlong Victoria Park Stakes on the Polytrack here June 12.

Following a seven-week break, Moonshine Mullin was a surprising second to Stay Thirsty in the Grade  2 Jim Dandy at Saratoga, earning a 99 Beyer Figure in the nine-furlong route while making his first dirt start.

MIAMI – Saturday will be ladies’ day at Calder with a pair of stakes on tap for fillies and mares, the $75,000 Stage Door Betty Handicap at 1 1/16 miles and the $55,000 Dolly Jo carded at six furlongs. Both races will be run over the main track.

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Hard work, talent, and a little bit of luck are some of the ingredients required for success. Apprentice jockey Alex Marti appears to have the first two prerequisites, and being at the right place at the right time could help propel the 19-year-old to a successful riding career.