SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Trainer Jimmy Jerkens said it looks like the Grade 1 Woodward on Labor Day will be next for Convocation following his convincing 3 1/4-length victory over Ron the Greek in a mile and one-eighth allowance race here Friday.
The victory was the first this season for Convocation, a 5-year-old son of Pulpit, who was pressed on the lead from the outset by Ice Box before ultimately asserting his superiority and edging well clear through the stretch.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Owner-trainer Tim Snyder had his 15 minutes of fame and then some a year ago after shipping his one-horse stable, Lisa’s Booby Trap, from Finger Lakes to Saratoga to win the Loudonville Stakes. Snyder is hoping for another moment in the spotlight this summer, beginning Monday, when he brings his Cinderella filly back to Saratoga to compete in Monday’s $75,000 Rachel Alexandra overnight stakes.
Hoosier Park begins its 17th season Tuesday when the 61-day summer/fall meet begins. The track’s racing secretary, Kevin Greely, is pleased with the progress the Anderson, Ind., track is making in upgrading the quality of its racing, a task he undertook when he began his job last season.
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Trainer Steve Asmussen would feel a lot more comfortable about Justin Phillip’s chances to win Monday’s Grade 2, $150,000 Amsterdam Stakes if the race were being held at Belmont Park and not Saratoga.
The $50,000 Madamoiselle at Northlands Park on Monday drew five horses but the 1 1/16-mile feature for fillies and mares shapes up as a battle between Alywyn and Summer Song.
Summer Song has done most of her running at Hastings but she thrives at Northlands where she has won three stakes. Her only loss in Edmonton came in an allowance race she used as a prep for the John Patrick which she won by 2 1/2 lengths July 9. She came back to work a bullet five furlongs in 59 seconds July 25, and her trainer Alan May said she couldn’t be doing any better.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Wando Woman will be a short price when she tries to win her third straight stakes race in the $50,000 B.C. Cup Distaff. The 1 1/8-mile Distaff drew six fillies and mares and goes as the fourth race. It is one of seven stakes races for British Columbia-breds that make up the bulk of the 10-race B.C. Cup Day card at Hastings on Monday. All seven stakes are worth $50,000.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – In his 20-race career, Almost Time has won seven sprints, but just one route. Last year he was a runaway winner of the B.C. Cup Sprint. Yet, his connections have opted to run him in the 1 1/8-mile B.C. Cup Classic instead of the Sprint. The Classic headlines the 10-race B.C. Cup Day card that includes seven $50,000 stakes races restricted to British Columbia-breds at Hastings on Monday.
Canterbury Park shippers could carry the day in the supporting stakes at Assiniboia Downs on Monday with Tourmaline looming the choice of five in the $50,000 Assiniboia Oaks and Cowboy Luke looking like the horse to beat in the $25,000 Graduation.
The Assiniboia Oaks, a 1 1/16-mile race for 3-year-old fillies, will go as the third race and the Graduation, a 5 1/2-furlong race for 2-year-olds, as the sixth on a nine-race card capped by the Manitoba Derby.
El Grayling, purchased privately following his last start at Woodbine, has been made the 2-1 morning-line favorite for Monday’s $75,000 Manitoba Derby at Assiniboia Downs.
The Manitoba Derby, a 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds which attracted a field of nine, is the showpiece of the Assiniboia meeting and will go as the ninth and final race on a holiday card which also includes the $50,000 Assiniboia Oaks for 3-year-old fillies and the $25,000 Graduation for 2-year-olds.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Woodbine track announcer Dan Loiselle could have a challenging call on holiday Monday, when Wild About Marie meets Wildcat Marie in the $150,000 Royal North Stakes, a Grade 3 turf sprint for fillies and mares.
The versatile Wild About Marie is 3 for 4 on the grass. Her Kentucky-based trainer, Jeff Thornbury, said the six-furlong distance of the Royal North should be a good fit for her.
