Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Great Lakes Downs track report

Trainer Wayne Minnock is 1 for 1 at Great Lakes Downs this year after shipping in from Kentucky to capture Monday's $45,000 Lansing Stakes with Speak of Kings.

Speak of Kings ($5.80) won by 2 1/4 lengths over Demagoguery, last year's juvenile champ at this track. Demagoguery's chances were compromised when he broke in the air.

Gerald Bennett, trainer of Demagoguery, won the week's other 3-year-old stakes, the $45,000 Regret, with Musical Factor, who defeated the 2004 filly champ, Foolininthemeadow, who finished fourth.

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Lincoln track report

Jerry Carkeek turned in the riding performance of the season last Friday when he collected five wins on the card from his eight mounts. Carkeek won the final race on Thursday night before scoring five times on Friday. He added a triple on Sunday to leapfrog from sixth to third in the jockey standings.

Trainer Diana Maass saddled her first career winner on Thursday night when her uncoupled entry of Pug's Pistol and My Man ran one-two in the third race. Pug's Pistol returned $35 to win and combined with her stablemate for an exacta worth $157.60.

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Remington Park track report

Remington Park closed out its 32-date Quarter Horse meet June 5, and a schedule of mostly night racing helped the track post an increase in average daily attendance and handle over the same meet in 2004.

Attendance averaged 1,904 patrons a card, up 3.4 percent from last meet. Handle on Remington Park's races averaged $397,055 a program, an increase of 70 percent that was fueled by significant growth in betting on the track's races at sites around the country.

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Dash on a Mission returns from layoff in Bayer trial

Dash on a Mission, winner of the Grade 1, $175,000 Ford Juvenile Challenge Championship, returns from a spring layoff in the trials to the Grade 1 Bayer Legend California Juvenile Challenge at Los Alamitos on Friday night.

The 3-year-olds with the 10 fastest times from the two trials qualify for the 400-yard finals on July 1.

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Line Seven heads Retama Derby

Fastest qualifier Line Seven heads a competitive Grade 1, $139,700 Retama Park Derby, and the undefeated This Candys Red Hot tops the Grade 1, $328,725 Retama Park Futurity on closing weekend of the Retama Park Quarter Horse season.

The derby is on Saturday, and the futurity will be held on Sunday.

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Strawfly Romance in tough spot

Fastest qualifier Strawfly Romance will have a tough test against Sunland Fall Futurity winner Cowboys N Injuns in the Grade 3, $42,840 Bayer Legend New Mexico Derby at Ruidoso Downs on Sunday afternoon.

Strawfly Romance topped the qualifiers from three trials on June 2 with a neck win over second-fastest qualifier Go Fly West, who was making his second start. Strawfly Romance raced the 400 yards in 19.662 seconds.

Strawfly Romance has a fourth in the Grade 1 Texas Classic Futurity and a fifth in the Sunland Fall Futurity.

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Ins and outs of Queen's Plate shaping up

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - The Queen's Plate is quickly approaching, with the 146th running of the $1 million showpiece for Canadian-bred 3-year-olds set for Sunday, June 26.

And there was Queen's Plate news on several fronts here Wednesday, as nominees Three in the Bag, Granique, and Stag Nation all worked over the "good" main track, and Enough Is Enough and Dave the Knave were officially declared to be out of the running.

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Loseth hangs up tack, moves to next phase

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Chris Loseth, the all-time leading rider in victories and stakes wins at Hastings, has retired. Loseth made the surprise announcement midway through Sunday's card.

"I woke up Sunday morning and just decided that this was the last day I'm going to ride," he said. "I normally pull two or three pounds in my whirlpool at home, and when I got into the pool Sunday morning, I felt good about it being the last time."

Wed, 06/15/2005 - 00:00

Rim Dancer excels at distance

WINNIPEG, Manitoba - Rim Dancer, a 10-year-old gelding owned by his trainer, Clint Willson, appears to the class of Friday's featured eighth race for $8,000 claimers at 7 1/2 furlongs.

After racing only twice during 2004, Rim Dancer began this year by beating a field of $5,000 claimers with a strong stretch rally.

In his next start, Rim Dancer, a British Columbia-bred son of Three Martinis, finished third against $10,000 claimers.

Tue, 06/14/2005 - 00:00

Second of June injured

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Second of June has been withdrawn from Saturday's Stephen Foster Handicap because of an ankle injury that will keep the 4-year-old colt out of action at least into the fall.

Trainer Bill Cesare said Tuesday at Churchill Downs that Second of June came up lame shortly after he returned from training Monday. The eventual diagnosis was an osselet, or a painful calcium deposit, in Second of June's left hind ankle.