INGLEWOOD, Calif. - His aged feet do not grow. Instead, they are held together by glue. At times, Men's Exclusive has been so sore he could barely leave his stall. He is a tank, and a racehorse. By trainer Wesley Ward's estimation, Men's Exclusive weighs 1,400 pounds.
And he is ancient, 10 years old. By now, the racing career of Men's Exclusive should be over. Even Ward wonders, "How old would he be in human years?"
SAN MATEO, Calif. - Trainer Jedd Josephson, who will run Direct Male in Saturday's $100,000 Ascot Handicap at Bay Meadows, sums up the race this way:
"It's not like this is a stellar bunch," he said of the nine 3-year-olds entered for the 1 1/16-mile turf stakes. "But it is a nice bunch."
British-bred Just Wonder, trained by Laura de Seroux, and Helms Deep are the probable favorites.
CALGARY, Alberta - Taiaslew, Alberta's champion juvenile colt of last year, makes his 2003 debut against eight 3-year-old rivals in Saturday's $40,000 President's Stakes.
Taiaslew, a Washington-bred son of Slewdledo, was unbeaten in four local outings prior to running third to Illusive Force, British Columbia's top 2-year-old, at Hastings Park to end his campaign. Taiaslew comes into the six-furlong President's off a steady string of works for trainer Greg Tracy and will have his regular rider Real Simard in the irons as he begins from post 8.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Illusive Force and Lord Nelson head their respective fields as Hastings offers a stakes doubleheader Saturday.
Illusive Force and his stablemate Stratoplan figure to be odds-on over four other 3-year-olds in the City of Vancouver Stakes, and Lord Nelson will likely be favored in the George Royal, which drew 10 older horses. Both races are worth $40,000 and are at 6 1/2 furlongs.
AUBURN, Wash. - Full Force Gale is the one to beat in Saturday's top offering at Emerald Downs, a six-furlong dash for older $25,000 runners that has drawn a field of six.
Four members of the field are exiting a similar race on April 26 in which Hollow Memories led throughout to score by three-quarters of a length in a rapid 1:08.80. Full Force Gale finished fast for second despite encountering traffic problems. He was forced to steady when crowded on the backstretch and then raced three to four lanes wide around the turn.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - While the future stars of his class were still bucking shins and growing into their skins, Posse already was tearing up the racetrack. An eye-popping maiden victory in April of his 2-year-old season made him an instant sensation, but that was before the rest of the division began catching up to him.
Today, more than a year into his racing career, Posse has settled into the niche of stakes-quality sprinter, one whose ambitions are limited primarily by distance. On Saturday, Posse will run six furlongs in the $100,000 Matt Winn Stakes at Churchill Downs.
ETOBICOKE, Ontario - A rejuvenated Tempered Appeal will try to string together his second consecutive peak performance Saturday at Woodbine in the $172,650 Eclipse Handicap, a 1 1/16-mile race for older runners.
Tempered Appeal was claimed for $80,000 by trainer Abraham Katryan on behalf of owner Bruno Schickedanz in July 2001, and captured the Bold Venture Handicap in his next start. Tempered Appeal also won an allowance race in his final 2001 outing.
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - When Dynever showed signs that he would not be an early bloomer, his trainer, Christophe Clement, paid attention. The result is a late-developing 3-year-old with tremendous potential who will be seeking his third straight win in Saturday's Grade 3, $500,000 Lone Star Derby.
Clement put off Dynever's debut until the colt's 3-year-old season in order to give him time to develop mentally.
"I did not want to rush him too much," said Clement. "He was rather green, and we wanted to give him a bit of time as a 2-year-old."
INGLEWOOD, Calif. - The stretch run of last weekend's Kentucky Derby has become a nightmare for jockey David Flores.
Each time he relives the fourth-place finish by Atswhatimtalknbout, he critiques a ride that fell short of catching Funny Cide, Empire Maker, and Peace Rules.
"I try to keep it out of my head," Flores said on Thursday morning on the Hollywood Park backstretch.
ELMONT, N.Y. - To the best of his recollection, California-based trainer Michael Machowsky has started only two horses at Belmont Park. He is still in search of his first victory. Machowsky hopes that initial win will come Sunday in the Grade 2, $150,000 Genuine Risk Stakes for fillies and mares at six furlongs.