Fri, 10/05/2001 - 00:00

Past You strong in Courtship

Past You, second in the Bustles and Bows Stakes at Pomona in her last race, looks to have found a good spot to gain her first stakes victory as she takes on five rivals in Sunday's $50,000-added Courtship Stakes. The six-furlong race for 2-year-old fillies will be run as the eighth race on the nine-race Sunday program.

Fri, 10/05/2001 - 00:00

Remington Park: Speed sets up Skipjack

Skipjack should get all the pace he needs up front to fuel his late run Sunday in the $30,000 Norman Stakes at Remington Park, thanks to the presence of sprinters Pogamoggan, Abbi's Choice and Red Work in the one-mile turf race for 3-year-olds, which has drawn 11.

Fri, 10/05/2001 - 00:00

First two back for Harrison

ANDERSON, Ind. - Older Indiana-bred sprinters close out Derby weekend at Hoosier Park with a field of seven going six furlongs in the $40,000-added William Henry Harrison Stakes.

Special Express and J D's Diamond, the one-two finishers in this race a year ago, both return in search of last year's winning ways. The pair share identical marks of four wins from 15 starts but have gotten there via different routes.

Fri, 10/05/2001 - 00:00

Crown may be passed in Durham Cup

ETOBICOKE, Ontario - Kiss a Native, the country's champion 3-year-old of 2000, will clash with this year's probable champion 3-year-old, Win City, and three other accomplished runners in Sunday's $160,950 Durham Cup Handicap at Woodbine.

A Fleets Dancer, the 120-pound highweight, could be favored in the 1 1/8-mile fixture because of the company he has been keeping. He took the Grade 3 Dominion Day Handicap here July 1, and has since placed in three graded stakes in the U.S.

Robert Landry has the call on A Fleets Dancer for trainer Roger Attfield.

Fri, 10/05/2001 - 00:00

Magic Dancer drops into allowance

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Magic Dancer, dropping out of stakes company, and Wanna Begone, who has won her last three starts, all for a tag, look like the ones to beat in an allowance race for 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/16 miles at Hastings Park this Sunday afternoon.

Fri, 10/05/2001 - 00:00

Sunray Spirit's Beyers tower over opponents

ELMONT, N.Y. - If the California-based juveniles are as good as they seem, Sunray Sprit is the one to beat in Sunday's $100,000, Grade 3 Cowdin Stakes at Belmont Park.

A son of 1995 Breeders' Cup Juvenile runner-up Hennessy, Sunray Spirit comes to New York off a two-length maiden victory at Del Mar in his third career start. His final time of 1:03.10 was the fastest 5 1/2 furlongs of the Del Mar meeting, and he earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 101, nearly 20 points higher than any of his Cowdin rivals have registered.

Fri, 10/05/2001 - 00:00

Saturday in May tries grass

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - It didn't really matter that Saturday in May's turf experiment was put on hold last month. When the allowance race he was entered in was moved from turf to a sloppy main track, Saturday in May ran anyway and won for the second straight time.

The urge to see what this promising colt can do on grass still exists, and so his connections, owner Peter Blum and trainer Mike Stidham, entered Saturday in May in Sunday's Steinlen Stakes, a $50,000-added overnight race for 3-year-olds at 1 1/8 miles on turf.

Thu, 10/04/2001 - 00:00

How good is Aptitude?

ELMONT, N.Y. - Of the eight horses to have won Grade 1 races for Bobby Frankel this year, Aptitude may be the one that gets the least respect.

Unlike others in his barn such as Flute and Lido Palace, Frankel has to play cheerleader as well as trainer for Aptitude, who a year ago at this time was still eligible for his preliminary allowance condition and had yet to win a dirt race.

Thu, 10/04/2001 - 00:00

'Heavyweight' vs. heavyweight Officer

ELMONT, N.Y. - For several years, John Terranova's New York barn has been a safe haven for Bob Baffert's West Coast shippers.

Terranova and his wife, Tonja - friends of Baffert since the late 1980's - have housed and helped prepare a number of Baffert's stakes winners including Point Given, Silverbulletday, El Corredor, and River Keen.

Thu, 10/04/2001 - 00:00

Kamsack takes a shot at big time

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Chris Paasch has been in the racing business for 26 years, the last 20 as a licensed trainer. A New York native based in Southern California, Paasch, 45, has seen many talented racehorses, and he thinks he happens to have one in his own barn now.

"This might be a mild statement," said Paasch. "But this is the nicest horse I've ever touched in my life."