Wednesday, December 6, 2017
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA SHIPPERS SCORE BIG ON BOTH COASTS
Last Saturday, Bay Area equine stars Mended and Krsto Skye represented the Golden Gate Fields racing community in a big way.
Mended, trained by John Martin, shipped east to run in the $110,000 Claiming Crown Glass Slipper at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Florida. The Kentucky bred daughter of Broken Vow went off at odds of even money, shot to the front from the opening bell and pulled away from her 13 rivals down the stretch. Mended won the race by 6 and three-quarter lengths and earned an 87 Beyer speed figure for her effort. Regular rider Ricky Gonzalez flew to Florida to ride the 4-year-old filly and was still on cloud nine after returning home from the stakes-winning trip.
“We had a great trip,” said Ricky. “She is so confident right now and I was really confident the whole way around there. She was doing it easy so I was comfortable. I took a look behind me at one point and saw everyone was pumping on their horses. I knew right there we had it. What she has done in one year is unbelievable. She is one of my favorites for sure. It’s really fun to ride her.”
Owned by Troy and Martiza Onorato, Mended may be one of the best claims in North America this year. Since being claimed for $12,500 in January, Mended has won 10 straight races and earned $185,900 for her “new” connections.
“She’s turned into a nice filly,” said John Martin. “She came [to Gulfstream] and did nothing wrong. She has a lot of confidence right now…I started training her and ever since then she started getting better and better and better.”
About six hours after Mended’s stakes triumph, Krsto Skye raced in an allowance optional claimer at The Los Alamitos Thoroughbred meet in Cypress, California. The Ari Herbertson trainee scored a 13-1 upset after stalking the pace under Southern California jockey Stewart Elliott. Krsto Skye earned an 86 Beyer for his victory, which was his fourth win from nine starts in 2017.
“I knew he’d take to the dirt but it was a pretty tough race,” said Ari. “I told Stewart [Elliott] to take a hold early and make one run late. He gave him a great ride. Krsto Skye does nothing but try hard every time for us. I’m really proud of him.”
Krsto Skye is owned by Ari’s father, Scott Herbertson, who is currently the leading owner at the Golden Gate Fields Fall Meet. The Herbertson’s claimed Krsto Skye for $8,000 in April and have won 4 races and earned $72,875 since the 5-year-old gelding joined their barn. His biggest win to date came on June 10 in The Albany Stakes, a five furlong turf dash. That afternoon, Krsto Skye went off at astronomical odds (62-1) and won the contest by a length and three-quarters. The Los Alamitos win was the first Southern California victory for Ari Herbertson. Coincidentally, last Saturday was Ari’s 26th birthday.
“It’s really tough to win in Southern California, no matter what the level is,” Ari said. “It was really cool to get that win. It was a great birthday present, that’s for sure.”
MANDATORY PAYOUTS AND 2 STAKES’ HIGHLIGHT CLOSING WEEK OF THE FALL MEET
There are plenty of items on the agenda for closing week of the 2017 Fall Meet at Golden Gate Fields.
Horseplayers will have one final chance to win big before the holidays on closing day Sunday, December 10; there will be mandatory payouts in the “player-friendly” 14% takeout Pick 5 wager, The Golden Pick 6 Jackpot wager, and The Super High Five. The Super High Five, where horseplayers must pick the first five finishers in order, is featured in the last race every live racing day.
The $75,000 Bear Fan kicks off the stakes action on closing weekend. A field of nine is set to compete in the six-furlong contest. Among the leading contenders are multiple stakes winner and defending champion Fast and Foxy, Tapeta win machines Princess Ashlyn and Spring Heat, and Southern California shippers Cuddle Alert, Dis Smart Cat and Obey. The $50,000 Miss America Stakes, a mile and a sixteenth turf event for older fillies and mares, is the final stakes race of the fall meet. The Miss America is expected to draw a large field and is the feature race on the closing day card this Sunday.
Golden Gate Fields will run more races than usual during the last three days of the meet. Friday has a 9-race card, with the opener set to go off at the usual first post of 12:45 PM. Saturday features a very strong 10-race card, with first post time at 12:15 PM. According to general manager David Duggan, Golden Gate may also run 10 races on closing day Sunday.
FINISH LINES: Heading into the final four days of live racing this fall, jockey Juan Hernandez has a 33-29 lead over Frank Alvarado in the jockey standings. Trainer Jonathan Wong won four races last week and holds a 5-win advantage over John Martin in the trainer standings…Golden Gate Fields will be adding a $1 Rolling Super High Five and a 50 Cent Late Pick 5 to the wagering menu beginning December 26, opening day of the big winter/spring meet. According to a press release, “If no one selects the top five finishers in exact order, 100 percent of the net pool carries over to the next race…” The Super High Five, which has been featured in the last race every day, will now be offered in every race. The 50 Cent Late Pick 5 sequence will be offered on the last five races of each day. Please note that The 50 Cent Early Pick 5 (Races 1-5) will still be on the wagering menu this winter….Good luck and best wishes to track announcer Frank Mirahmadi, who completes his Golden Gate Fields announcing tenure this week. The veteran race caller will be heading to Aqueduct in Queens, New York, where he has been hired as the backup announcer and racing analyst on the TV show “Talking Horses” for the remainder of the Aqueduct meet. Matt Dinerman, former track announcer at Emerald Downs and the current Golden Gate Fields TV racing analyst, will be the new track announcer beginning the day after Christmas…January 7 is the last day Golden Gate will card turf racing until mid-April….All Golden Gate Fields backstretch workers (grooms, hotwalkers, etc.) are warmly invited to attend the annual Grooms Christmas Party, held in the turf club after the races this Thursday, December 7. The Golden Gate Fields jockey colony will be serving dinner throughout the evening.
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