ALERT BAY CONTINUES TO SHINE AT AGE 7
Alert Bay made his second start off a 13-month break in Monday’s $50,000 Rolling Green Stakes and did not disappoint his connections, backers and fans, defeating eight other rivals while earning a 94 Beyer speed figure. Alert Bay, considered the “stable star” in the Blaine Wright barn, has now earned $1.33 million for owner Peter Redekop and trainer Wright. His only other start in 2018 resulted in a respectable second place finish in Washington State’s premier thoroughbred horse race, the Grade 3 Longacres Mile.
The Cal-bred son of City Zip began his career at Golden Gate as a 2-year-old and has since gone on to win 15 races from 35 career starts. 2014 was a banner-year for the California bred; racing as a 3-year-old that year, he won the Echo Eddie Stakes at Santa Anita before spending his summer up in Canada, winning the Grade 3 British Columbia Derby and the Grade 3 BC Premier’s Handicap at Hastings Racecourse over their bullring dirt track. He scored a decisive victory in the Zia Park Derby following his summer campaign and capped off the year with his most impressive win of the 2014 season, a hard-fought neck victory in the Grade 2 Mathis Brothers Mile on turf at Santa Anita, defeating Grade I winner’s Heart to Heart, Long On Value and Talco.
The only horse to ever win the Grade 3 San Francisco Mile twice, Alert Bay has also won the Grade 2 City of Hope Mile and the California Cup Turf Classic at Santa Anita. He won the Rolling Green Stakes in 2015 and has hit the board in numerous big races along the coast, including in- the Grade 3 All American at Golden Gate and the Crystal Water and Grade 3 American Stakes at Santa Anita.
“Sometimes it gets me choked up that I’ve gotten to train a horse this good,” an emotional Wright told Sam Spear immediately following the Rolling Green Stakes victory last Monday. “He’s probably a horse I can never replace.”
“[Alert Bay] has given us fantastic pleasure and excitement,” said owner Peter Redekop, who was in town to watch Alert Bay’s victory this past Labor Day. “We’ve had good people looking after him and they’ve done a fabulous job.”
Blaine Wright indicated that he was looking at California-bred stakes races in Southern California for Alert Bay’s next start. Wright also mentioned that the San Francisco Mile in April was a long term goal for Alert Bay moving into 2019.
“We’d love to go for another win in the [San Francisco] Mile,” Wright said with a smile.
POST TIME CHANGE EFFECTIVE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7
Beginning this Friday, September 7, Golden Gate Fields first post time will change to 1:15 PM PT. The post time change will run through the end of the summer meet. Closing day of the summer meet is Sunday, September 30, 2018.
FINISH LINES: Congratulations to trainer Andy Mathis, who won three races at Del Mar closing week. Mathis had a good-sized string at Del Mar during their summer meet and will, once again, be based at Golden Gate Fields this fall and winter…Congratulations to trainer Quentin Miller, who won the Ferndale Marathon with 5-year-old gelding Engram…After two weeks, Juan Hernandez and Irving Orozco are tied for first in the jockey standings with 12 wins apiece. Abel Cedillo is two wins behind the leading duo with 10 wins at the current meeting….Bill Delia, Victor Trujillo and Jonathan Wong are all tied atop the trainer standings with 5 wins apiece…Heading into Friday’s card, over $2,000 has been carried into the 20 Cent Golden Pick Six jackpot wager. Last Sunday, one lucky ticketholder took home over $28,000, so the pool began anew on Monday…The 50 Cent Late Pick 5 pool will, once more, be GUARANTEED at $50,000 this coming Sunday. Golden Gate Fields has guaranteed the 50 Cent Late Pick 5 pool at $50,000 every Sunday since early May….Happy birthday to Sergio Perez, who celebrates his birthday this Saturday.