![]() The one new wrinkle was a change in equipment, as Lawyer Ron appeared to be wearing an overcheck bit to help give exercise rider Betsy Couch a little extra control over the horse, who nearly ran off with her the previous morning. The Arkansas Derby winner came out at his regular time, just before 8 a.m., and after jogging around to the finish line and standing for several minutes, he galloped a vigorous two miles. The wet track didn't alter Lawyer Ron's regular training schedule. Love the way he's coming up to his next start, whether it's the Kentucky Derby, Peter Pan, or Sir Barton. under his regular exercise rider, Angel Cordero Jr. Sunriver, Ashado's baby brother, had another good morning on Tuesday, looking relaxed and well within himself while gliding over the goop shortly after 7:30 a.m. If there were such a thing as a "gallop of the day" it would go to Sunriver, whose starting status remained tenuous at best 24 hours before Derby entries closed on Wednesday. As a result, training was either limited or nonexistent for the 17 Kentucky Derby hopefuls stabled on the grounds, many of whom were given what figures to be their final day off before Saturday's big event. on Tuesday, with the accompanying downpour turning the racetrack into a sloppy quagmire well before midmorning, when the skies finally cleared. Flashes of lightning illuminated the twin spires when Churchill Downs opened at 6 a.m. He will listen, too, until one of them clears its throat and says, “Bet me.LOUISVILLE, Ky. He will discern who looks fresh and who is sore. So, Welsch will study how the Derby horses gallop over the next couple of days before deciding where his, and his followers’, $2 bets will go. “That said, who am I to question Larry Jones. “You’re not supposed to run that fast five days before the Derby and be able to come back and run a mile and a quarter,” he said. Last year, the Jones-trained filly Eight Belles was equally impressive in the morning and finished second before sustaining a fatal injury after crossing the finish line. Welsch dismissed Hard Spun’s work as too fast, and was stunned when the colt hung on to finish second to Street Sense. Welsch, though, did not see that desire to go farther that he had seen in Street Sense.īut Larry Jones, who put a colt named Hard Spun through a similar work in 2007, trains Friesan Fire. Friesan Fire, the Louisiana Derby winner, blistered five-eighths of a mile on Monday in 57.80 seconds, which is wicked fast. Welsch is befuddled by at least one contender. “I want to see him on this track,” he said. He is curious about Dunkirk, who arrived here Tuesday from Florida. He says Pioneerof the Nile has trained O.K., but not well enough to inspire fear or confidence. While the bulk of the training has been completed by most of the Derby horses, Welsch has not landed on a favorite. Last year, for example, Welsch had Big Brown pegged as the horse to beat, but he saw nothing in the morning that even whispered, “Bet me,” especially as a short-priced favorite. In fact, the clocker’s clocker thinks this is about as muddled a Derby field that he has seen at least among the contenders. “But, no, he hasn’t separated himself from the others in the morning.” “If you liked him coming into the Derby, I Want Revenge has done nothing to make you get off him,” Welsch said. Welsch liked I Want Revenge’s move Tuesday better than the five-eighths-of-a-mile work last week in 1:01. “I think we accomplished what we wanted to do today.” “We got to let him do what he normally does,” Mullins said. ![]() Mainly, you have to pay attention and tune out the upbeat and often nonsensical babble of trainers who like to say that all their horses work wonderfully.Įxhibit A is Jeff Mullins, the trainer of I Want Revenge, who watched his colt go a half-mile in 47.20 seconds Tuesday morning. The morning workouts are not exactly like deciphering the Rosetta stone.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |