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Awesome Feather floats through Florida Stallion Stakes sweep

Awesome Feather outclassed her Calder rivals on Saturday (Jim Lisa Photos)

Fred and Jane Brei's Jacks or Better Farm, trainer Stanley Gold and jockey Jeffrey Sanchez swept last year's Florida Stallion S. series for colts and geldings with Jackson Bend (Hear No Evil). On Saturday, that same team sent out AWESOME FEATHER (Awesome of Course) to complete a sweep of the fillies' series with a dominating 8 1/4-length victory in the My Dear Girl division.

The talented miss became just the third filly in the 29-year-old history of the program to take all three legs, joining Nancy's Glitter (1997) and Aclassysassylassy (2004).

The bay filly stayed in close attendance to pacesetter My Precious Baby (With Distinction) through the opening half, took over as she pleased on the backstretch and simply outran her rivals despite stretching out past seven furlongs for the first time when running 1 1/16 miles here in 1:48 on the fast main track.

"After her last win going seven furlongs in the Susan's Girl (division), I was confident that the longer distance today was going to be her best race," Sanchez said. "She got a little rank going in the first turn, but that's not uncommon for two-year-olds running route races for the first time. She settled down when we hit the backstretch and just blew them away when I asked her to run."

Awesome Feather could put her unbeaten mark on the line in the Breeders' Cup (Jim Lisa Photos)

Awesome Feather is now perfect in five starts and has banked $406,725 lifetime. In addition to her wins in the first two divisions, the Desert Vixen and Susan's Girl, the homebred lass captured the J J'sdream S. in her second career outing.

Gold wasn't a bit unclear on what's next for his star filly.

"Breeders' Cup! That's what we discussed going into the race. If she won and did it right, we'd go to the (November 5) Breeders' Cup (Juvenile Fillies [G1])," he said. "I knew she was good, but I don't think I was prepared for the performance she gave today. You always wonder if they are as good as you hope they are. In her case, I think I underestimated her.

"She'll tell us between now and then if she's good to go, but that's the plan."

Reprized Halo found his form just in time to take the In Reality (Jim Lisa Photos)

Gourmet Dinner (Trippi) was also seeking a sweep of the Florida Stallion S. in the series for colts and geldings. The bay scored in the Dr. Fager and Affirmed divisions and entered the $350,000 In Reality division undefeated from three career starts. Based on that record, he was sent off the 3-5 favorite but found himself run down late by 46-1 longshot REPRIZED HALO (Halo's Image), who suddenly burst through on the rail right before the wire to score by 1 1/2 lengths.

Reprized Halo, who dropped his initial six starts including a maiden claiming contest two back, entered the In Reality off a 12 1/4-length trouncing of maiden special weight rivals. He stretched out to 1 1/16 miles and finished up in 1:50 2/5 to catapult his career earnings to $244,809.

"I always thought he was better than he was running in the afternoon by the way he trained in the morning, but he wasn't living up to my expectations," trainer Manny Azpurua said. "So we took the chance running for the (maiden claiming) tag (on September 10) hoping he would gain some confidence. After the four races he ran before, I didn't think anybody would look at him much and they didn't. He didn't win that day (second), but he moved forward to his good race last time in a maiden special."

Not only was Reprized Halo testing stakes waters for the first time here, his seven-pound apprentice jockey was also taking the plunge.

"At first I was a little nervous, since this is my first stakes race, but I rode him last time when he broke his maiden and Mr. Azpurua gave me confidence that this horse would run well and that I could ride him well, also," rider Jose Alvarez said. "I gallop him in the morning as well so I know him pretty good.

"The race didn't go according to plans because we intended to be closer to the pace, but he didn't want to go through inside. After the field spread out a bit, he got more confident and started to run. In the stretch, everybody drifted wide and it was easy for him to close on the rail."

Reprized Halo now sports an 8-2-1-0 mark.

Tannersville obscures Bim Bam as he just gets his nose in front on the wire (Jim Lisa Photos)

Bim Bam (Deputy Wild Cat), who ran third in all three legs of the Florida Stallion series last year, returned to try and get a win on Festival of the Sun day in the $75,000 Calder Derby. It wasn't to be, though, as the game sophomore was out nosed by TANNERSVILLE (West Acre) on the wire.

"That was breathtaking!" said Henry Collazo, who saddled Tannersville to his first stakes win. "They (Tannersville and Bim Bam) fought to the wire. I knew he was a good horse from the first time I worked him, but I still have to keep pinching myself to make sure it's real. He's a push-button horse and laid back, but still goes out and puts on a performance like that.

"Bim Bam is so tough, but he better watch out -- Tannersville is the new shooter."

"When it comes to grass racing around here, this horse is as good as there is. He never runs a bad race on the turf," jockey Wilmer Galviz agreed. "It was a very close finish, but when we hit the wire, I knew we won it. I won't go as far as saying I knew before the wire, but at the wire I did."

Tannersville, owned by Henco Inc. and Four Horsemen Stable, just got up to stop the teletimer in 1:49 1/5 for 1 1/8 miles on the good turf. Now 9-5-0-2, $126,015, lifetime, the bay colt's only loss from five starts on the turf came as a third in the June 5 Lord Juban S. behind Bim Bam.

A. J. took a trip to the winner's circle (Jim Lisa Photos)

Awesome Feather wasn't the only dominant filly performer on the day. Peter D. Fuller's TRIP FOR A. J. (Trippi) grabbed the lead from the start of the $75,000 Calder Oaks one race earlier and led every step of the way in the nine-furlong turf test. The chestnut miss finished up as jockey Eibar Coa pleased, 5 3/4 lengths clear of her closest pursuer, while posting a final time of 1:51.

"I am thrilled with this performance," Milton Wolfson said. "She left us puzzled after the last start -- I couldn't believe she could run that badly (when fourth in the September 25 Judy's Red Shoes S.). Everything worked out perfectly for her. She had it all her own way and Coa did a beautiful job of slowing down the pace and asking her to turn it on in the stretch."

Trip for A. J. rode a four-race win streak into the Judy's Red Shoes last out, including scores in the Noble Robyn S., Nancy's Glitter H. and Ms Brookski S. She boosted her earnings to $210,045 with the winner's share here and improved her line to 10-6-0-1.

The stakes action got underway in the $64,550 Birdonthewire S., with UNO CALIENTE (Macho Uno) wiring the eight-juvenile field by a length as the even-money favorite. Trained by Bill White, the Maruice Miller colorbearer completed six furlongs on the main track in 1:13 1/5 with Manoel Cruz in the pilot's seat. The bay colt vindicated his last start, when seventh against allowance rivals after being bumped and having his jockey lose an iron, and now boasts a 4-2-0-0, $64,392, career mark.

Doble Jak Investments LLC's FLYING TRIP (Trippi) kept her perfect mark going when scoring by three parts of a length in the $65,000 Cassidy S. under Coa. Tracking the leader while five wide, the Gilberto Zerpa charge rallied down the center of the track to finish up six furlongs in 1:13 3/5 in the juvenile filly counterpart to the Birdonthewire. Flying Trip captured her debut against maiden claimers before taking on starter allowance types in her last two. The chestnut miss stepped up her game to add this one to her resume, which stands at 4-4-0-0, $72,370.

Prior to the Calder Oaks, Farnsworth Stables' TOOCLEVERFORWORDS (Arch) ran away in the stretch to be 2 3/4 lengths clear on the wire of the $50,000 Cinnamon Girl S. under Luis Saez. The Marty Wolfson-conditioned four-year-old stopped the clock for a mile and 70 yards in 1:44 2/5 to improve her record to 14-4-4-0. Fourth in her stakes debut, the Ms Brooksi, on September 4, the dark bay lass has now banked $143,028.


 


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