KEENELAND DAILY NOTEBOOK
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2005
by Brian P. Turner
A field of eight went to the gate for Thursday’s featured Bryan Station S.
for three-year-olds going eight furlongs on the lawn. T. D. VANCE (Rahy) was
sent to the post as the favorite off his impressive score last out in the
National Museum of Racing Hall Of Fame S. (G2) at Saratoga where he stalked the
pace early before digging in gamely through the stretch drive to cross the wire
a nose in front.
There would be no stalking the pace today though as jockey Edgar Prado took
T. D. Vance to the lead once the gates opened and the pair guided the field
through early fractions of :23 1/5 and :47. In upper stretch, the bay still had
plenty left in the tank and continued on well to the end to hit the finish line
a length in front.
Rey De Café (Kingmambo) rallied from well off the pace with a nice effort to
pick up the place, three parts of a length in front of Therecomesatiger (Tiger
Ridge) in third.
Speed dominated on the main track Thursday as horses on or near the pace won
both routes and four of the five sprints. In addition to the feature, one
additional turf race was offered and it was won by a horse closing from last.
Rafael Bejarano picked up a win today and still leads the way in the jockey
standings with nine winners for the meet. Robby Albarado is in second with six
followed by Prado with five.
As for the trainers, Nick Zito and Bobby Frankel each saddled a winner today
to move into a tie with J. Larry Jones atop the trainer standings. The trio has
three winners each.
Horses to Watch
3RD – JAGUAR CITY (Slew City Slew) has crossed the finish line in front in
each of her last five starts though one of those victories was taken away from
her via disqualification. The five-year-old mare jumped out of the gate into the
lead in this allowance event, guiding the field through early fractions of :23
4/5 and :47 4/5 before widening her lead through the stretch drive to hit the
finish line 11 1/4 widening lengths in front.
6TH – INTERNATIONAL CAT (Cat Thief) is now a perfect two for two on the grass
after rallying from dead last with a tremendous move through the stretch to hit
the finish line a neck in front. The two-year-old colt broke his maiden in his
previous start with the exact same explosive turn of foot and could prove to be
any sort.
Tomorrow’s Outlook – Friday, October 14
Friday’s featured event is the Perryville S. (G3) for three-year-olds and up
going the distance of about seven furlongs over the main track. A well-matched
field of eight is scheduled to go to the post, including SOCIAL PROBATION
(Jules) who exits a second place effort to Lost in the Fog (Lost Soldier) in the
King’s Bishop S. (G1) at Saratoga. The three-year-old colt prefers to rally from
well off the pace, a style that has worked against him over his last three
starts as he has finished second on all three occasions.
DILLIGENT PROSPECT (Dilligence) will be making his first start against graded
stakes company, but he has reeled off three victories from four career starts
and holds the lifetime best BRIS Speed rating in the field. HUMOR AT LAST
(Distorted Humor) has shown dramatic improvement in form since moving into the
barn of trainer Jerry Calvin. In his latest effort, the gray missed pulling off
the upset in the Kentucky Cup Sprint S. (G3) at Turfway Park by three parts of a
length.
Friday’s forecast calls for mostly sunny skies and highs in the 70s.
Friday’s Best Plays
5TH – WATERSHED EVENT (Charismatic) could prove to be a tough customer in
this eight furlong turf allowance. The chestnut tops the field in BRIS Prime
Power and his best BRIS Speed rating on the grass, in a race over this very turf
course, is among the best of this bunch. The four-year-old colt does his best
running from well off the lead and a look at the BRIS Pace Ratings of his
competitors indicates that there should be plenty for him to run at through the
stretch. Trainer Dale Romans wins with 16 percent of his turf starters and has
enlisted Mark Guidry, a solid 22 percent grass jockey, for the ride.
6TH – NINE CHIMES (Roar) has an affinity for Keeneland as he has compiled a
record of 4-2-1-0 over the main track. The bay will be making his first start
since July when he absolutely demolished a group of claimers at Ellis Park by
five lengths, posting a 100 BRIS Speed rating, a repeat of which would be plenty
to win here. Trainer Jesse Wigginton wins 21 percent of his starts in the “31-90
Days Away” trainer category and 23 percent of the time when he brings a horse
back at the same level it ran in its previous start.