So Many Ways to win in the Charles Town Oaks

A mud-encrusted So Many Ways prevailed in the Charles Town Oaks (Charles Town/Coady Photography)

Trainer Tom Amoss and owner Maggi Moss had the option of running So Many Ways
in Saturday’s Dogwood at Churchill Downs, and even entered the bay filly in that
Grade 3 contest. However, the decision was made to ship her to the West Virginia
panhandle for the $400,000
Charles
Town Oaks, a move that paid dividends as the daughter of Sightseeing pulled
off in the lane for a 2 3/4-length victory.

Jockey Miguel Mena steadied his sophomore mount when she was pinched back
leaving the starting gate as Jax and Jill moved up to take command through the
opening half-mile in :22 4/5 and :46 2/5. So Many Ways bided her time before
beginning her run while four wide rounding the turn. R Free Roll, who had
pressed Jax and Jill from the onset, had taken over by this point but found 8-5
favorite So Many Ways breathing down her neck in the stretch.

So Many Ways took over in the lane and continued her momentum to stop the
clock for seven furlongs on the sloppy, sealed track in 1:26 3/5. She paid $5.40
for the win, which boosted her lifetime earnings to $717,148.

R Free Roll had 2 1/4 lengths to spare on Mr Hall’s Opus, who in turn was
three lengths up on Blueeyesintherein. Awesome Mama was next under the wire
while Ile St. Molly, Gold Edge, Jax and Jill and Thetaloveandmine completed the
order of finish. Fusaichiswonderful, Guadalupe High and My Happy Face were all
scratched.

Take It Like a Man didn’t let the sloppy conditions stop him from taking the Researcher (Charles Town/Coady Photography)

While the Charles Town Oaks was the featured event on the card, six other
stakes took place Saturday evening.

Lynn and Lola Cash’s Take It Like a Man earned his first stakes score when
posting a 1 1/4-length win in the companion race to the Oaks, the $400,000

Researcher for sophomores. Ridden by Luis Saez for trainer Kellyn Gorder,
the chestnut colt completed seven furlongs in 1:26 1/5.

Take It Like a Man entered the Researcher having finished sixth in his only
other stakes try in the Coach Jimi Lee at Arlington Park in July. The Run Away
and Hide chestnut then traveled to Ellis Park for an optional claiming victory,
and improved his career record to 12-6-1-1, $339,915, with Saturday’s win.

Lucy’s Bob Boy has made just once start outside of the friendly confines of
Charles Town, with that coming as a fifth-place run in the July 6 Salvatore Mile
at Monmouth Park, but continued his winning ways at his home track in the
$85,000

Wild and Wonderful on Saturday.

Lucy’s Bob Boy continued his Wild and Wonderful time at Charles Town (Charles Town/Coady Photography)

Another horse-for-the-course captured the $51,350

It’s Only Money following the Oaks. Taylor Mountain Farm’s Greenway Court
has raced exclusively at the West Virginia venue and earned his first stakes
credit with a three-length score under Antonio Lopez on Saturday.

Trained by James Casey, the Windsor Castle four-year-old gelding posted a
final time of :51 2/5 for the 4 1/2-furlong contest. His only other stakes try
came last October in the West Virginia Lottery Breeders’ Classic, where he
finished second, and Greenway Court improved his lifetime mark to read 16-7-5-2,
$172,700.

In contrast to Lucy’s Bob Boy and Greenway Court, Wardelle was trying Charles
Town for the first time in the $50,000
Pink
Ribbon and came away with a 4 1/2-length front-running victory. Campaigned
by Peter Kazamias, the seven-year-old daughter of Toccet added a first stakes
win to her record, which now stands at 54-13-4-10, $353,486.

Wardelle has spent much of her career bouncing around the claiming ranks and
between different barns, but was saddled Saturday by Dimitrios Synnefias. J.D.
Acosta guided the bay mare as she made just her third start against stakes
company in the seven-furlong Pink Ribbon, which she completed in 1:26 1/5.