Blasphemy.
We saw two future Grade 1 turf stars over the weekend.
Not much mention of Seek Again\'s performance, coming up the hedge and giving
the surprisngly rank HOY all he could handle. This guy was only average in
John Gosden\'s yard, never competing in any Group race, running a couple of
decent tries over synthetic. Most interestingly, in his third race before
coming to America, Seek Again faced 30 rivals going 9 furlongs on the
straight Newmarket course.
Now a winner at 10 furlongs (Hollywood Derby) as a three
year old and second to WD, lets go Billy, put him someplace where we can bet
on him.
Nashoba\'s Gold was an easy winner in the Gr 2 Honeymoon at Santa Anita
Sunday. It is hard to consider this a real Gr 2 test, what with the fact that
only five 3YO fillies ran, and only one, Nashoba\'s Gold, was a graded stake
winner. I dont care raw time or TG #, this grayish Smart Strike runner really
has shown a nice turn of foot in all of her races, all turf, undefeated now
in 3 tries at 9 furlongs in addition to a close loss at a flat mile.
Of course with TVG you are not watching the filly warm up or gallop out
extensively, you are watching the faces of TVG\'s on air \"talent\". From what I
have been able to see from Living Room Downs, this one really impresses me,
looks kind of light, more a ballerina than a bulldozer. After a planned start
in the American Oaks at SA on May 31, I\'m hoping Carla Gaines is game and we
see this filly at the Spa or the big turf races at AP when things heat up. If
she shows up in the entries at the Spa, no brainer, one day trip, a quick
drink from the healing springs, no stopping in the Schenectady taverns. I
fancy Nashoba\'s Gold that much. I\'ll \"friend\" her if she has a Facebook page.
Saturday at Belmont, the Peter Pan. The race H Allen Jerkens told his son to
enter Wicked Strong in, to prep WS for the Belmont. (Maybe this kind of
contrarian thinking is the reason that \"the Chief\" lost the Centennial horses
all those years ago). Tonalist goes and this one also has impressed many
folks. The pedigree is so strong with Multiple G1 SW HOY Havre de Grace and
(I think) turf G1 winner and turf G1 producer Riskaverse somewhere close on
the dam side.
I will pose this again because it fascinates me whether it bores you or not.
Of the Derby runners who ran at least one race at GP as a 3YO, I think only
Wicked Strong and Intense Holiday finished in the top 10 at CD. Not even
making it to the Derby gate after prepping at GP: Cairo, Constitution, Honor
Code, Tonalist, Top Billing. Just saying.
One last thought to this ahem rather lengthy post (take that twitterati). I
have long suggested that the two figure making camps do joint productions a
couple of times a year on big days, marketing the numbers side by side, maybe
having seminars where JB interacts with Jake or whoever over at Rag, agreeing
on some #s, pattern reads, probably disagreeing on many, vehemently
disagreeing on a few. I think if managed properly this would be educational
and entertaining for followers and profitable for both houses.
Some thoughts about Rag: New management should have taken (and may yet take)
the opportunity to upgrade the website. The color scheme is not welcoming.
Ken Sherman should be able to link at will, but give the man his own section,
like \"Sherman Sez\".
Like I always say about the TG/Rag debate, as intensely as it burns and as
comically as it turns, there are hundreds of millions of people in Asia and
Africa who know not from TG or Ragozin, not to mention millions here in the
USA. As the great Argentinian (typewriter) jockey Jorge Luis Borges once said
about Argentina\'s war with Britain over the Falklands, \"Its like two bald men fighting over a comb.\"
and thats the way it was May 8, 2014.
