Author: grarick

Skid Solo didn’t get any breaks with his race tomorrow at Longchamp; I chose a claimer over a Tierce handicap thinking it would be easier, but it won’t be. There are several black-type horses in the field, and we have a horrible draw in the 19 hole. We’ll have to really treat it as a comeback race and be careful not to ask for too much. With that draw, he will have to go behind and do what he can.

I’ve also finally got a look at Hard Way’s race, and nothing went right there. He looked pretty stressed out before the race, but putting him in the gate too early really did us in. He set a slow pace, but the eventual winner ran just on his heels or three-quarter length, which Hard Way can’t handle. We’ll toss this one out and start over. If he is well, there will be another chance for him at Longchamp near the end of the month, over 3,000 meters. In any case, I can see that the ear plugs will go back in and he MUST go in the gate last. Those two things will help us next time.

DerringBay, meanwhile, has come home in good shape and is eating up well. He was in hand today but will be ridden out tomorrow, and I’ll start looking for a race for him near the end of the month. Still waiting to see if Belle gets in Saturday at St. Cloud.

Our Channel Island adventure paid off yesterday when DerringBay won his race, becoming the first French-trained horse to run – and win – there. The whole trip was quite an adventure, and Bay was our first international runner. He was also the first runner for our new Guernsey-based owners, and it was fantastic to see them hit the board on the first time out. The weather was a bit blustery, but the sun came out for our race, and we had a crowd topping 3,500 people on hand for the event. It is safe to say that Bay is unlikely to run in front of that many people in France! Bay also picked up the “best turned out” award.

We finished with only three runners in our race, but it still turned out to be a proper race with an exciting finish. Bay was carrying more than 10 kilos than the second-placed horse, which had already won several races and Bay was still a maiden. It turned into a match race toward the finish and the two really dueled it out, with Bay prevailing by a neck. He was ridden by Tony Proctor, who is the champion jockey in the Channel Islands and is a work rider for Sir Michael Stoute in England. I told him that Bay has a two-furlong turn of foot and hangs left, and he did the rest in great style.

It took about 12 hours stall-to-stall to get Bay to Guernsey by truck and ferry, but now that we know how to do it, I see that it could be done again. The trip home was slightly more complicated, involving a 3:30 a.m. freighter and a change of boats in Jersey, but Bay handled it all very well and is now collapsed in his box at home sleeping it off.

While I was away Hard Way ran a very disappointing race in Chantilly, but I’m still digging out and haven’t been able to find out exactly what went wrong there yet. Meanwhile, Skid goes to Longchamp on Thursday and Blessing Belle has an entry for Saturday, but the race is quite oversubscribed and we might not get in. But a little sleep is in order before I can sort out who goes where next.

DerringBay, accompanied by me and my friend Louise, head off to Guernsey tomorrow for what should be an interesting time, to say the least. We run in the fifth and last race on Monday, a handicap with only four runners and we have top weight of 69 kilos. We’re hoping that all the paperwork is in order and – more importantly – we have calm seas for the crossing. I don’t know how Bay feels about boats, but I hate them, so I’ll be happy to get that part of the trip over with.

Hard Way, meanwhile, is all set for Monday at Chantilly, where he will face only 11 runners in the bottom half of the Tierce handicap. We are exceptionally lucky to have such a small and relatively easy field, so he should do well. It’s a shame I can’t be in two places at once, but Valerie will handle things at Chantilly.

With all going on in our own yard, I will miss the big races in America and England on Saturday. The Kentucky Derby and the 2,000 Guineas are great races, but I’ll have to settle for the replays. I will, at least, get to watch the 1,000 Guineas live on Sunday.

Watch this space for a full report on both of our races when I come home.

Versaki ran a good third in his handicap in Chantilly today. He is still a frustrating horse, because he probably should have won in relatively easy company, but he closed like a bullet to overtake most of the other 18 runners, so that’s a good sign. His next target is likely to be a 1,400-meter handicap at Longchamp on May 20. Meanwhile, we’re still looking for a buyer for him, because he is well-placed in the handicaps, seems useful and is still mine, so that can’t go on! He needs to find a new owner soon.

Next up are Hard Way in Chantilly on Monday, and, of course, DerringBay’s Guernsey outing. Just found out today that we have only four declared runners in Bay’s race in Guernsey, so I’d have to like our chances…And Skid’s comeback race is hopefully the 1,400-meter claimer at Longchamp a week from Thursday. He’ll be running for a high price, because we don’t want to lose him, but I think the claimer will be a better comeback race for him than today’s handicap – which we had originally targeted – would have been.

DerringBay is officially start-declared for his international debut at the annual races in Guernsey next Monday. At noon tomorrow we find out how many runners we face. I have never been to the Channel Islands – and neither has any other France-based trainer; I will be the first. I can’t wait to see how this will all work out – the planning alone has been quite an adventure. It is supposed to be a great party, and it will be a pleasure to finally meet some of the other owners I have there who also are in partnership on Little Brazilien. DerringBay’s Guernsey run will be the first for their new silks, so that alone will be worth the trip!

Before we leave there, though, we have Versaki in Chantilly tomorrow. Looks like a good entry, with a good draw, so let’s see if the old boy can decide to move this time.

The sport of kings in American hands has lowered itself to this: The advertising slogan for this year’s Preakness stakes, the second jewel in the Triple Crown, is “Get your Preak on.” I am not making this up. Apparently, some advertising agency was actually paid to come up with this, designed to appeal to those seeking the all-you-can-drink tickets to the infield part of the racecourse. There is a web site, www.getyourpreakon.com, which informs you that the festivities include a bikini contest, live bands and something called a “cornhole” tournament (I don’t even want to know). Apparently, there also might be some sort of horse race, but that’s not really clear.

Racing on both sides of the Atlantic is struggling to retain its audience and relevance in an age that is passing it by. I thought it was bad enough in France, when racing was stripped of its dignity by a publicity campaign in childish writing and pastel colors designed to convince parents to bring their kids to the track. Royal Ascot had to add a rule in its dress code requiring that women wear some sort of underwear after “Ladies Day” started to look more like a pole-dancing convention. But it truly suggests the death throes when the marketing for what should be one of America’s premier horse races has to center on beer and hide the horse.

Versaki will go ahead to Chantilly on Tuesday, but Skid Solo will wait for a slightly easier comeback race. He would have been in the bottom weights of the Tierce race, and while those are always tough, this one looks particularly tough because of the risk of running against three black-type horses. Since he hasn’t raced since last year, I don’t want to over-face him first time out. We will instead wait until next week for a 1,400-meter claimer at Longchamp; I hope we get in, because there will be plenty of entries, but it should be an easier race for him, even though he will carry a price of 34,000 euros. I’m also curious how he would do on the Longchamp “toboggan” course. It’s practically a straight line, but there are two elbow-like bends and some horses specialize on that course. So while 1,400 meters is about a furlong longer than his ideal distance, I think he will like the course.

DerringBay, meanwhile, is on track to be my first international runner at the annual race meet in Guernsey on May 3. It has been a nightmare of papers, visas and – horrors – faxing documents back and forth, but it seems we now have it sorted. Last step is to fax his start declaration on Monday. (I have steadfastly resisted in owning a fax, thinking that the Internet and email should be more than enough, but it appears I am wrong.)

Hard Way is also on track for a race May 3, but in Chantilly. Since I can’t be in two places, Valerie will handle the formalities there, although we may have to bring in extra hands if he decides to light up the presentation ring like he did at Longchamp.

And on a completely unrelated note, the planes are back – and I have found a fascinating site called virtual radar  that allows you to play air-traffic controller and actually identify all the aircraft (and there are way more than I realized) flying over at any given time. So I can sit at my blog, hear a plane, click and find out where it’s coming from. Technology has come this far, and I find I’m still out of the loop if I don’t have a fax machine. Seems unfair.

It’s a pretty quiet week for the yard this week – work-wise and noise-wise since the volcanic ash cloud has shut down air travel. Maisons-Laffitte is in the landing pattern for Charles de Gaulle airport, and while I don’t mind the planes, it is eerily silent without them. This was some comfort this morning when I realized that my cellphone – otherwise known as my portable office and lifeline – dropped out of my pocket somewhere on the track while galloping Hard Way. I dragged Tim out for the search and he used his phone to call mine, figuring we actually had a chance to hear mine ring if it was out there. We didn’t, but I did find it at the bottom of a hoofprint on the final turn, still working once I blew out the sand. Must’ve been the birdsong drowning out the sound of the ring, since there were no planes to perform that function.

Hard Way has been doing great since his race. He is still stubbornly hanging onto his winter coat, but he’s been eating great and working like he did nothing last Sunday at Longchamp. His next target is May 3 at Chantilly, the same kind of race he ran at Longchamp: a 2,400 meter handicap that will be the bottom half of the Tierce. I would expect him to do well.

Belle came out of her race slightly stiff behind, but it’s nothing serious. I would think her constant state of working ovaries probably contributed to that. She still looks great and is eating well, although she definitely left a few kilos behind at Longchamp. I don’t have a target for her yet, but I’ll look for something slightly longer next time out. I think we just have to forge ahead with her and get her more experience. She’s only had 11 races in her career, which is not much for a four-year-old.

DerringBay, meanwhile, is getting ready for his debut as our first international runner. I will take him to Guernsey for their annual races on May 3 – which means I have to miss out on Hard Way at Chantilly, but the races in Guernsey are important because I have owners there and this will be the first time their silks will be seen on a track. I’m also told it’s a hell of a party, and I’ve never been to Guernsey and I would like to see it. At last but not least, it looks like a pretty good entry in that there are only seven runners and from what I can tell we should beat them.

Versaki and Skid Solo are getting ready for their race on April 27th in Chantilly. Skid should be in the Tierce and Versaki will fall into the second half of the 1,200-meter handicap. It will be very interesting to see how Skid does this year, because he seems to be improving in the way he is working and sprinters tend to get better with age. Versaki is harder to figure out, but we’ll see how he does here.

Turfani is having a bit of a rest because I believe we have an ulcer issue to treat. I’m taking her to Chantilly tomorrow morning for a gastro scope to see for sure and determine a treatment. I don’t want to lose too much time with her if I can help it, because it has been a dry spring and there are good races for her now. I’m hoping I’m catching the problem early enough so that we can fix it in short order.

George, Brazil and Timelord are all coming along well, and they should all be ready to run in May. The question mark is George, who is coming along slightly slower than the others, but that is normal since he has to recover from his gelding. We also have a new filly, Rapsodie du Desert, who is working well and also should be ready in May.

So while it is a quiet week, it seems to be the calm before a storm of racing.

Belle didn’t show us what we had hoped at Longchamp today, and there aren’t too many excuses so we’ll have to go back to the drawing board with her. The pace was too quick for her on the fast ground, and while she tried to make a bit of a move in the stretch, she kept on one-paced and couldn’t get closer. We’ll have to go back to the longer 2,400-meter distance and I think a little more cut in the ground might help – although I still don’t think she will do much on true heavy ground. She wasn’t blowing much after the race despite the pace, meaning she didn’t try all that hard. We’ll have to keep at it, maybe with the help of sheepskin cheek pieces next time to get her to focus a bit. She hasn’t really had all that much racing, so we’ll keep trying with her to see what can be done. Seasonal factors also might be at play – she seems to be in season constantly, and while she hasn’t shown signs of being particularly bothered by that in her work at home, it might be affecting her racing. She was running better in the winter at Deauville, so that might be why. In any case, she’s a huge, good-looking filly, and I’m sure there’s a race out there for her.

Belle is all set to go tomorrow in the 6th at Longchamp, a handicap of 1,950 meters with the usual full field of 20. She has drawn an outside post of 19, which could be a problem, but we do want to place her a bit farther back in the field this time around and try go get her rolling a little sooner in the stretch. She is a big filly with no turn of foot, so she’s like a cargo 747 on the runway – she needs a good long roll to get moving, but she’ll eventually fly. The ground is good, the jockey knows the horse and she seems in good form – and not a single prognosticator has given us a ghost of a chance, so the odds will be just like we like them: Long.