Deauville: Everybody into the pool!

The Deauville follies have begun in earnest, and seven of our horses have triple entries next week in an effort to get into something. It looks like Cape Tycoon should get a run, since he has a priority entry from the last elimination (along with the 155 others that didn’t make the cut, about half of whom are entered along with us). It’s going to be tough to get Pixie into anything, because she is the first to get thrown out because she hasn’t made enough money this year. Same with Blessing Belle and Versaki. Their performances were in England, where the prize money is so dismal that even Versaki’s two third places amounted to a whopping 600 euros and Belle’s victory was only worth 2,700; in France, those kind of performances would have tipped them well over the 3,000 euro mark needed to avoid automatic elimination. The same criteria doesn’t apply to two-year-olds, so Email Exit might get in through luck of the draw. Derringbay might get in, too, but for once I’m hoping he gets eliminated because I’d rather run the longer race on Dec. 18 but I need the priority entry to get in. Sound confusing? It’s a mess. Hard Way looks likely to make the race on Wednesday. I wanted to start his winter break, but he decided he’d rather race again, so I’ll give him a run in Deauville but then it’s definitely vacation. He’s in the 2,400-meter handicap, which should roll along quickly enough on the fibersand that we’ll let him run out front and stretch his legs for once. Unfortunately, it looks like he will carry top weight in the second division again, but that seems to be where we’re stuck in the handicap for the moment. Another of the frustrations of not knowing until the last minute who runs and at what weight is that it’s impossible to line up a jockey – or at least a decent one. The best guys wait until the last minute to see where the chips fall, then cherry pick the best rides (can’t begrudge them that – we’ve all got to make a living). France Galop said this morning that it is adding one race a day for the meeting, which should help a bit, but won’t do much for Pixie, Versaki or Belle. Bay, Tyke and Turfani all should find something eventually, though. Gotta love Deauville in December.