Chip Woolley

The curtain dropped on the Churchill Downs Fall Meet on Sunday, Nov. 28 with a farewell salute to 2009 Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird, who is heading home to New Mexico after retiring from his career on the track.  Fittingly, the meet’s last race was run in the glow of the historic track’s new permanent lights after a 21-day meet highlighted by the return of the Breeders’ Cup and its unforgettable under-the-lights Classic showdown between Blame and Zenyatta, a host of spectacular performances by equine and human athletes and the introduction of “Downs After Dark” night racing for the first time during a Fall Meet at the legendary home of the Kentucky Derby.

Co-owners Dr. Leonard Blach and Mark Allen were joined by trainer Chip Woolley and exercise rider Charlie Figueroa, who traveled from New Mexico for a ceremony in the regular winner’s circle following Sunday’s seventh race in which fans provided warm applause and affection for Mine That Bird, the tiny gelding who shocked the sports world when he won Derby 135 under jockey Calvin Borel at odds of 50-1 – the second-biggest upset in the history of America’s greatest race.  Churchill Downs presented Mine That Bird with a special blanket bearing the official event logo of his Kentucky Derby, and track President Kevin Flanery presented the Derby winner a basket filled with apples, peppermints and equine treats and toys for his van ride back to New Mexico and a post-racetrack life in retirement at Allen’s Double Eagle Ranch.

The visit by the Breeders’ Cup World Championships was the record seventh to Churchill Downs, but its first as a two-day affair on Nov. 5 and 6.  The result, in keeping with Breeders’ Cup tradition at Churchill Downs, resulted in record figures for both attendance and wagering for the Championships.  The attendance over the two days was 114,353 – an increase of 18.5% over the previous year’s attendance at Santa Anita.  The Championship Friday program, which included the first Breeders’ Cup races run under lights, attracted a crowd of 41,614 – an increase of nearly 11 percent over 2009.  Saturday’s 11-race card attracted 72,739 fans.  Two-day common-pool wagering on the Breeders’ Cup at Churchill Downs totaled $163,619,784, an increase of 13% over the $144,599,205 wagered in 2009.

Along with the race for the ages in the Classic in which Blame edged  previously unbeaten Zenyatta, the Breeders’ Cup also featured brilliant performance by French superstar Goldikova (IRE), who won her third consecutive running of the Breeders’ Cup Mile (GI), and a dominant victory in the Juvenile (GI) by Uncle Mo, who became the likely favorite for Kentucky Derby 137 with that win, and unbeaten Awesome Feather, who became an early contender for the 2011 Kentucky Oaks (GI) with her emphatic victory in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies (GI).

But the heroics in the Breeders’ Cup had to share the Fall Meet spotlight with a memorable running of the $500,000-added Clark Handicap Presented by Norton Healthcare (GI) on Friday, Nov. 26 in which Morton Fink’s favored Successful Dan finished first by a head, but was disqualified to third as stewards awarded the win to the Virginia Tarra Trust’s Giant Oak.  The roughly run 136th renewal of the Clark, a race that is as old as the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks, resulted in three-day suspensions for jockeys Julien Leparoux, who rode Successful Dan, and Kent Desormeaux, who was aboard Demarcation, who was disqualified from fourth to 11th because of another incident in the race.  Third-place finisher Redding Colliery was elevated to the runner-up spot.

Other dazzling equine performances included dominant performances by 2-year-old fillies. John C. Oxley’s unbeaten Dancinginherdreams, trained by Kentucky Derby and Oaks winner John Ward Jr., overcame traffic problems to win the $150,000-added Pocahontas (GII) by 5 ¼ lengths on the meet’s opening day on Oct. 31, and the Ken McPeek-trained Kathmanblu, a troubled third in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (GII), won the $150,000-added Golden Rod (GII) by a resounding 8 ½ lengths.  Her margin of victory was the largest since Silverbulletday capped a season that earned her an Eclipse Award as 2-year-old filly champion with a 10-length Golden Rod romp in 1998.

Tom Walters’ Santiva emerged as an early contender for the 2011 Kentucky Derby with a gritty victory in the $150,000-added Kentucky Jockey Club as the Eddie Kenneally trainee turned back challenges from Iroquois (GIII) winner Astrology and Major Gain.  The Kentucky Jockey Club was co-featured with the Golden Rod on the “Stars of Tomorrow II” racing program on Saturday, Nov. 27. That day also featured an impressive victory by WinStar Farm’s Brethren, a half-brother WinStar’s 2010 Kentucky Derby winner Super Saver, in a one-mile allowance race.  Super Saver used a victory in the Kentucky Jockey Club on the “Stars of Tomorrow II” session a year earlier as a springboard to his success at Churchill Downs in this spring’s “Run for the Roses.”

The Fall Meet’s human races saw familiar faces atop the standings as the meet wound to a close on Sunday.

Julien Leparoux won his fourth consecutive Fall Meet riding title, completing the 21-day season with 28 victories. It marked the seventh leading rider title for Leparoux, who now has 450 victories at Churchill Downs, 12th best all time.

Marcelino Pedroza Jr., a 17-year-old native of Panama City, Panama, was the meet’s leading apprentice with nine victories.

Steve Asmussen won his fourth consecutive leading trainer title. Asmussen, fifth all time in victories at Churchill Downs with 394, saddled 16 winners during the meet. It was Asmussen’s fifth Fall Meet title and ninth overall.

Ken and Sarah Ramsey notched their fourth consecutive Fall Meet leading owner title by sending out six winners. The Ramseys, who topped the 300-victory mark all time during the meet, have won 17 leading owner titles (nine Fall, eight Spring) with 16 of them being outright crowns.

Chicago-based trainer Chris Block enjoyed a notable achievement during the meet as he won three stakes races – including a sweep of the Thanksgiving Weekend Clark Handicap with Giant Oak and Falls City Handicap with the 3-year-old filly Dundalk Dust – and each winner was bred in Illinois.  Block also saddled Askbut I Won’ttell to win the Cardinal Handicap (GIII).

Racing throughout the 21-day session was marked by strong competitive fields, with overflow entries for many of the always popular Fall Meet races for 2-year-olds.  Average field size for the meet’s races stood at 9.91 horses-per-race, which was flat when compared with the average from the 2009 Fall Meet.

Night racing at Churchill Downs, a resounding success during the Spring Meet in each of the past two years, made its debut on a chilly Friday evening on Nov. 19 before 15,583 fans – many of whom were clad in outfits in keeping with the evening’s “Mad About Plaid” theme.  Continuing the pattern displayed by sessions of racing under the lights in the spring, attendance at the first Fall Meet “Downs After Dark” racing session reflected a 191 percent increase compared to the 5,363 fans who had been on hand for an afternoon program on the same day a year earlier.

"Our fans had many reasons to smile during our brief 21-day Fall Meet, thanks to memorable performances on the track and memorable moments during the return of Breeders’ Cup, our first look at ‘Downs After Dark’ night racing in the fall and longstanding traditions like our Thanksgiving Day celebration,” said Flanery.  “We were generally pleased with our racing product and solid field sizes during this compact 21-day meet, but we remain very concerned about the prospects for Churchill Downs and Kentucky racing in 2011 and beyond.  We’re facing growing pressure from race purses fed by slot machine revenues at tracks in neighboring states, especially Indiana.  Pennsylvania’s success with slots-fed purses continues to lure Kentucky horses and horsemen, and the anticipated introduction of slot revenues to purses at New York tracks sometime in 2011 looms as a major competitive threat.  So, while we’re pleased that horsemen found attractive races at Churchill Downs during this Fall Meet and that our purses could be increased briefly because of solid business levels, our concerns for the future of our track and Kentucky racing are in no way diminished because of those successes.  The coming year could be one of the most challenging ever for Churchill Downs and Kentucky racing.”

Racing returns to Churchill Downs on Saturday, April 30, 2011, the opening day of the Spring Meet and the week leading up to the 137th of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks.  The April 30 session, highlighted by the $200,000-added The Cliff’s Edge Derby Trial (GIII) – the final prep race for the Kentucky Derby – will be the first conducted under the lights as a “Downs After Dark” event.

CLARK WINNER GIANT OAK HEADING TO FLORIDA ON SUNDAY – Drew Coontz, assistant to trainer Chris Block, was all smiles Saturday morning a day after Giant Oak brought the month of November to a successful close for the barn.

“I’m on Cloud Nine,” Coontz said. “It’s like winning the (Kentucky) Oaks and (Kentucky) Derby.”

Giant Oak’s victory in the Clark Handicap Presented by Norton Healthcare (GI) via disqualification of Successful Dan came on the heels of a victory the day before in the Falls City Handicap (GII) by the Block-trained Dundalk Dust.

“He is doing great this morning and he will leave for Ocala tomorrow morning for some time off,” Coontz said of Giant Oak, who gave the Illinois-based Block stable its third stakes victory of the meet. Askbut I Won’ttell had won the Cardinal (GIII) on Nov. 7.

“When I came here with Giant Oak (in early November before the Breeders’ Cup), I had two horses waiting for me,” Coontz said. “One was Askbut I Won’ttell and the other horse (Wulfgar) ran on the Friday night (Nov. 19) program and got claimed.”

The only Block runner that shipped in for a stake and did not take home a major check was Mister Marti Gras, who finished fifth in the Commonwealth Turf (GIII) on Nov. 13.

The Block runners shared the west end of Barn 48 with trainer Tony Reinstedler’s stable.

This was the spot to be in,” Coontz said. “We did great and Tony had four winners and two seconds from six starters. This was the right barn.”

While Coontz and Company were floating on Cloud Nine, a few barns away trainer David Fawkes was getting ready to drive Duke of Mischief back to South Florida after the colt was elevated to fifth on the disqualification of Demarcation.

Duke of Mischief pressed the pressed from the outside No. 11 post position and was with the leaders until things got tight in the upper stretch.

“I thought he was maybe a little too close early, but then I saw :49 (:48.92) for the half-mile and I thought we might be all right,” Fawkes said. “But then he got in tight in the stretch and he just doesn’t like to be in a spot like that.”

Fawkes said Duke of Mischief came out of the race fine and would get some time off before possibly pointing to the Sunshine Millions at the end of January or possibly a return to the grass.

Finishing right behind Duke of Mischief was Brass Hat, who was trying to become the fifth 9-year-old to win a Grade I race.

“That was just a tough field yesterday,” trainer Buff Bradley said. “He had a safe trip and came back fine. He will take a couple of months off for a vacation and if he stays healthy we would look at the Elkhorn at Keeneland in late April to start him back.”

Meanwhile, trainer Paul McGee was wondering what might have after seeing both Demarcation and Dubious Miss with the leaders in upper stretch only to have the roof cave in when Demarcation caused the inference that led to his being placed last by the stewards.

“I really don’t know what they were doing playing bumper cars at the three-sixteenths pole,” McGee said.

Jockey) Robby (Albarado) said he felt Dubious Miss was getting ready to explode and he was getting ready to set him down and then he gets walloped … walloped by the home team.”

McGee said both horses came out of the race in good order.

“I might give Demarcation some time off in Ocala,” McGee said, “but he will eventually go to the Fair Grounds, where Dubious Miss will be.”

TODAY’S POTENTIAL STARS FOLLOWING IN SOME FANCY FOOTSTEPS -- Today’s sixth annual “Stars of Tomorrow II” program is entirely devoted to rising 2-year-old stars who have aspirations of trail-blazing their way to next year’s Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks

In just five years of existence, Stars of Tomorrow has been the launching pad for 17 Grade I winners, including Super Saver ($1,899,766), who would use a win in last year’s Grade II Kentucky Jockey Club as a springboard to Kentucky Derby 136 glory, plus millionaires Rachel Alexandra ($3,506,730), Lawyer Ron ($2,790,008), Court Vision ($2,591,521), Pure Clan ($1,987,498), Macho Again ($1,825,767), Swift Temper ($1,296,688) and Any Given Saturday ($1,083,533).

In addition to Super Saver, last year’s “Stars of Tomorrow” program featured future stars Fly Down ($1,167,070) and First Dude ($860,160), who finished one-two in a 1 1/16-mile maiden race; Stately Victor ($613,612), who would go on to win the Grade I Toyota Blue Grass; Thiskyhasnolimit ($547,532), the runner-up in the Iowa (GIII) and Indiana (GII) Derbies; and No Such Word ($503,213), who has won five of her nine 2010 starts going into today’s Gazelle (GI at Aqueduct), including the Monmouth Oaks (GIII).

MINE THAT BIRD TO GET CHURCHILL DOWNS SENDOFF SUNDAY – Sunday will be a day of celebration as Churchill Downs will honor 2009 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI) winner Mine That Bird, who will be leaving on Monday on a journey home to New Mexico.

Owned by the Double Eagle Ranch of Mark Allen and Dr. Leonard Blach’s Buena Suerte Equine, Mine That Bird will walk over with horses for Sunday’s seventh race (post time 3:41 p.m. ET). The 4-year-old gelding will remain in the paddock during the race and then walk to the winner’s circle for his farewell ceremony before returning to Barn 44.

Before Mine That Bird makes his walk to the paddock wearing a winner’s blanket with the Kentucky Derby 135 logo, there will be other festivities.

Following the second race (1:08 p.m. post time) in the winner’s circle, Allen and Dr. Blach will be interviewed in the winner’s circle by Churchill Downs Vice President of Communications John Asher. After the third race (1:38 p.m. post time) Asher will interview former trainer Chip Woolley.

There will be a table in the paddock with a farewell poster for guests to sign along with 1,000 Mine That Bird buttons that will be handed out.

Mine That Bird, who paid $103.20 for the second-highest Kentucky Derby payoff in the race’s 136 years, was retired from racing following a 10th-place finish in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (GI) on Nov. 6 at Churchill Downs. He completed his racing career with a record of 5-2-2 in 18 races with earnings of $2,228,637.

BARN TALK – Not so fast on handing the Fall Meet’s leading rider title to Julien Leparoux. Robby Albarado rode three winners on Friday to move within two victories of Leparoux with two racing days left in the meet. Leparoux’s margin stands at 25-23 with Leparoux slated to ride 11 races and Albarado all 12. Both riders have 10 mounts Sunday. Also moving into contention with three wins Friday was Shaun Bridgmohan, who now has 20 victories. He has nine mounts today and seven on Sunday. …

Steve Asmussen maintains a comfortable five-victory lead in his bid for a fourth consecutive leading trainer title. This would be Asmussen’s fifth Fall Meet title and ninth overall. …

Ken and Sarah Ramsey also maintain a nice cushion as they pursue their fourth consecutive Fall Meet leading owner title. The Ramseys have sent out six winners, three more than closest pursuer Penny Lauer. The Ramseys have won 16 leading owner titles (eight fall, eight spring) with 15 of them being outright crowns.

WORK TAB – Due Date, sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (GII), worked six furlongs in 1:16.20 for trainer Steve Margolis.

FAREWELL CELEBRATION FOR MINE THAT BIRD SET FOR SUNDAY, NOV. 28 – Churchill Downs fans will have an opportunity to bid farewell for the longshot winner of the 2009 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I) on Sunday, Nov. 28, when Mine That Bird makes a final appearance on the site of one of the biggest upsets in American racing history.

Owned by Double Eagle Ranch and Buena Suerte Equine, Mine That Bird will make a paddock appearance and parade before the fans on the closing day of the 21-day Fall Meet.  The schedule for salute has yet to be finalized, but the event will highlight the unusual Sunday finale for the fall racing session at Churchill Downs, which has concluded on the Saturday after Thanksgiving in recent years.

The team that sent Mine That Bird, to victory at odds of 50-1 Kentucky Derby 135 – the second-biggest upset in the history of America’s greatest race – is scheduled to be on hand to honor their Derby winner.  Double Eagle’s Mark Allen, Buena Suerte Equine’s Dr. Leonard Blach and trainer Chip Woolley will travel from New Mexico to take part in the festivities.  Also expected to participate is jockey Calvin Borel, who scored the second of his three Kentucky Derby victories aboard the gelded son of Birdstone.

Mine That Bird was retired from racing following a 10th-place finish in the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (GI) on Nov. 6 at Churchill Downs.  It was the ninth consecutive loss for Mine That Bird, a string that included a runner-up finish to eventual Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness (GI) and a third-place run behind eventual 3-year-old champion Summer Bird in the Belmont Stakes (GI).

The 2009 Kentucky Derby winner is scheduled to return to New Mexico following the closing day-farewell at Churchill Downs.

Mine That Bird remains at Churchill Downs in the care of D. Wayne Lukas, the Hall of Fame trainer who conditioned him during a disappointing 4-year-old season in which he failed to finish better than fifth in four races.

He completed his racing career with a record of 5-2-2 in 18 races with earnings of $2,228,637.

BREEDERS’ CUP DIRT MILE WINNER DAKOTA PHONE DRAWS TOP WEIGHT FOR CLARK HANDICAP – John Carver, Halo Farms, George Todaro and Jerry Hollendorfer’s Dakota Phone, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile (GI) here on Nov. 6, has been assigned the high weight of 124 pounds by racing secretary Ben Huffman for the 136th running of the $500,000-added Clark Handicap Presented by Norton Healthcare (GI) on Friday, Nov. 26.

Dakota Phone is not expected to make the trip back to Kentucky from California for the Clark, a 1 1/8th-mile race for 3-year-olds and up on the main track. The 2009 Clark was won by Blame, who returned this year to win the Stephen Foster Handicap (GI) and $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI).

Sharing the next high weight of 121 pounds is Godolphin Racing’s Etched and Morton Fink’s Successful Dan, the latter of which is expected to be among the horses entered Tuesday for the Clark.

Trained by Charles Lopresti, Successful Dan is two-for-two at Churchill Downs and has won five of seven career starts. In his most recent outing, Successful Dan was a three-length winner of the Fayette (GII) at Keeneland on Oct. 30.

Weight assignments for other horses considered as possible Clark starters include Apart (118), Redding Colliery (117), Brass Hat (116), Demarcation (116), Duke of Mischief (116), Stately Victor (116), Win Willy (116) and Giant Oak (115).

SUNNY MOON ASSIGNED HIGH WEIGHT FOR FALLS CITY – Mrs. C. Wilson McNeely III’s Funny Moon, winner of the Shuvee (GII) this spring and the 2009 Coaching Club of America Oaks (GI), has been assigned the top weight of 121 pounds by racing secretary Ben Huffman for the 95th running of the $150,000-added Falls City Handicap (GII) for fillies and mares.

The Falls City, won last year by Serenading, is scheduled for Thanksgiving Day and is run at 1 1/8 miles on the main track.

Trained by Christophe Clement, Funny Moon ran second in her most recent start, the Turnback The Alarm Handicap (GIII) at Belmont Park. In her lone trip to Kentucky in her 13-race career, Funny oon ran fifth in last month’s Spinster (GI) at Keeneland.

Distinctive Dixie, winner of the Nov. 6 Chilukki (GII) here, is the next high weight at 120 pounds. Trained by Wally Dollase, Distinctive Dixie ran second to 2009 Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra in this June’s Fleur De Lis (GII) and has a 6-3-1-0 record at Churchill Downs.

Other horses considered as possible to run in the Falls City and their weight assignments are Third Dawn (118), Striking Dancer (117), Acronym (116) and Ravi’s Song (114). Entries for the Falls City will be taken Sunday.

SNOW TOP MOUNTAIN FOLLOWS WELL IN KEERTANA’S FOOTSTEPS – The past two years, the Barbara Hunter owned and bred fillies Keertana and Snow Top Mountain have done their mother, Motokiks, proud.

On Saturday, Snow Top Mountain will try to bring more glory to the family when she runs in the 20th edition of the $175,000-added Mrs. Revere (GII) for 3-year-olds going 1 1/16 miles on the Matt Winn Turf Course.

The fillies are the sixth and seventh foals of the 15-year-old Motokiks and the first stakes winners the mare has produced.

Keertana, a 4-year-old daughter of Johar, raised the local bar high here two weeks ago when she finished third, beaten two necks, in the $2 million Emirates Airline Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf (GI). Keertana’s Churchill Downs record is 3-2-2 in eight races, including a victory in the 2009 Regret (GIII) and a runner-up finish in last year’s Mrs. Revere.

Snow Top Mountain, a daughter of Najran who is 1-1-0 in two outings over the Matt Winn Turf Course, ran second in this year’s Regret. Snow Top Mountain also finished second in the Grade I Garden City at Belmont Park, a race Keertana ran third in last year.

“She is just a little thing and is really an overachiever,” trainer Tom Proctor said of Snow Top Mountain. “She probably should have won a stakes by now.”

Snow Top Mountain was awarded the victory via disqualification in the Arlington Park Oaks (GIII) and also had runner-up finishes in two ungraded stakes at Saratoga. In her most recent start, she ran fifth in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (GI) at Keeneland.

“She is looking for more ground,” Proctor said. “I wish this race was a mile and an eighth or a mile and three-eighths. Her sister loves that.”

Garrett Gomez has been named to ride on Saturday, but the jockey may not be able to ride after suffering a bruised right shoulder in a spill during the first week of the meet. If Gomez cannot ride, Proctor said Rosemary Homeister Jr. will get the mount on Snow Top Mountain, who will break from post position seven.

“She’s ridden for me before and won a $100,000 and a $250 (thousand) for me,” Proctor said.

Proctor, who has won seven stakes at Churchill Downs, will have a second runner in the Mrs. Revere in the Rosemont Stud Syndicate’s Wild Mia. A winner of her past two starts by a combined nine lengths, Wild Mia will break from post position two under Freddie Lenclud.

BARN TALK – It has been two weeks since trainer Michelle Nihei saw $90,000 slip away from Prince Will I Am’s bank account following a disqualification for interference from second to 10th place in the Breeders’ Cup Marathon (GIII). “I feel a little bit like the straight A student that gets an F on their transcript for taking the wrong test,” Nihei said. “He is doing great. He came out of the race well and the most logical spot for him next is the McKnight.” That would be the W.L. McKnight Handicap (GII) at Calder on Dec. 18 at 1 ½ miles on the turf. …

Apprentice Amanda Tamburello’s first victory of the meet lit up the tote board with the largest win payoff of the meet. Tamburello rode 57-1 shot G Areyoukidding to victory in the seventh race for a $117.40 payoff for $2, surpassing the $94.00 that Shared Account returned to her backers in winning the Emirates Airline Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf on Nov. 5. The $40.40 payoff to place also was the highest of the meet, topping the $39.40 mutuel by Mis Pardner Rules in the first race on Nov. 4. …

Tommy Turner’s victory in Thursday’s third race on Bell Got Even, was his second all time at Churchill Downs. The initial score came in 1993 in the Stephen Foster Handicap aboard Root Boy. Turner is a 44-year-old native of Indiana.

WORK TAB – Two Clark Handicap hopefuls and five nominees to next Thursday’s Falls City Handicap topped a busy work tab Friday morning at Churchill Downs. Fred Bradley’s Brass Hat, who ran second in the 2007 Clark, worked five furlongs under Calvin Borel in 1:02 over a track labeled as fast after the renovation break for the 11th fastest of 37 at the distance. Moments later, the Amerman Racing Stables’ Demarcation, who finished eighth behind Blame in last year’s Clark, covered the same distance in 1:03.40. …

Juddmonte Farms’ Acronym was the only Falls City nominee to work before the break when the track was labeled as good. Acronym worked five furlongs in 1:02, 11th best of 37. The bullet for the distance was provided by Dundalk 5, LLC’s Dundalk Dust, who covered the distance in 1:00.

Other Falls City workers were Stevestan Stables’ Striking Dancer (1:00.80 for five furlongs, third fastest), the Bob and Beverly Lewis Trust’s Distinctive Dixie (1:02.40 for five furlongs, 14th fastest) and Mrs. Yoshio Fujita’s Ravi’s Song (:49.60 for four furlongs, 17th fastest of 33 at the distance).

Returning to the work tab for the first time since running in the Breeders’ Cup were two Steve Margolis trainees who breezed after the break. Due Date, who finished sixth in the Turf Sprint (GII), worked a half-mile in :48.60 (sixth best of 33) and Cash Refund, who finished eighth in the Sentient Jet Sprint (GI), covered the same distance in :49.40 (14th best of 33).   

Double Eagle Ranch and Buena Suerte Equine’s Mine That Bird, winner of the 2009 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I), returned to the scene of the greatest accomplishment early Thursday evening when he arrived at Churchill Downs and took up residence in the barn of Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who will now guide the Derby winner’s career.

Like his journey to Kentucky Derby glory some 13 months earlier, Mine That Bird arrived at Lukas’ Barn 44 in a trailer that had traveled from co-owner Mark Allen’s Double Eagle Ranch near Roswell, NM, where the 4-year-old gelding has been training since March 15.  Mine That Bird was trained by Bennie “Chip” Woolley when he scored his 50-1 upset in Kentucky Derby 135, the second-largest upset in the history of America’s greatest race.  He went on to finish second to Kentucky Oaks (GI)-winning filly Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness and third to eventual 3-year-old champion Summer Bird in the Belmont Stakes (GI).

Allen accompanied Mine That Bird on the journey that included 10 hours on the road before an overnight stopover in Tulsa, OK, followed by 12 hours on the road on Thursday.  Despite the long journey, Mine That Bird appeared frisky and full of himself when he stepped out of the trailer and made his first rounds in the Lukas shedrow.

The Derby winner’s co-owner said the decision by him and partner Dr. Leonard Blach to move Mine That Bird from Woolley’s care to the Lukas barn was difficult.

"Chip is a close friend of mine, and he done us a heck of a job last year,” Allen said.  “But I have a stable of horses back there that I really need looked after, and Mr. Lukas and some other trainers threw their hat in the ring.  When a legend throws his hat in the ring, it’s hard to go against him.”

With the move, Mine That Bird is the latest winner of the famed “Run for the Roses” to settle into a Churchill Downs barn that has housed four Kentucky Derby winners that won the race while wearing Lukas’ signature white bridle.

“But I don’t think we can put his name on the sign though – we can’t take much credit,” said a smiling Lukas.  “But it is an opportunity, and I feel fortunate that they picked us to maybe bring him back to the prominence that he enjoyed here a year ago.”

Lukas was impressed with Mine That Bird’s physical appearance and the energy displayed by the 4-year-old gelding after spending most of two days on the road from New Mexico.  He arrived at the track just after 8 p.m. (EDT).

“He’s such a gutty little competitor,” said Lukas.  “Looking at him here taking his bath, I think he looks better than I’ve ever seen him.  The time off has really served him well.  He looks better to me right now, and talking to the people who’ve been around him, I think he’s doing better right now than he has.  So, I’ve got a little bit of an edge there.  I’m getting a nice horse with some good condition him – I’m very pleased with what I see.  For a horse that just got off a 12-hour van ride, that rascal looks pretty damned good.”

   Mine That Bird brings a career record of 5-2-2 in 14 races with earnings of $2,196,581 into Lukas’ barn.  Lukas said the newest member of his stable might be ready to run within 60 days or so, but added that he might be fitter than he appears having come from high altitude training in New Mexico.  He said the 2010 Derby winner could go out for a jog on Friday morning after the mid-morning break for track maintenance.

While Mine That Bird’s greatest career moment appeared at Churchill Downs last year on the first Saturday in May, Allen said he is hoping for another big day beneath the track’s historic Twin Spires when the Breeders’ Cup comes to Churchill Downs on Nov. 5-6 – highlighted by the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) on Saturday, Nov. 6.

“That’s our goal – right there,” Allen said.  “We’re going to keep him here and not ship him around like we did last year.  That took a lot out of him, and a lot of that was my fault.  We’re going let Mr. Lukas do his magic on him, but that’s our goal: the Breeders’ Cup.”

Lukas said he would like to find an allowance race to get Mine That Bird started as he makes his return from a ninth-place finish behind the unbeaten mare Zenyatta in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic at Santa Anita.  But nothing is nailed down at this point.

“I haven’t talked with Mark or Dr. Blach about probably which races we’d want to target,” Lukas said.  “But I’m sure the Whitney’s going to jump right out there, and maybe the Suburban at Belmont could be another possibility.  Then they’ve got the Salvatore Mile over at Monmouth Park, which is another option.  So there are plenty of options.  The ultimate goal, of course, would be the Breeders’ Cup.  Whatever we do, we’ll work backwards from the Breeders’ Cup to make sure we look good here.”

A trailer carrying Double Eagle Ranch and Buena Serte Equine’s Mine That Bird, winner of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I), has departed Churchill Downs on an approximately seven-hour journey to West Virginia’s Mountaineer Racetrack Casino and Resort.

    Mine That Bird is scheduled to return to competition for the first time since a third-place finish in the Belmont Stakes (GI), the final jewel of racing’s Triple Crown, in the $750,000 West Virginia Derby on Aug. 1.  Churchill Downs had been home to Mine That Bird and trainer Chip Woolley since the 3-year-old gelding’s arrival a few days before his 50-1 upset in the Kentucky Derby, and Woolley was at the wheel of the pick-up truck that was connected to Mine That Bird’s trailer when the team pulled away from Barn 42 just before 7:10 a.m. (EDT) on Friday.

    “We’re ready to go,” said Woolley.  “You get to looking forward to going to run again and it gets kind of drab after you’ve been a while not running.  I’m kind of excited about going and being to a new place we hadn’t been.  So I think it’ll be a lot of fun. As much as I hate leaving Louisville and Churchill, it’s going to be fund to move on down the road.””

    Mine That Bird had an active morning before he stepped onto Woolley’s van.  He spent about 20 minutes in a hydrotherapy treatment that has been part of his local routine over the past several weeks, then the Derby winner walked under the shedrow until just before it was time to leave.  Several well-wishers dropped by bid farewell to Woolley and Mine That Bird, and a few offered a peppermint as a farewell gift to the Derby winner.

    “Even from day one, before we won the Derby, the people here were great,” Woolley said.  “Everybody here has just treated us so well and made every door open to us.  So leaving is kind of a hard thing.  You like staying here – I’d like to stay here.  But you’ve got to move to where the races are at.  But we’ve really enjoyed it and it’ll be an experience a man will never forget.”

    The run in the West Virginia Derby is the first step on a summer-fall campaign for Mine That Bird that is also expected to include a bid for the $1 million Shadwell Travers (GI) at Saratoga on Aug. 29 and the ultimate goal of a run in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI) on Nov. 7 over the synthetic Pro-Ride surface at Oak Tree at Santa Anita.

    Woolley liked what his saw from Mine That Bird on Friday as the son of Birdstone bucked and played as he walked under the shedrow minutes before his departure.

    “He’s doing great,” Woolley said.  “He’s really climbing that peak that we’re looking for and really doing good.  So I’m glad I trained him here and the horse stayed healthy and sound over this racetrack, so we’re ready to roll on, I guess.”

    Mine That Bird is scheduled to work on Monday at Mountaineer, a move that Woolley said would be a “soft half-mile or five-eighths.”

    The Kentucky Derby winner embarks on the second-half of his 2009 campaign with a record of 5-2-1 in 11 races and earnings of $2,121,581. 

Double Eagle Ranch and Buena Serte Equine’s Mine That Bird, winner of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I), turned in a sharp four-furlong work on Monday in his final major training move at Churchill Downs prior to his scheduled run in the $750,000 West Virginia Derby (GII) on Aug. 1 at Mountaineer.

    Jockey Jamie Theriot was in the saddle as the Chip Woolley-trained Birdstone gelding covered the distance over a fast track in :48.20.  Churchill Downs clockers caught Mine That Bird in fractional times of :12.20, :24.80 and :36.80 and he galloped out five furlongs in 1:01.20.  Mine That Bird’s work, which came just after the break for track maintenance, ranked as the fourth-fastest of 31 moves at the distance on the cool and sunny morning under the historic Twin Spires.

    “He finished up well and he’s going into the race very well,” said Theriot.  “You can’t ask for any better.  I told Chip that he’s going into the race fantastic.”

    Woolley said he had originally planned a relatively easy half-mile for Mine That Bird, but decided Sunday night that the Kentucky Derby winner might need something a bit stronger as he approaches his first race since a third-place run behind Summer Bird in the Belmont Stakes (GI) on June 6.  Mine That Bird will work one final time prior to the West Virginia Derby next Monday at Mountaineer.

    “The horse is going to be eight weeks between races, and I got to studying last night and told Jamie that I wanted him to start galloping out strong from the five-eighths and I want him really working when he hits the half-mile pole,” Woolley said.  “I told Jamie if we’re going to be dead fit, we’re going to have to step it out and Jamie said he was just super-strong.  So we ended up really getting almost a three-quarter mile work out of him.  Now we can go to Mountaineer and no matter what the track’s like we can go soft over there.  Instead of having to let him work hard over there, we can get real soft one and stretch out over the ground and get a feel for it.”

    Woolley said shipping to Mountaineer and a different racing surface is a concern, but he’s confident that Mine That Bird will be able to handle the challenge.

    “That scares you anywhere you go,” he said  “That track (at Mountaineer) has a tendency to really be loose, but I do feel like if there’s a horse in the world that’s going to go over there and get over it easy and do it well, it’s him.  He’s so light and gets over the ground so easy, it seems like he takes his racetrack with him anywhere he goes.”
    
    The usually low-keyed Woolley admitted to excited about the prospect of seeing Mine That Bird return to competition for the first time since he burst onto the scene with his remarkable Triple Crown run that opened with his 50-1 upset in the “Run for the Roses” and also included a runner-up finish to Kentucky Oaks (GI) winner Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness (GI).  

    “I’m ready to go back to running,” said Woolley.  “It was enjoyable to be here the first month after the Belmont to just kind of relax and rest.  It had been a pretty long run and with my broken leg it takes twice as much out of you.  It gave me a chance to rest my leg and do a little healing, but now though I’m ready.  I’m definitely ready to be rolling again and get back to running.”

    With the final work at Churchill Downs now behind Mine That Bird, Woolley’s plans call for Mine That Bird to travel by van to Mountaineer on Friday, July 24.  Woolley plans to depart Churchill Downs around 7 a.m. (EDT).

Kentucky Derby (Grade I) winner Mine That Bird continued his preparation for a return to competition in the Aug. 1 West Virginia Derby (GII) with a strong five-furlong work on Monday at Churchill Downs.

    Trainer Chip Woolley looked on from the grandstand as the gelded son of Birdstone finished strong while covering five furlongs over a “fast” track in 1:02.  Jockey Jamie Theriot was in the saddle as Mine That Bird galloped out six furlongs in 1:15.  

    Fractional times for the work were not available, but observers timed Mine That Bird’s final eighth of a mile in less than 12 seconds, which pleased Woolley.

    “The horse is doing super – he really worked good this morning,” Woolley said.  “He started off real soft – I imagine that first eighth of a mile must have been in 13-and-change.  But he really picked it up down the lane and was really firing off the ground down the lane.  He’s coming into it real good.  We’re really kind of excited and ready to pick up and head across there and run.”

    “He worked fantastic,” said Theriot. “He was nice and easy leaving the pole and he wanted me to pick it up in the last eighth of a mile and he came home in 11, so it was exactly what we wanted from him.”

    Woolley said Mine That Bird would work again next Monday, July 20, at Churchill Downs, which is scheduled to be his final local work before the West Virginia Derby.  The race will be his first since he finished third to Summer Bird in the Belmont Stakes (GI) on June 6 at Belmont Park.  The schedule now calls for Mine That Bird to ship to Mountaineer Park on Friday, July 24.

    “We’ll breeze him one soft one over the racetrack over there (at Mountaineer) and run,” Woolley said.  “After that we’ll head straight to Saratoga (for the Grade I Shadwell Travers on Aug. 29).”

    The work by Mine That Bird ranked as 12th fastest out of 18 moves at the distance.

A wet track prompted trainer Chip Woolley to delay by a day a scheduled Monday work at Churchill Downs for Mine That Bird, winner of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I).

The Birdstone gelding instead galloped once around the one-mile Churchill Downs track that was officially listed as muddy. Regular exercise rider Rudy Gallegos was aboard for Monday’s training activity.

Woolley said Mine That Bird would breeze just after the mid-session break for track maintenance on Tuesday, July 7 and jockey Jamie Theriot would be aboard for the move. The Kentucky Derby winner should hit the track around 8:30 a.m. (EDT).

“The track was a little wet on top today and had no reason to rush him, so we just decided to wait until tomorrow to work him,” said Woolley. “We can work him back in six days next Monday and be back on our regular schedule.”

Mine That Bird finished third to Summer Bird in his most recent effort in the Belmont Stakes (GI) on June 6. He is being pointed toward a return to competition in the $750,000 West Virginia Derby (GII) at Mountaineer on Aug. 1.

In other training moves over the muddy surface, King of the Roxy continued tow work toward his comeback for trainer Todd Pletcher with a five-furlong move in 1:01.40, which was the best of seven works at the distance. Early Times Mint Julep (GIII) winner Acoma breezed four furlongs for trainer David Carroll in :49.80 as she points toward a possible run in the Beverly D. (GI) at Arlington Park. Stone Legacy, a distant runner-up to Rachel Alexandra in the Kentucky Oaks (GI), breezed four furlongs in :49.40 for Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas.

The 135th Spring Meet at Churchill Downs came to a close Sunday afternoon with the lasting images of a longshot winner of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I), the coronation of racing royalty in the Kentucky Oaks (GI) and a dazzling start for racing under the stars with the debut of “Downs After Dark” night racing beneath the Twin Spires.

    It was a meet in which the winners of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks, Mine That Bird and Rachel Alexandra, became household names both inside and out of the racing world, and nights under the lights at Churchill Downs became the place both to be and be seen.

    Around midnight on April 21, trainer Bennie “Chip” Woolley Jr. – who never had started a Thoroughbred in a Grade I race – much less the biggest race of them all – pulled into Churchill Downs’ Gate 5 hauling behind his Ford F-450 Lariat a trailer containing a small gelding named Mine That Bird. Expectations for Mine That Bird in the Derby were not high after a fourth-place finish in the Sunland Park Derby.

    In the late afternoon of May 2, things changed in the blink of an eye in front of a crowd of 153,563, the seventh-largest crowd in Kentucky Derby history.

    Ridden by Calvin Borel, who had only picked up the mount the week before, Mime That Bird trailed 18 horses after three-quarters of a mile. Riding next to the rail as he had done in the 2007 Kentucky Derby with Street Sense, Borel and Mine That Bird began passing horses in a blur.

    At the top of the stretch, Mine That Bird moved around Atomic Rain and darted back to the rail. At the eighth pole, Mine That Bird squeezed through a narrow opening between the rail and Join in the Dance and drew off a 6 ¾-length victory over Pioneerof the Nile. Mine That Bird covered the 1 ¼ miles in 2:02.66 over a track rated as “sloppy.”

    Sent off as the third-longest price in the field of 19, Mine That Bird paid $103.20 to win, the second-largest payoff in Kentucky Derby history. The 6 ¾-length margin of victory was the largest in the Derby since 1946 when Assault won by eight lengths.

    Despite the near-historic victory margin posted by Mine that Bird, it paled in comparison to what had transpired in the Kentucky Oaks the day before.

    L and M Partners’ (Dolphus Morrison and Michael Lauffer) Rachel Alexandra dazzled a crowd of 104,867 by winning the 135th running of the Kentucky Oaks by 20 ¼ lengths. Borel sat motionless on the filly’s back as she effortlessly expanded her advantage in completing the 1 1/8 miles in 1:48.87 over a fast track.

    Borel became the first jockey since 1993 and seventh in history to sweep the Oaks and the Derby in the same year.

    The 135th running of the Kentucky Oaks marked the first year of a fundraising partnership with Susan G. Komen for the Cure©, the world’s largest breast cancer fundraising and outreach organization.  The crowd was encouraged to “Think Pink” and wear Komen’s signature color as 104,867 witnessed the race, which was televised for the first time on the cable network Bravo.  The 2009 Kentucky Oaks marked the 11th time in 12 years that attendance had topped the 100,000 mark.

    As part of that fundraising partnership, Churchill Downs presented Susan G. Komen for the Cure with a donation of $100,000 for breast cancer research, and another $30,000 was presented to “Horses and Hope,” a breast cancer outreach initiative launched by Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear that is focused on providing breast cancer education and screening to workers in Kentucky’s horse industry.  

   History of another kind was made during the Spring Meet on Friday, June 19, when Churchill Downs conducted its first night racing program. The 11-race program began with a first post of 6 p.m. (EDT) and attracted a crowd of 28,011. Two other “Downs After Dark” programs were offered with the June 26 card drawing 27,623 to Churchill Downs and the Thursday, July 2 program drawing 34,481 for a three-night total of 89,115 under the temporary lights at the historic home of the Kentucky Derby.

    In addition to Mine That Bird and Rachel Alexandra, other Grade I winners at the meet were Augustin Stable’s Informed Decision in the Humana Distaff, Midnight Cry Stable’s Einstein (BRZ) in the Woodford Reserve Turf Classic and West Point Thoroughbreds’ Macho Again in the Stephen Foster.

    Julien Leparoux, who won his third Spring Meet riding title with 62 victories, was aboard Informed Decision and Einstein and Robby Albarado won his third consecutive Stephen Foster when he rallied Macho Again from last to deny Einstein’s bid to become the first horse to win three consecutive Grade I races on different surfaces (dirt, turf and synthetic).

    Leparoux edged Borel by a single victory as the latter rode three winners on the meet’s final day but fell just short of catching the absent Leparoux.  It marked the second time in three years that Leparoux edged Borel by a single win for the Spring Meet title.

    Borel and Albarado reached riding milestones during the meet.

    On May 14, Borel became the fourth rider to reach 900 victories at Churchill Downs with his win aboard War Eagle Lady. On June 12, Borel got Churchill Downs victory No. 926 aboard Smoke Trail to move him past Don Brumfield into second place all time behind Pat Day’s record 2,482.

    Albarado became the sixth rider to reach 800 victories at Churchill Downs when he won aboard La Mousse (ARG) on April 30. A month later, his victory aboard Keertana was the 4,000th of his career making him the 57th North American-based rider to reach that plateau.

    Steve Asmussen won his sixth leading trainer title with 29 victories. Asmussen’s title was his third in the spring to go with 2004 and 2007. He also won fall titles in 2001, 2004 and 2007.  Mike Maker, the leading trainer of the 2008 Fall Meet finished second with 18 wins, one more than Greg Foley and two more than 2008 Spring Meet training champion Tom Amoss.

    Four trainers achieved their 300th career victories at Churchill Downs to boost the number to 12 at that plateau in track history.

    McGlamery Road gave Tom Amoss his 300th on May 14, Action Seeker accounted for No. 300 for Lynn Whiting on May 29, Citizen John on June 12 was Dave Vance’s 300th winner and Izzy Ali’s triumph on June 25 was No. 300 for Greg Foley.

    Ken and Sarah Ramsey won their record 15th leading owner title and fourth in a row as their stable posted 18 victories. The Ramseys have won eight spring titles and seven in the fall. 

   The Churchill Downs Fall Meet begins Sunday, Nov. 1 and runs through Saturday, Nov. 28.

THERIOT TO WORK MINE THAT BIRD ON MONDAY MORNING – Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I) winner Mine That Bird is scheduled to work a half-mile after the renovation break on Monday morning with jockey Jamie Theriot in the saddle.    Trainer Chip Woolley secured the services of Hall of Famer Mike Smith to ride Mine That Bird in the Aug. 1 West Virginia Derby (Grade II) at Mountaineer and the Aug. 29 Shadwell Travers (Grade I) at Saratoga. Woolley did not get a commitment for the Nov. 7 Breeders’ Cup Classic (Grade I) at Santa Anita.

    “I am tickled that this is over with,” Woolley said of landing Smith to replace Calvin Borel, who was aboard for the gelding’s upset victory in the Kentucky Derby and third-place run in the Belmont Stakes (GI), but could not give a commitment to the West Virginia Derby. “We’ve got a rider that we are comfortable with and that is more important than the three-race commitment. We can get through the first two at least.”

    Smith rode Mine That Bird to a runner-up finish behind Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness (Grade I) when Borel honored a commitment to ride the filly.

    “Calvin’s in a tough spot with three horses in the same category,” Woolley said referring to Rachel Alexandra and Warrior’s Reward, who Borel is committed to ride in the Aug. 1 Jim Dandy (Grade II) at Saratoga. “It is a tough spot, but he is fortunate in that not many get that opportunity.

“Hopefully we’ll have Calvin for a backup, you never know. With Rachel Alexandra, the Travers is one of the races they are talking about with her, so we wouldn’t get him for that one. There is just too much drama mixed in.”

    On Sunday morning, Mine That Bird backtracked to the paddock runway and galloped 1 ½ miles under exercise rider Rudy Gallegos.

MR. SIDNEY HAS PROFITABLE STAY AT CHURCHILL DOWNS – Mr. Sidney made only a brief visit to Churchill Downs, but he was here long enough to pick up his second graded stakes score with a triumph in Saturday’s Firecracker Handicap (GII).

    “He arrived here Monday and he probably will be heading back to New York before too long,” said Kenny McCarthy, assistant to trainer Bill Mott. “He looked good this morning.”

    The Firecracker victory added $101,896 to Mr. Sidney’s bankroll and gave him two graded stakes wins in 2009, the other coming in the Maker’s Mark Mile (GI) in April at Keeneland.

    Mr. Sidney had finished 11th in his start before the Firecracker on the dirt in the Metropolitan Mile (GI) at Belmont Park.

    “The key to him is to keep him nice and quiet,” McCarthy said. “He did not like that detention barn at Belmont the last time. That was the Storm Cat in him.”

    Mr. Sidney’s victory was the 11th of the meet for the Mott barn, the most in a spring meet here since 2004 when 12 wins were recorded. From 54 starters, there also have been 10 seconds and 10 thirds for a 57 percent in-the-money rate. Mott is the all-time leader at Churchill Downs in wins (622) and stakes victories (75).

    “It has been a nice meet,” McCarthy said. “We will keep 30 horses here this summer, send some up to Saratoga and get some back from New York.”

RAVI’S SONG FIRST WINNER FOR MILLIONAIRE LU RAVI – If one wants to elicit a huge smile from trainer Carl Bowman, just mention Lu Ravi.

    On Sunday morning, Bowman was grinning from ear to ear after the performance of Ravi’s Song on Saturday when she became Lu Ravi’s first winner.

    In the 1 1/16-mile race, Ravi’s Song was bottled up on the inside until the eighth pole. She trailed by four lengths at the time, but finally found racing room at the sixteenth pole and drew off to win by a length.

    “I liked the way she won yesterday going a route. It was very impressive the way she did it,” Bowman said. “She probably should have won the first time she ran here, but then she wouldn’t have had that chance yesterday. But I am really proud for Lu Ravi.”

    Ravi’s Song, a daughter of Unbridled’s Song, is Lu Ravi’s third foal. Superb in Roses never made it to the races and Ravi’s Lovin was winless in two starts. Lu Ravi now has a yearling filly by Ghostzapper.

    Under Bowman’s care, Lu Ravi compiled a record of 26-11-8-3 for earnings of $1,819,781. She won eight stakes, five of them graded, and in 2000 beat future Hall of Famer Silverbulletday twice.

    “I trained her mother, At the Half, too,” Bowman said of the four-time stakes winner and earner of $338,393. “She was one of the top three or four fillies as a 2-year-old in the country (in 1993). It is always enjoyable to win with a number of horses from the same family.”

    Ravi’s Song did not make her racing debut until this March at Fair Grounds.

    “She has got some issues,” said Bowman, who intends to keep Ravi’s Song on the dirt. “I’d like to look for an allowance going long and then make a decision.”

BARN TALK – Trainer Ian Wilkes reported that Warrior’s Reward came out of his third-place finish in Saturday’s Dwyer (Grade II) at Belmont Park “with a few little cuts but otherwise looked fine.” Warrior’s Reward stumbled badly at the start and trailed the field most of the way before rallying for third. “Obviously the race did not develop the way we hoped,” Wilkes said. “To rally from that far back to get third, I was really proud of him. We are going to go on to the Jim Dandy as long as he comes back OK. We are going to bring him back here on Tuesday.”

    Helen Alexander and Helen Groves’ Selva is scheduled to return to trainer David Carroll’s barn on Monday afternoon after her fourth-place finish in the Prioress (Grade I) at Belmont Park on Saturday. “I was really proud of her,” Carroll said of Selva’s first start since April 8. “She ran her butt off. If she comes out of it all right we will point to the Victory Ride (Grade III) at Saratoga (on Aug. 29).”

Trainer Jim Baker, who has enjoyed a banner spring meet with nine winners from 25 starters (36 percent), will be sending two of his stable standouts east in the coming weeks. Tom Walters’ Pretty Prolific, who won her 2009 debut with an allowance win on May 30, is being pointed to the $70,000 Dearly Precious Stakes at six furlongs on July 18 at Monmouth Park. Patton’s Creek Farm’s War Eagle Lady, one of three three-time winners this meet, is scheduled to be at Delaware Park on July 19 for the $75,000 Light Hearted Stakes at 7 ½ furlongs on the turf.

Calvin Borel entered the final day of the 2009 Spring Meet with a chance to catch meet-long leader Julien Leparoux in the race for leading jockey.  Borel trailed Leparoux 62-58 heading into the meet finale and Leparoux is riding out of town.

WORK TAB – Decelerator, winner of the Debutante Stakes (Grade III) on June 27, worked a half-mile in :51 over a track rated as “sloppy” before the renovation break.