Stars of Tomorrow

The 137^th running of the Grade I, $500,000-added Clark Handicap Presented by Norton Healthcare, a race that shares its long history with the $2 million Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI) and the $1 million Kentucky Oaks (GI), and a pair of “Stars of Tomorrow” programs devoted exclusively to races for 2-year-olds head a schedule of 14 stakes events with total purses of more than $2.1 million that will be featured in the 21-day Fall Meet at Churchill Downs.

The Oct. 30-Nov. 27 fall racing session includes the record eighth visit by the Breeders’ Cup World Championships to the home of the Kentucky Derby on Nov. 4-5.  The return of the Breeders’ Cup will mark the first time that the event has been held at Churchill Downs in back-to-back years and will be its second stop as at the Louisville track in its two-day format.  Last year’s Breeders’ Cup attracted record two-day total attendance of 114,353 and record total wagering.  The 2010 renewal was highlighted by a narrow victory by Adele Dilschneider and Claiborne Farm’s homebred Blame, the winner of Churchill Downs’ 2009 Clark Handicap, over Mr. and Mrs. Jerome Moss’ previously unbeaten Horse of the Year Zenyatta in the $5 million Breeders’ Cup Classic (GI).

The Clark, a 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds and up, will return in its traditional day-after-Thanksgiving spot on Friday, Nov. 25.  Last year’s renewal featured a stirring stretch battle between the Virginia H. Tarra Trust’s Giant Oak over Morton Fink’s Successful Dan, who appeared to score a narrow victory but was disqualified and placed third after stewards ruled he had interfered with another rival.  Like the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks, the Clark Handicap, named to honor Churchill Downs founder Meriwether Lewis Clark, has been run annually without interruption since the first meet of the historic track, originally known as the Louisville Jockey Club, in May of 1875.

Churchill Downs’ 2011 Fall Meet schedule is nearly identical to the last year’s version in terms of races and purses.  Aside from the shuffling of positions on the schedule for some events, the only significant change in the schedule from 2010 is a $25,000 increase in the purse for the Falls City Handicap (GII), a 1 1/8-mile race for fillies and mares ages 3 and up that will carry a value of $175,000-added for its 96th renewal on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 24.  The boost to the Falls City purse will lift total purses for the meet’s 14 stakes races to $2.12 million.

The Fall Meet will open on Sunday, Oct. 30 with the first of its pair of “Stars of Tomorrow” racing programs made up exclusively of races for 2-year-olds.  “Stars of Tomorrow I” will be highlighted by the 43^rd running of the $150,000 Pocahontas Stakes (GII) for fillies and the 30^th running of $100,000 Iroquois (GIII), both of which will be run at a mile on the main track. 

The juveniles-only “Stars of Tomorrow II” card is set for Saturday, Nov. 26, the next-to-last day of the meet, and the day will be topped again by the $150,000-added Golden Rod (GII) for fillies, the $150,000-added Kentucky Jockey Club (GII).  The 1 1/16-mile races are early preps for the 2012 renewals of Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby, which will be run, respectively, on Friday, May 4 and Saturday, May 5.  Along with earning the first-place purse, the winner of the 85^th running of the Kentucky Jockey Club will automatically be nominated to the 2012 Kentucky Derby and the $200,000-added The Cliff’s Edge Derby Trial (GIII).  The winner of the 68^th Golden Rod will earn automatic nominations to the 2012 renewals of the Kentucky Oaks and the $100,000-added Eight Belles (GIII), a seven-furlong race for 3-year-old fillies that will be run on Kentucky Oaks Day.

Each of the Breeders’ Cup programs on Friday, Nov. 4 and Saturday, Nov. 5 will include a pair of additional stakes races.  On the Friday Breeders’ Cup schedule are the $100,000-added Ack Ack Handicap (GIII) for 3-year-olds and up at 1 1/16 miles and the $85,000-added Jimmy V overnight stakes for 3-year-olds at six furlongs.  The Saturday Breeders’ Cup program will include the $150,000-added Chilukki (GII) for fillies and mares ages 3 and up at a mile and the $85,000 Dream Supreme, an overnight stakes race for 3-year-old fillies at six furlongs.

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.

Two-year-olds will be in the spotlight on Halloween as Churchill Downs kicks of its Fall Meet and Breeders’ Cup Week on Sunday with an 11-race “Stars of Tomorrow I” card devoted exclusively to juvenile runners.

The 21-day meet will be highlighted by the 27th Breeders’ Cup World Championships on Nov. 5 and 6. Churchill Downs is hosting the Breeders’ Cup a record seventh time with six Championship races being held on Nov. 5 and eight on Nov. 6 with the marquee race being the $5 million Classic (GI) featuring the undefeated Zenyatta.

Sunday’s card is the first of two Fall Meet racing days that feature only for 2-year-olds.  The popular “Stars of Tomorrow” programs are designed to showcase rising stars in the sport who could put their stamp on greatness next spring in the 137th runnings of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI) and the Kentucky Oaks (GI). The second all 2-year-old program, “Stars of Tomorrow II” will be held Saturday, Nov. 27.

Post time for the first race on Sunday’s meet-opening program is 12:40 p.m. (EDT).

The 42nd running of the $150,000 Pocahontas (GII) for fillies and the 29th running of the $100,000 Iroquois (GIII) serve as the centerpieces for Sunday’s card. Both races are one mile on the main track with the Pocahontas going as the 10th race (5:02 p.m.) and the Iroquois as the eighth (4:05 p.m.).

John Oxley’s Dancinginherdreams, a dazzling five-length winner in her debut on Oct. 10 at Keeneland, headlines a field of seven for the Pocahontas. Trained by John Ward, Dancinginherdreams will be ridden by Julien Leparoux and break from post position three.

Chief among her rivals will be Peachtree Stable’s Honey Chile, trained by Wayne Catalano. Fourth in the Arlington-Washington Lassie (GIII), Honey Chile has won two of three starts and was a 6 ½-length allowance winner at Keeneland on Oct. 9 in her most recent start. Michael Baze has the mount Sunday on Honey Chile, who will break from post position seven.

The field for the Pocahontas, which was won last year by Sassy Image, from the rail out is as follows: Missyoulikecrazy (Corey Lanerie, 117 pounds), Days Like This (Robby Albarado, 117), Dancinginherdreams (Leparoux, 117), Gran Lioness (Jamie Theriot, 119), Eden Star (Kent Desormeaux, 117), Switching Gears (Garrett Gomez) and Honey Chile (Base, 119).

The Iroquois, which was won last year by Thiskyhasnolimit, drew a field of eight.

Topping the field is Carolyn and Karen Scisney’s Maybesomaybenot, winner of the Sanford (GII) at Saratoga. Trained by Mike Maker, Maybesomaybenot finished eighth in the Dixiana Breeders’ Futurity (GI) at Keeneland on Oct. 9 in his most recent start.

Robby Albarado will be aboard Maybesomaybenot for the first time on Sunday. Maybesomaybenot will break from post position two and carry high weight of 123 pounds, conceding 2-6 pounds to his rivals.

Second high weight at 121 pounds is Rapputi Stables, Dimitar Pencheff and Carlota Stable’s Ribo Bobo, winner of the Foolish Pleasure at Calder on Sept. 25. Eduardo Nunez has the call on Ribo Bobo, who will break from post position six for trainer Manny Azpurua.

The field for the Iroquois, from the rail out, is as follows:  Storm in the Lake (Shaun Bridgmohan, 119 pounds), Maybesomaybenot (Albarado, 123), Conservative Value (Leandro Goncalves, 117), Astrology (Garrett Gomez, 117), Ronin Dax (Calvin Borel, 117), Ribo Bobo (Nunez, 121), War Whoop (Willie Martinez, 117) and Halo’s Thunder (Julien Leparoux, 117).

Cathy and Bob Zollars and Mark Wagner’s Thiskyhasnolimit rallied from far off the pace to win the 28th running of the $120,800 Iroquois for 2-year-olds by a length over Uh Oh Bango on opening day of the 21-day Fall Meet at Churchill Downs.

    Ridden by Shaun Bridgmohan for trainer Steve Asmussen, Thiskyhasnolimit raced in eighth place in the run down the backstretch as Raging Wit and Oh Charlie Boy dueled for the lead through fractions of :22.81 and :46.26.

    Approaching the far turn, Bridgmohan had the Thiskyhasnolimit in the clear on the outside and had dead aim on Three Day Rush and Uh Oh Bango who had forged to the lead. Thiskyhasnolimit surged past Uh Oh Bango at the eighth pole and drew off for the victory.

    Thiskyhasnolimit, a maiden winner here in June and third in the Grade II Futurity at Belmont Park in his previous start, covered the mile on a “fast” main track in 1:37.36.

    The victory, the second in five starts for the Kentucky-bred son of Sky Mesa, was worth $71,151 and increased Thiskyhasnolimit’s career bankroll to $136,236.

    Thiskyhasnolimit returned $28.20, $13 and $6.60. Uh Oh Bango, ridden by Glenn Corbett rewarded his backers with mutuels of $8.60 and $6.20 with Soaring Empire, under Eddie Castro, returning $5 to show another three lengths back. Favored Dublin finished seventh in the field of 10.

POST-RACE QUOTES – THE IROQUOIS

STEVE ASMUSSEN, trainer of THISKYHASNOLIMIT, winner: “He trained extremely well here coming into this race and he put forth the kind of race we were expecting. Obviously, we were extremely disappointed with his previous two starts because we always had high hopes for him. He looks to appreciate the added distance. His next target will be the Kentucky Jockey Club (the $150,000-added Grade II race at 1 1/16 miles) on closing day.”

SHAUN BRIDGMOHAN, jockey of THISKYHASNOLIMIT, winner: “We had a great trip. He broke well and we got to settle into a great position on the backside. I was just very patient and waited for a hole to open up and turning for home it did. He gave me the acceleration that I needed to get home. He is a pretty nice horse. He was a very professional racehorse today.”

KORY OWENS, trainer of UH OH BANGO, second: “I really don’t think I had him tight enough for the mile.  Especially it being the one-turn mile, I think that’s a lot harder.  It’s definitely the toughest sprint race I think you can find.”

Q: Will you come back late in the month for the Kentucky Jockey Club? “We’ll take him back home to Oklahoma and just see how he’s doing back there.  I think a lot of the horse.  He was a little rank at the beginning and we tried to kind of back off of ‘em a little bit.  It was a good experience for him.”

GLENN CORBETT, rider of UH OH BANGO, second: “He run huge!  I’m very, very happy with his performance.  He was a little bit fresh at the first part of it, but we kind of figured that since he was coming off sprint races.  It looks like he can run with these kind, that’s for sure.   The one-turn mile is pretty demanding, and he might have got just a hair short on us, but there’s no embarrassment, that’s for sure.”

CAM GAMBOLATI, trainer of SOARING EMPIRE, third: “He ran well.  He was a little timid in between horses – he’s just inexperienced.  He’s a talented horse and he ran as good as I could expect coming in off just one race at 5 ½ furlongs.  Hopefully he’s fine, and I think closing day here a mile and a sixteenth (in the Kentucky Jockey Club) will hit him right in the head.” 

D. WAYNE LUKAS, trainer of DUBLIN, seventh: “He never got into the race like he normally does.  He usually just pulls himself into the race, but he didn’t today.  I just don’t know.  He’s been training wonderful.  We’ll just step back and analyze him and see.”

Cooler temperatures and the leaves changing colors signify the return of live horse racing to the Louisville area as Churchill Downs, the historic home of the Kentucky Derby, readies to open its much anticipated 120th Fall Meet on Sunday, Nov. 1.

The popular 21-day stand, which covers a four-week stretch through Nov. 28, kicks off in style Sunday with “Stars of Tomorrow I” highlighting an 11-race opening-day program that includes a 2010 calendar giveaway, the debut of a new Sunday morning public workout program and a special 2-year-old handicapping seminar and breakfast.

First post, as is the case for most of the meeting, is 12:40 p.m. ET.

Sunday’s fifth annual “Stars of Tomorrow I” 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 four years of existence, Stars of Tomorrow has been the launching pad for 15 Grade I winners, including millionaires Rachel Alexandra, Lawyer Ron, Macho Again, Pure Clan, Court Vision, Swift Temper and Any Given Saturday.

A pair of Grade III, $100,000-added stakes events at one mile tops the program, the open Iroquois and Pocahontas for fillies. The 28th running of the Iroquois is a springboard to the Grade II, $150,000-added Kentucky Jockey Club on closing day, which doubles as “Stars of Tomorrow II”. The 41st edition of the Pocahontas is a steppingstone to the fillies’ Grade II, $150,000-added Golden Rod, which is run on the same Nov. 28 finale.

Throughout the Fall Meet, horsemen will have ample opportunities to uncork promising juveniles or seek year-end graded-stakes glory. All told, 16 stakes races cumulatively worth $2,015,000, which includes a quartet of overnight stakes, will be run during the action-packed Fall Meet.

The anchor of the lucrative stakes program comes Friday, Nov. 27 with the 135th running of the $400,000-added Clark Handicap presented by Norton Healthcare (GII). The 1 1/8-mile test for 3-year-olds and up annually lures some of the top older horses in North America and is one of five major stakes events over Thanksgiving weekend. Stephen Foster champ Macho Again, Meadowlands Cup winner Etched and Indiana Derby victor Misremembered have already been mentioned as early contenders for the tradition-rich race that comes three weeks after the Breeders’ Cup World Championships are run in Southern California.

After Sunday’s opener, live racing will be conducted on a Wednesday-Sunday schedule with dark days on Mondays and Tuesdays. The lone exception is a special closing week additional day of racing on Tuesday, Nov. 24.

Most race days will begin at 12:40 p.m. ET and feature 10 live races. Twelve-race programs that begin early at 11:30 a.m. ET will be showcased over the meet’s final three days that comprise the Thanksgiving holiday weekend: Thursday, Nov. 26 (Thanksgiving Day); Friday, Nov. 27 (Clark Handicap Day); and closing day on Saturday, Nov. 28 (Stars of Tomorrow II).

Bettors are certain to be challenged by the competitive Fall Meet racing that typically pits the fastest and battle-tested horses against the recently freshened year-end bloomers. Meanwhile, Churchill Downs has planned a plethora of events, giveaways and promotions to whet the appetite for casual customers and entertainment-seekers, too.

The first 5,000 fans in attendance on opening day will receive a free 2010 Churchill Downs Wall Calendar, sponsored by Humana, complete with major event listings and vivid and memorable images from the Kentucky Derby and around the historic racetrack.

Also, there are two opening-day events that begin before 11:30 a.m. admission gates open for eager early risers.

“Daybreak at the Downs” – patterned after Kentucky Derby week’s well-attended “Dawn at the Downs” – will take place every Sunday from 8-10 a.m. throughout the Fall Meet. Churchill Downs’ racing analyst Jill Byrne will host the free program and describe the on-track action as hundreds of horses prepare for their upcoming races in morning workouts. Complimentary coffee, donuts and milk will also be served.

Those looking to hone or improve their handicapping skills, particularly with juveniles, are invited to attend a special “Stars of Tomorrow” 2-Year-Old Handicapping Seminar on Sunday, Nov. 1. The price to attend the insightful 9-11:30 a.m. session is $25 and includes breakfast; a trip to the paddock to better understand a 2-year-old’s physical and behavioral characteristics; in-depth tips and analysis of that day’s program by Byrne, jockey Jon Court, trainer Ian Wilkes and workout clocker John Nichols; a raffle for door prizes; and reserved seats in Skye Terrace.

Once fans enter the gates Sunday, they’ll be treated some special opening-day food items, courtesy of Levy Restaurants. They tasty offerings include candy corn, funnel cakes, deep fried Twinkies and deep fried apple pie with caramel sauce. There also will be free samples of new Fall Meet food items such as Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches and Chicken Fried Chicken. To top it off, suites guests will be welcomed back with a champagne toast.   

Children age 3-10 are invited to take part in opening day Junior Jockey Club events, which include crafting a foam fall wreath and bingo for prizes. Activities begin at 11:30 a.m. at the Junior Jockey Club near Gate 10, and the children’s favorite area mascot “Churchill Charlie” will make a special visit between 2-2:30 p.m. Junior Jockey Club events will take place every weekend throughout the Fall Meet.

Other Fall Meet promotional highlights include College Scholarship Day on Friday, Nov. 6 that will feature free admission to full-time college students and 10 drawings – one after each race – for $1,000 scholarships.

“Ladies Weekend” on Nov. 14-15 will showcase a ladies only handicapping seminar, unique boutique bazaar and warehouse sale and the second annual celebration of “Horses and Hope” to raise awareness for breast cancer.

Certain to be a hit will be a tribute to fan-favorite jockey Calvin Borel, who swept this year’s Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby aboard Rachel Alexandra and Mine That Bird, respectively. He’ll be honored on the weekend of Nov. 21-22 with a bobblehead giveaway, autograph session, roast and his very own drink special.

Churchill Downs popular “Dress to Impress” Friday Happy Hours, sponsored by Budweiser Select, will return for a three-week run during the Fall Meet on Nov. 6 in the newly refurbished Paddock Pavilion, conveniently located indoors next to the saddling paddock. The area will have a lounge feel with comfortable amenities and music from DJs Ryan Cox (Nov. 6), LadyKillers (Nov. 13) and K-Dogg (Nov. 20). Essential for happy hours, there’ll be $2 drink specials from 3-6 p.m. – one hour longer than recent years. Also, one male and female in attendance each Friday will be chosen as the day’s “most stylish” attendee and will receive $250 gifts certificates to Louisville-area boutiques and fashionable men’s stores.

On opening day, racing fans can pit their handicapping skills against the best Louisville has to offer every Sunday and Wednesday in the popular twice-weekly “Who’s the Champ?” Handicapping Tournament. For a $30 entry fee ($25 for Twin Spires Club members), participants will compete for $4,000 in weekly cash prizes and an invitation to the Nov. 22 final in which the top two finishers will win coveted berths in the Daily Racing Form/National Thoroughbred Association National Handicapping Championship XI slated for Jan. 29-30, 2010 in Las Vegas.

General admission to Churchill Downs is $3, but only $1 to senior citizens and members of the track’s Twin Spires Club. Children 12 and under are admitted free when accompanied by an adult. Parking is free in the Longfield Avenue lot (Gates 10 & 12) and $3 in all other lots. Valet parking is $5.

Free seating is available daily over a first-come, first-serve basis in sections 113-118. Premium reserved seats in the Matt Winn Dining Room, Third Floor Box Seats, Millionaires’ Row, Jockey Club Suites, Finish Line Suites and Skye Terrace can be purchased by calling (502) 636-4400.

For more information, call (502) 636-4400.

Churchill Downs will host its annual “Stars of Tomorrow” 2-Year-Old Handicapping Seminar on Sunday, Nov. 1 in the Paddock Pavilion from 9-11:30 a.m.

Churchill Downs racing analyst Jill Byrne will host this year’s seminar with jockey Jon Court, trainer Ian Wilkes and workout clocker John Nichols. The quartet will provide insight on how to improve handicapping skills for 2-year-old racing and in-depth analysis of the entire “Stars of Tomorrow I” racing program with a question and answer session.

One of the most popular aspects of the seminar is a special trip to the saddling paddock for an up-close inspection of a 2-year-old and its confirmation, behavior and equipment.

The cost to attend is $25 and includes breakfast buffet, official program, Brisnet.com past performances and a reserved seat in Skye Terrace 5. There also will be a raffle for door prizes, including a VIP day at the races, two rounds of golf at Belterra Casino Resort & Spa, winning connections-signed framed photographs of past Kentucky Derby winners and a chance to watch a race from the Churchill Downs announcer’s booth with track commentator Mark Johnson.

Call (502) 636-4400 for reservations.

  
The 135th renewal of the Grade II, $400,000-added Clark Handicap Presented by Norton Healthcare, a race that is as old as the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (GI) and the Kentucky Oaks (GI), is the premier event on a schedule of 12 stakes races with total purses of $1.775 million announced today for the Nov. 1-28 Fall Meet at historic Churchill Downs.

    The Clark Handicap, a 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds and up won last year by dual Eclipse Award finalist Einstein, is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 27 and is the richest event on a stakes schedule in which every race has been granted graded stakes status by the American Graded Stakes Committee.  Other highlights of the Fall Meet stakes schedule include a pair of “Stars of Tomorrow” programs devoted exclusively to races for 2-year-old Thoroughbreds.  Each of those programs includes a pair of graded races, one for open company and one scheduled exclusively for fillies.  

    The “Stars of Tomorrow” programs are set for Sunday, Nov. 1, the opening day of the meet, and the closing day program on Saturday, Nov. 28.  The first of those programs spotlights a pair of Grade III races in the Iroquois and Pocahontas, both one-mile contests and the latter restricted to fillies.  The final “Stars of Tomorrow” day features two Grade II races at 1 1/16-miles in Kentucky Jockey Club and the Golden Rod, with the latter scheduled for fillies.  Last fall’s renewals of those races produced Rachel Alexandra, the leading candidate for 2009 “Horse of the Year” honors who finished second in the Pocahontas before launching an ongoing seven-race winning streak with a 4 3/4-length romp in the Golden Rod.  That string of stakes wins by Rachel Alexandra includes the Kentucky Oaks; a win over males in the Preakness (GI), the second jewel of the Triple Crown; and the Mother Goose (GI).

    The total purses available in the 12-race stakes program at Churchill Downs have the same value as in the 2008 Fall Meet.  One race was moved to a new position on the schedule as the $100,000-added Ack Ack Handicap (GIII), a one-mile race for 3-year-olds and up will be run this year on Friday, Nov. 6.  The Ack Ack will serve as the top attraction on the live racing card at Churchill Downs that will complement the simulcast of the first day of competition in the Nov. 6-7 Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Oak Tree at Santa Anita.

    “Our 2009 Fall Stakes schedule includes a very strong roster of graded stakes races that are either rich in tradition or growing in stature, and the quality of the overall stakes schedule is a tribute to both our horsemen and our racing office,” said Kevin Flanery, president of Churchill Downs.  “Despite intensifying competition from tracks in nearby states with purses fueled by casino revenues and the nation’s difficult economic landscape, our purses for stakes races in the 2009 Fall Meet remain level with those offered during last year’s meet.  We are pleased that our 2009 Fall Meet stakes purses remain stable despite those challenges, and we thank our owners and trainers for their continued support for racing and stakes events at Churchill Downs.”

    Other highlights of the Fall Meet Stakes schedule include the 94th running of the $150,000-added Falls City Handicap (GII) for fillies and mares ages 3 & up, a traditional Thanksgiving Day fixture that will be renewed on Nov. 26, and the 19th running of the $175,000-added Mrs. Revere (GII) for 3-year-old fillies on turf on Saturday, Nov. 14.  Like the Clark Handicap, the Falls City dates to the track’s first racing meet in 1875, but the Clark, like the Kentucky Derby and Oaks, has been renewed each year without interruption and the Falls City has missed a few years during that span.   
 
CHURCHILL DOWNS FALL STAKES SCHEDULE (NOV. 1-28)       
Date    Race (Grade)    Division    Distance (surface)       
Nov. 1    STARS OF TOMORROW I       
    $100,000-added Pocahontas (GIII)    2 YO fillies    Mile       
    $100,000-added Iroquois (GIII)    2 YO    Mile       
Nov. 6    $100,000-added Ack Ack Handicap (GIII)    3 YO & up    Mile       
Nov. 7    $150,000-added Chilukki (GII)    F & M 3 & up    Mile       
Nov. 14    $175,000-added Mrs. Revere (GII)    3 YO fillies    1 1/16 m (T)       
Nov. 15    $100,000-added Commonwealth Turf (GIII)    3 YO    1 1/16 m (T)       
Nov. 21    $100,000-added Cardinal Handicap (GIII)    3 YO & up    1 1/8 m (T)       
Nov. 26    $150,000-added Falls City Handicap (GII)    F & M 3 & up    1 1/8 m       
Nov. 27    $400,000-added Clark Handicap Presented by      Norton Healthcare (GII)    3 YO & up    1 1/8m    
Nov. 27    $100,000-added River City Handicap (GIII)    3 YO & up    1 1/8 m (T)       
Nov. 28    STARS OF TOMORROW II       
    $150,000-added Golden Rod (GII)    2 YO fillies    1 1/16 m       
    $150,000-added Kentucky Jockey Club (GII)    2 YO    1 1/16 m       
(T) – Turf  F & M – Fillies and mares YO – year-olds  m – Mile(s)    

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