Here at Diamond Dale, we have actually had a great Christmas- we have a good bunch of horses that seem to coming into themselves very nicely for the new year.
Here’s the end of the year progress so far:
[color=green]AT THE BADA BING: He was entered in a 14 furlong allowance at Woodbine. While it wasn’t a spectacular race for him, I think I may have found his prime distance to run at. He finished 5th of sixth, though he did continually fall further back. I’m thinking a decent amount of time off with this boy and maybe find another long distance 'chase for him to run in during 2013 and see how we do. He’s my only steeplechaser and I’m actually finding it interesting to try and find his good spot- he’s earned under $35,000 in his career and I don’t think he’s done yet, despite the effort here. Just think he has earned his month or so off to catch his breath- back to the farm and his '09 debut should be for early Feb.
[color=red]F SHARP: I was starting to wonder about this little girl- looking at her career starts, it didn’t seem that she was throwing much of an effort out in her races. Every race ran the same, where she would sit in a spot and not move. But I started to see that maybe she just didn’t like the distances she had been given so far. Her last race and her first for me was in a 9 furlong turf allowance at Aqueduct, where she ran 6th for most of the race but gained some ground by the wire- finishing a 5th. Again, doesn’t look like much but given her past, I think I am going to run with this and see how I do with her in '13. The end of the year will go either way- I will continue to run her as a 4 yr old to see if she is good older runner or retire her in 2014 and find a decently priced stallion to breed her too. We shall see- REMINDER that she is still up for lease if you would like for the '13 season, for $20,000 as she is young and could mature into a decent 3 yr old. If you are a new member and are interested in her, contact me and we can discuss and affordable lease price for this lovely young filly.
[color=blue]JESTER CLOWN: this is my other hope for stallion prospect- he will be a 3 yr old and I am hoping that MAYBE he will be stakes worthy this year. But I am taking my time with him, just like I am with my other colt. He last start was decent though I think I still need to work with him and figure out his prime racing spot. He last start (his second with me) was in a 9 furlong turf allowance at Calder. He finished 4th of 6 horses and am going to see if 9 furlongs and longer seem to be his spot. If not, then I will cut back and see if he is a sprinter. He will be staying in Florida, either racing primarily at Calder or moving to Gulfstream when some good races open up. Looking to, if his talent warrents it, a spot in the Derby or other Triple Crown races. A couple of weeks off now and his next start should be late Jan, if he bounces back nicely enough.
[color=blue]VELOCITY: my rising star! I took a huge chance on him in his last start, entering him in a stakes race a little sooner than I expected- was going to have his first race of '13 be his first stakes race but was eager to see what he could handle before his 2 yr old season closed out. And I was pleasantly surprised, with a 5th place finish in the Man ‘O’ War Stakes run at Aqueduct. I am very happy with that effort, as he has run often this year and I didn’t expect him to put much of an effort out but he did. He is my most consistant runner and I am thinking that I am going to keep him at the stakes level in '13, unless I start to see that he’s not doing as well as he should be. Maybe, if I am lucky, he will get those 10 stakes wins during his career and be able to be retired to stud…oh the dreams, LOL!!!
[color=green]MERRY CHRISTMAS and [color=red]HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
