We finally started our 3 year-old gelding on the grass at Belmont and he didn’t disappoint us. Overlooked in the betting at 21-1, LT went to the front and almost held on to win. He put away the challenge of Shinnecock Bay early on with a quick opening quarter of 21.4. That may have made the difference in the end; it was a head bob at the wire. One thing for sure is, he won’t be 21-1 in his second start on the grass.
On June 6, our filly faced nine other rivals going a mile on a good turf course. She had to overcome the far outside post position and a bad break but world-class jockey Javier Castellano didn’t panic, when Wine Burglar broke last. Instead, he maneuvered her to the inside going into the far turn where once there was daylight, he moved her to the outside and she came storming down the lane. The final time for the mile was 1:35.2.
After his winter vacation in Ocala, Whiskey made a nice return to the races at Belmont. He was very head strong early on in the race. Jose Ortiz had to settle him down in the early stages and retreat to last. Once settled, he came home with a big rallying kick. It was a very nice 2014 debut in which he earned a very solid 82 Beyer number for the effort.
Our New York bred gelding made his first lifetime start, a 5-½ furlong sprint, December 12th at Aqueduct. Squeezed leaving the gate, he was way out of it for the first ½ mile, but then our boy came storming down the lane to grab fourth place. The winner won by five lengths, but LT galloped out past him after the wire. We are looking forward to his next start going two turns.
On October 5, our two year-old made his first lifetime start going 8.5 furlongs at Belmont Park. Eagle broke slowly and ran greenly in the early stages while racing last in the middle of the track. Once Eagle figured it out, he raced very professionally going into the turn and closed smartly down the stretch. Not only did he earn the show honors, but he also earned a solid 70 Beyer number.