Montana’s Salty Boundary Bonanza
The Salty Boundary Bonanza is this week’s regular stakes race in
This race is named in honor of the dual stakes placed Boundary / Deputy Minister horse from the genesis stable. His 54 start career saw him fall just shy of the $200,000 mark in earnings while he racked up 9 wins, primarily as a dirt sprinter. Undergoing the gender change in retirement, he begat the promising allowance runner Lil Salt, by Miswaki, who looks to be coming into his own as a four year old. Also raced in the genesis camp, Lil Salt is now 2 from 16, after retaining his maiden status for a frustrating 13 runs, and looks to have a bright future.
To the event of the day and we have:
Drawn the inside is the 9/2 equal favorite, Hawkbone. This 5 year old by Miswaki is showing no sign of having ever heard of the aging curve. With 40 runs under his belt, he’s refusing to slow down, still winning and still returning triple digit speed numbers. His 40 start career for ksparrow22 has seen him mix it with the best, his highlight probably being his second in the Grade 1 GSR sprint in week 2517. Two starts back he returned a 107 in comfortably winning an Illinois allowance, and a repeat of that form would see him in with an excellent chance of scoring win number eleven here this weekend.
Barrier 2 will be occupied by the very smart 4 year old sprinter, Internal Fire, rated a 5/1 chance in early markets. Trainer gdog currently has only 4 horses in work, but with a career success rate of 118 wins from 622 runners, this barn must be taken seriously in any contested event. Internal Fire is a 4yo son of Mutakddim with an incredible record, having finished in the first four in 18 of 19 starts, generally against fullish fields. With 5 wins from 19, better than $150,000 in the bank, and a last start stakes second on the board, this solidly prepared colt is knocking on the door of his first black type victory.
In gate 3 we have the homebred Distorted Humor 5 year old, Dashing Dooter. A look through his CV shows what an evenly matched race this one is. He’s rated the outsider of the field at 11/1, but he’s certainly not without a sound chance. His racing to date has been restricted to mid level allowances, with the exception of a slightly ambitious tilt at a Grade 2, two starts back. He followed that up with a career worst dirt performance, and has been given a few weeks off to recover. As trainer cut999 lines him up for the first time in 2006, he’s shown he can run triple digit speed figures, and with an ounce of luck that sort of run may well put him in the mix here.
From gate 4 we see Harbor Patrol T, a 4yo son of
Army of One is due to line up at number 5. This superbly bred son of Forty Niner / Storm Cat shares the top line of betting at 9/2 as he faces the starter for the 14th time. He currently has 5 wins and more than $170,000 in the bank, without previously venturing into black type racing. Breeder / trainer jonsnow has followed the tried and true path with this colt, taking him through the classes and giving him every chance to mature. He put the writing on the wall last start, cleaning up a 7.5f
Clue in Dare T is another making the transition into the higher grade for the first time, following an excellent year of allowance racing at three, with the step up coming only after a solid grounding. Transferring to woodhead mid way through last season, 20 starts as a three year old did nothing to detract from his ability, and he comes into this event with 3 wins and 3 seconds from his last 6 races. Perhaps the clue to his toughness lies in the breeding, his sire being Clure, an unfashionable son of Theatrical, with “tough as they come” Sinndar on the second line. The why’s and wherefore’s don’t matter though, as this talented four year old takes his well earned place racing for black type
Gate 7 sees All Indy, from the tbonefarms stable, line up at 10/1 in the early markets. Although the bookmakers do not appear over enthusiastic about his chances, this four year old boasts a couple of previous stakes placings, making him one of the more proven brigade taking part in this event. Bred by his owner / trainer, he is by Gentlemen from Liver Throw, a beautifully bred (AP Indy / Mt Livermore) mare. The good price could be partly caused by the poorly performing jockey, (0/22 this year) and the fact that he’s the only horse in the race missing a triple digit rating in his career.
hoofhearts talented dirt sprinter Alylado, will line up in barrier 8. With 5 wins from 17, the Alysheba / Saint Ballado four year old colt comes into this race with a most impressive early record, slightly tainted by a series of recent near misses. After his first eight starts he looked primed to be world beater. He’d won 5 including 2 stakes, and was on the way up. The stable must be scratching their collective heads trying to work out what went wrong. He hasn’t really slowed down, he just seems to be constantly running into horses producing more on the day. 7/1 would be a gift price if you just looked at the first half of his career, and it would be a brave person to suggest he’s not on the verge of bouncing back. Don’t overlook this one.
Post position nine finds Born in a Barn, ekjockey’s four year old homebred son of Swain / Dynaformer. On fire recently, he’s been starring in the mid level allowance ranks, and has more than proved himself ready for what is perhaps an overdue foray into the stakes division. He’s found the winners circle on 7 of his 15 trips to the races, and with convincing wins in each of his last two, he has current form on his side as well. He steps back in distance from his recent mile runs, but he’s won at seven and half a furlongs, so the slightly shorter trip should make no difference. 7/1 is a generous price.
Entering the final stall is K’Aguaitakamino, a superbly bred four year old from the matarile barn. The homebred son of Danzig / Mill Reef, started life with a rush, but has been a tad inconsistent since his 2 year old days. Winning his first four, including 2 stakes, the world was at his feet, but he found graded company too strong in his early 3 year old season. A drop back to allowances looked to have revitalized him, but then he finished off the season with a couple of ordinary runs. A freshen up sees him facing the starter for the first time in 2006. The trainer knows how to produce winners, and the horse has proven ability on his day. 9/1 looks very tempting.
Good luck to all