The Challenge Week 12

When it rains, it pours.  And boy was it pouring.  Not with winners, but with losers.  I had four entries this week and only the first runner during the week managed a decent run.  BARK AT THE RAIN ran third for most of the 5f, $5,000 claiming tag race and slipped back in the stretch to finish fourth.   Staying at the UAE track helped with the BP’s as there was no shipping cost and 10 BP’s were pocketed, from the only runner that produced.

FLAT AND FLATTER is a front runner that has been burdened with tiring in the stretch.  I set the early speed setting to 60 with hopes of preserving some energy.  In a dirt 5.5 furlong race, this 6 year old obeyed the jockey and took a mid-field position.   But when it was time to run, he failed to move and held steady in the 6th spot the entire race in a field of 10.

I also got nothing out of DANCINGDUNCANKIETH.  Race choices were rather bleak and part of the poor outcome may be that he was in a higher $35,000 claiming race.  He settled in the fourth spot in the early going and had nothing to show in the stretch, finishing fifth.  With the shipping from Sweden to Hong Kong, there were no BP’s to take home.

ANDREA’S put in a very nice 2nd in her last start for the stable so I was fired up for her run at the same distance in a $15,000 claim race with a speed that matched her career best.  But she showed nothing, never was competitive in the event and finished 6th in the end.

A disaster all around and the sire cards drawn were bottom end with 4 G-cards.

I made three claim bids during the midweek, all made in the same race.  Hoping to get at least one of the claims I was disappointed and go zilch.  To rub things in even further, all three horses went to the same trainer.   On Saturday, I tossed in four more claim bids with hopes of adding at least one to my farm.   I would be happy with getting just one.  I ended up with all four, much more than I planed on.

The first two came out of the same race and cost me a chunk.  or $10,000 each, I walked two out of the race track with CAPE RAHY, who finished fourth in the race as the 3/1 second betting choice.  He’s been spawning 100+ speeds since December and took a significant drop in the claiming level.  In this race, he showed his late run ability and motored from 10 back to finish 3 off the winner but dropped the speed to 92.  He’s been racing rather frequently and a brief rest may help.   KAT CAME BACK gave up the allowance level, where he also ran a string of 100+ speeds until the start of 2018.  He was the 6/5 favorite and lost out in a photo on the line to finish second.  He should do well with now having the starter allowance level as an option as well as perhaps going back to the allowance group.

A KIRBY HORSE has been showing some ability to move ate in the race.   She’s been successful and hit the board in 13 of 17 races.   She just ran 10.5f, the longest of her career, and finished 2nd in the $3,500 claiming race as the fourth betting choice in the race.   This was her first start back on the dirt in about a year.  I feel she is better on the turf and the favorable outcome on the longer distance on the dirt makes me feel she will do just as well on the turf going longer.

Ill-named THE TOILET STORE piqued my attention as she’s shown very nice late run ability but just keeps running out of land in sprint races.   I felt she could do better going longer distances.  As the third choice in a $5,000 claiming race, she did go longer at a distance of 10.5 furlongs.   The only problem is that she finished fourth in the field of five, over 16 lengths behind the winner.  Now she is mine and maybe she can’t got longer, or that distance was too long for her.   She’s never crossed the turf track, which is an option so I’m a bit confused with her.  I’m leaning towards keeping her at sprints, but look for any suggestions readers may have on her.

37 BP’s were paid out for the claimed horses less the 10 that were earned from on runner resulted in a loss of 27 for the week.  The total drops to 160, going the wrong way, but the acquisitions will hopefully make up for that.  The 4 G-cards for the week push my card totals to 7F and 6-G.   Trading up a handful of G’s brings me to 8F and 1G sire card.