The Challenge – Week 34 (Stake shot next week)
Three horses placed in the gate this week and two brought in some cards and BP’s. The third runner finished off the board and was claimed away from the stable.
BEARLY A DADDY finished third in his debut race for the stable earlier this month and this week moved out of claiming and into the starter allowance division. The tag of $3,500 was the conditional entry for this 8.25 furlong turf outing. Daddy was a co-second choice in the race at 5/2 in the ten horse field. During the race, he held tight to the front of the field, never really dropping back more than a length. He made an excellent move to gain the lead in the stretch and I was more than pleased with the win that was over two strides. 3 sire cards for the win in the large field drew an E and two G’s. 22 BP’s were a nice addition for this horse who has now won 11 of 22 grass runs.
FROST ADVISORY was bred last year during that “The Challenge” series by retiring a mare and trading in sire cards for a free sire share. Although she has raced in the claiming class, she continues to deliver results on both the turf and grass in sprints. This week it would come from a $12,500 claiming race which drew only 6 fillies into the event. 7/1 odds were on the upper echelon in the field but what did she really care? She broke away fourth and took positioning that she usually finds to be a comfy zone for her. She was asked to run in the stretch of the 5.5 furlong distance and she galloped to the line to win by a half stride and equaled her career best speed of 91 that was established early in the month. 37 BP’s were the large reward from the race and two G-sire cards were a bit underwhelming.
Wrapping up the week was SWEET FOAL OF MINE who joined the stable in April being acquired out of a claiming race for $10,000. He won his first two races for the stable and was off the board in the two most recent races. This week a $25,000 claiming race at a distance of 8.5 furlongs was his entry point. He was the co-favorite at 3/1 with two other horses slotted at 7/2 odds, making it a competitive 10-horse field. He sat in a mid-field position, not really looking like much and basically appeared to be board. It wasn’t until the final quarter that he started rallying, slicing his deficit of 8 lengths to just under 2 and finishing fourth. Travel costs consumed all of the BP’s so nothing gained there and only a G-card for just racing. He left the stable as he was claimed for the $25,000 price tag.
BRED TO CHALLENGE will fill the vacancy left by Sweet Foal of Mine. Bred to Challenge was created in last years “The Challenge” series when a mare was retired and sire card shares were exchanged for a sire. He has raced four times with two wins all over the turf surface. He’ll be training for the next two weeks and seek a starting spot.
For the week, 5 G cards were earned which have been traded in for an F-card. The stable already possessed 4 F-cards prior to the start of the week and now has five, so those have been traded for an E-card. An E-card was also earned this week that makes two now, and add that to the one already on hand makes three. After cleaning the cards all up, the stable now has 3-D’s and 3 E’s. As for BP’s there are 1,569 available for usage.
The racing year has been a great one for Thechallenge2 stables. A record of 39-17-9 in 98 races with a 39% win record and 66% of the entrants finishing in the top-3.
Next week will be exciting as AP’S GOLDEN MUMMY has been entered into the Whatsmyname Dirt Sprint, a listed stake event in FL. Last year’s challenge was to earn BP’s to purchase shares to create a top-notch quality runner. He has won his last two races, both at 7f, with speeds of 103 and 108. The stake race distance will be a shorter 5.5f and there weren’t any other 3-year old only races available in the 7f dirt distance, but the shorter length should be a good fit.
Three other stable mates will also be running this coming week but the Mummy will definitely be the highlighter!