Racing Arizona
Welcome to Arizona!
I decided to pick up a beat to replenish my credit coffers, so I chose to make it something close to my own heart: Arizona racing. In the Sim it doesn’t get an awful lot of the proper attention, except during the Sim’s version of the Claiming Crown and the occasional graded race. The circuit is one of Simerica’s best secrets, as often there’s room on most cards to sneak a horse into a race. This week, less than half of Saturday’s card have full fields, or even more than ten entries. But small fields do not prevent competitive racing.
It’s been a rather chilly week in the state, with some moisture sneaking through when everyone’s been asleep, so the Grand Canyon Turf Course is labeled good for this week’s feature, the $60,000 Eight Shelley Handicap. It’s a six-furlong sprint for older fillies and mares, and the truth is that I wish I had a horse nearby to ship in for it myself. I’ve been doing pretty good myself with turf sprinting fillies lately, but I just didn’t have one to take the plunge for some black type on the résumé. The recent “stealth rain” played some havoc with the Racing Secretary’s office here, because only four entries were found to take a plunge for a $36,000 winner’s share of the purse. Most local trainers decided to take a Fiesta in Tucson this weekend for the MLK holiday instead, but of the entries here, maybe they were afraid.
Afraid? Yes, afraid, because there is a 4/5 favorite who is regally bred and looking sharp on the GC Turf in the mornings, and her main threat is a half-sister to a Grade III winner from last weekend, Desperado Wish. Who said there aren’t stories to write about in Arizona?
Let’s take a glimpse at the small but talented field.
Ziggy Indy [A.P. Indy-Ziggy Wells, by Danzig, trained by dontnagme for Dentition *No Do Claima’s* Stables] is 4/5 and, listening to the backstretch gossip, looks the part. Stabled in the Coyote Ugly section of the stabling area—so named because the stable maintenance workers are on a wildcat strike and have yet to paint over the muddy brown and Fanta orange barns that Coyote has on the outside for visiting trainers to gawk at—the hotwalkers are impressed with the way she appears in the mornings prepping for a start here. This is her twentieth start, and she comes in off of a second last out in a Kentucky stakes from just before Christmas. This Kentucky-bred is a closer for certain; what’s less certain is just how fast a small field will be running over the course labeled good. She’s also turning back into a six-furlong race for the first time since a third in the Grade III Turn Off The Alarm just before Halloween. She’s graded-placed on turf and dirt, but her best efforts seem to almost demand a bit more ground for one strong finish as she prefers. he’s talented enough to romp, and her speed figures hang over this bunch like the morning fog the Valley Of The Sun can be prone to in the winter rainy season. Only one other filly can claim a 100+ speed figure since Halloween, so she’s earned her odds-on status. The question remains on matters of pace and distance, and is the ground too soft to go fast or close from well back? Her jockey is Nigel Gardner, long-time circuit leader and Southampton transplant who is off to another sharp start in the jockey colony.
Cape Slew [Cape Town-Rahitude, by Aptitude, trained by lazysranch] is hoping that her first 2008 race is as sharp as her 2007 debut, which was a stakes win going a mile up at Minnesota. But this English-bred filly is battling her form. She won her ’07 debut, but after another stakes win in March, that was it for the year in terms of victory. Since then, she’s been modestly competitive, closing from the rear and finishing with a flourish and a paycheck in various listed affairs and allowance events. But she’s never been closer than two lengths from the winner since March, and her best efforts also seem to come at longer sprints and even the mile. She too is making her twentieth start, and will also require more ground, a firmer course and a stronger pace than what might be expected. Still, without a speed figure over 100 yet in her career, it’s a rockier road ahead for a filly in need of a serious start. She enlists the services of Kendick Saab, an journeyman with a good touch with the fillies of all stripes; this year, though, no wins to date.
Crypt Keyper [Cryptoclearance-Tarabash’s Key, by Dixieland Band, trained by catfish] is from a family that’s started off strong this year. Her half-sister by Gone West, Desperado Wish, won last weekend’s Grade III Be Forewarned Stakes from off the pace. There’s hope for the bloodlines for a second consecutive week, courtesy of a veteran six-year-old mare with a love for turf with some moisture to it. Granted, she’s had but three starts on wet ground, but two seconds in two of three stakes tries is compelling evidence. She’s capable of running with the best of this lot, with a 100+ figure as recently as last September. So she’s more capable of relishing the good turf, but can she play catch-up with a pace scenario that should be as hot as a wet match? Wilhelm Kewmwa came onto the scene last year with a flourish, and while not much is known about him he has now taken up residence as the popular favorite from the Far East.
Rock Of Passion(IRE) [Rock Of Gibralter(IRE)-Runaway Wife, by Runaway Groom, trained by heubeck for Gonzo Stables] is the sole speed of the field. That speaks volumes over a course with some give in it, and even more in such a compact field. It doesn’t hurt that in eleven starts, she has never failed to earn a paycheck, with only two finishes off the board. She made her claim to fame due to zipping through her allowance conditions while staying at or near the front of the field. Then she improved upon things by capturing a pair of longer sprint stakes on the grass. Her speed figures can be a bit inconsistent, but she has run a pair of 105 figures in her last three starts. Seven furlongs suits her perfectly, as that’s the distance which all the wins have been achieved. But this is six furlongs, and ideally a little more speed would be needed. At the same time, over wet ground against a short pack of closers, with a little rating a closing kick might be neutralized. She does have a slight class edge, as her last effort, on DPCD, was a no-factor fifth in the Grade I Mumtaz Mahal going five-and-a-half furlongs, but it stands out primarily because only Ziggy Indy has even bothered to try graded foes even remotely recently. She’s the speed, like it or not, and it’s a matter of trying to figure out if she’ll face any pressure, and might the wet going undermine her best-used tactics. Rich Zombie is another new local face, making a debut in relatively recent times, and has surged to the top of the local jockey pool in short order. He gets the mount in a most precarious spot.
A compact field prevents much in the way of selections, and not wanting to play favorites on the circuit, I’ll refrain from doing so here. The weather should remain cool and damp for the weekend activites, and a wet grass course has also led to the main sandy loam of the Scottsdale Dirt Track being labeled good, and sealed besides. Good luck to all contenders on this three-day MLK weekend.