Nine Mares Take a Dare

Chilly Sweden is featuring a dirt sprint for the ladies this weekend. Nine mares will go to the post for the seven-furlong Dare Mountain Memorial, vying for a purse of $60,000.

1 ARACHANT Arameo 5/1

War Chant mare is a veteran of 35 races and has been on the board in 22 of them. She’s been a very successful allowance horse, but has faltered in recent stakes efforts. She ran huge in her last race, but that was in allowance competition. Her best bet is to hang back and hope the several speed horses in the race wear themselves out, but she really looks like a horse who isn’t quite up to a stakes at this point in her career.

2 POWERHILL Jkj 6/1

This Powerscourt daughter really looks like a horse who is coming into her own right now. Rockriver’s mare has won her last two with big numbers, including a stakes win last time out. She likes to stalk her pace, which should work out just fine this weekend, and has a solid jockey aboard. She’s a mare who seems to be peaking at just the right time for this race and is likely to be a very serious contender for the win.

3 NEVER QUIET 88Stud 22/1

While this mare does have a stakes win to her name, that race looks more like a fluke than the norm. She hasn’t had tons of luck in stakes competition since then. She has a shot if she can find her form from that stakes-winning run, but other than that there’s not a lot of hope for her this weekend.

4 KNOCKOUT PEGASUS Kalsing 22/1

Lightly-raced mare had a couple of very nice allowance wins, then inexplicably flopped last time out. She’ll try to go straight to the front and then hang on, but with a horse like Pimple Popper also going to the front, I think it’s going to be more than she can take. I don’t think she’s quite ready for a stakes race, but I also think she has some more potential than her odds imply.

5 PIMPLE POPPER Wrecks2 7/2

Spectacular run last time out for this gal, when she earned a 111 going 7 panels in an allowance. Her story, though, is that she crushes allowance fields, and then has to settle for second or third in stakes. This frontrunner should start explosively and then it’s going to be all about whether she can kick her stakes-related seconditis. With a good jockey aboard, this race is a great opportunity for her.

6 AMERICAN SALUTE Bigted 9/1

This Southern Halo daghter has a big run from time to time, but I’d like her better if she hadn’t had a dismal run in stakes company lately. She has a very solid jockey aboard, which will help. If she can run up to her best, she certainly has a shot at the board, but I suspect this race is just a hair out of her reach.7 EXPLOSIVE STORM Pjlracing 7/2

This Storm Cat mare is a solid runner at this distance, but with 46 races under her belt should could be fading fast. She like to come from way back and has a terrific jockey aboard, which should help her chances. With a strong run she could be in the thick of things; we just have to wonder how many strong races she has left in her.

8 SISSON’S FOREST Taztiger 5/1

Laterunning mare consistently hits the board in stakes, but hasn’t won anything in ages. Lucky for her, this race is full of other mares who have trouble winning stakes races. Maybe she’ll be able to come out on top this time. She’s been running excellent numbers in stakes races lately. Almost certain to hit the board and has a decent shot at winning this time around.

9 MOREOVER Hollyyih 5/1

Yet another mare who is pretty consistent about hitting the board in stakes around this distance. She’s just a hair less consistent about it than some of the top contenders here and she has landed a rotten jockey, so I think her chances are a hair worse than usual this time around. It certainly wouldn’t be a big surprise to see her number up on the board, but my gut says this isn’t going to be her week.

Good luck!