Second half tells the story in Hard Gulch Memorial

Yet another horse fed your Virginia reporter his own words, doing precisely what I said she wouldn’t be able to do down the stretch, as Rock Me Mambo broke away, to cruise to a three and a half length victory in this week’s Hard Gulch Memorial. The six year old mare out of Sadler’s Wells captured her second stakes win in a row, and the sixth of her career. Her 102.6 speed was her best since October of the 2007 season, and she seems determined to prove she not ready to be counted out just yet. The win gives her twelve victories in her thirty one career starts, and brings her career earnings to the $362221 mark. It also helped her to solidify an already good divisional ranking among older females running long turf, moving her from 95 to near the top fifty at 57 after the win. As predicted, there wasn’t much celebrating at the betting windows this week, with the low odds on the field. The winner paid $6.20 $2.90 $2.40 across the board. The exotics were marginal, to put it kindly, with the exacta paying $13.70, and the trifecta putting up a measly $18.40 payout.

East Coast Turbo(ENG) broke fast from the gate, as expected, easily opening up a sizable early lead. The real race was going on behind her, though, as Costa Del Sol(IRE), Corey’s Realm(IRE), and Rock Me Mambo all jockeyed for position behind the early leader. East Coast Turbo(ENG) had opened it up to five and a quarter by the first call, extending it to seven as they approached the half. The other three runners were in a pitched battle behind her, bunched within half a length of each other all the way up to the half way mark. As they crossed the half, East Coast Turbo(ENG) watched her lead rapidly evaporate, seven lengths not lasting more than another furlong or so, as the closers began to press forward. As they crossed the third call, Corey’s Realm(IRE) had given up the chase and was beginning to fade, leaving Rock Me Mambo and Costa Del Sol(IRE) duking it out on the front end, with Rock Me Mambo clinging to a three quarter length lead. When her jockey asked her for more heading down the stretch, though, Rock Me Mambo gave him exactly that, pulling away to cross the wire three and a half lengths ahead of second place Costa Del Sol(IRE). Corey’s Realm(IRE) hung on tightly to keep a third place finish, eight and a half lengths out at the wire.