While much attention this weekend will be focused on The Sand Castle Classic and The Sand Castle Derby, there\u2019s an entire card of amazing races at the 2018 Sand Castle Festival.<\/p>\n
The $750,000 Desert Lady Stayer (Grade 1)<\/strong>, carded at 14 furlongs on the dirt for fillies and mares four-years-old and up, is a perfect example. A full field of 14 horses are scheduled to head to the post in this race, and their credentials are impeccable. Every horse in the field is either a stakes winner or graded placed, and the 2018 Desert Lady Stayer boasts 11 graded stakes winners, six Grade 1 winners, five horses coming off of racing in the Equinics, four millionaires, and a pair of champions!<\/p>\n It appears to be an incredibly wide open race to us. Let\u2019s take a look at the contenders:<\/p>\n 1 – OLLIE SAND (7-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Ollie Sand<\/strong> is a five-year-old daughter of Footstepsinthesand, out of the Grade 1 winning dam Fantastic Ollie, mother of six stakes winners. The ontheline (rbokie24)<\/em>-trainee has won six times in 20 starts, earning almost $1 million. The highlight of Ollie Sand\u2019s career thus far has been a three length win in the Grade 1 Irish Oaks in 2016. After successfully running on the grass for the first 15 races of her career, she moved to the poly track for three races last fall, winning twice. Ollie Sand made her debut on the dirt this year, winning the Blue Sky Day Dirt Mare Stayer at today\u2019s distance in January, before running fourth at 12 furlongs at the Grade 1 Equinics. There\u2019s a lot to like here, as Ollie Sand has taken reasonably well to the dirt, there\u2019s no question about her ability to get the distance, and this versatile runner has delivered 14 straight triple digit speed figures across all three surfaces.<\/p>\n 2 – SIS DU JEU (11-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Sis Du Jeu<\/strong> is the second-winningest horse in today\u2019s field, with ten wins in 21 starts for roscoe7 (rharfo2004)<\/em>. This five-year-old New Zealand-bred daughter of Nom Du Jeu is out of the stakes winning dam Tete Astaroth. Sis Du Jeu brings a six race winning streak into the Desert Lady Stayer, and hasn\u2019t finished off the board in over a year and a half, earning over $500,000 for her connections. Sis Du Jeu became a graded winner last time out, winning the Grade 2 The Old Lady at today\u2019s distance by nearly four lengths in South Korea. She\u2019ll likely need to improve off her 101 speed figure in that race to handle these.<\/p>\n 3 – COMPETITIVE SWAG (9-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n This four-year-old daughter of Competitive Edge, out of stakes winning dam Swagger Jacker, has won seven times in 14 trips through the starting gate. Competitive Swag<\/strong> has finished in the money 11 times, earning over $1.4 million for blazsadcfo (mtk76)<\/em>. The highlight of her career was a win in the Grade 1 Birmingham Stakes last August at Saratoga. Since that race Competitive Swag has won twice in five tries, but she\u2019s finished out of the money in both of her subsequent attempts at the Grade 1 level. Last time out she was fourth in the Grade 1 Equinics at 10 furlongs, but we note that Competitive Swag was closing on the leaders down the stretch and posted a career-best speed of 112 in that effort. While she\u2019s never raced longer than 11 furlongs, there\u2019s nothing in her history to suggest that she won\u2019t appreciate the additional distance today.<\/p>\n 4 – INTHEWAROFTHEMIND (11-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n This nicely-bred (Curlin x Medaglia D\u2019Oro x Kingmambo) five-year-old mare has seven wins in 18 starts for kewmwa (willyam13)<\/em>. Inthewarofthemind<\/strong> has earned over $350,000, racing primarily in Allowance company until last year. Since moving up into the stakes ranks she\u2019s won a pair of listed events at a mile and a half, posting speed figures of 114 and 111 in those wins. Those numbers suggest she can compete with these at her best, although we note she\u2019s yet to hit the board in three tries in graded company. Last time out she finished fourth in the Grade 3 Eagle Handicap at 16 furlongs. Inthewarofthemind figures to offer a nice price for those who back her.<\/p>\n 5 – MEDAL LITE (32-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n At first glance, wyndaway (lightng99)<\/em>-trained Medal Lite<\/strong> doesn\u2019t look like she belongs with this crew. She\u2019s won just two races in 14 starts, has never won in stakes company, and her career earnings are less than half of what any other horse in the field has earned. Looking deeper, however, this four-year-old daughter of Medal Count might deserve more consideration. She ran only on the turf over the first nine races of her career, and never posted a speed figure of higher than 85. Since moving to the dirt five races ago, she\u2019s never posted a speed figure worse than 92, and has hit triple digits twice. Medal Lite has finished in the money in three of five starts on the main track, including a third place finish in the Grade 1 Queen of Fillies Classic. She\u2019s not an obvious selection, but there may be more here than meets the eye.<\/p>\n 6 – DANGEROUS MAMBO (11-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Those of you who thought this six-year-old Kentucky-bred was descended from Kingmambo couldn\u2019t have been more wrong. This daughter of Tale of Ekati is out of a Capote dam, and traces back to Vice Regent on the granddam line. Trained by raracing (ruffian35)<\/em>, Dangerous Mambo<\/strong> is the most experienced horse in today\u2019s field, with 27 career starts. She\u2019s won nine times and earned over $600,000 for her connections. Dangerous Mambo has finished in the money in four of her last five starts, all of which were in graded company. She faded badly to finish third in each of her last two races after having large leads at the final call, but we note that both of those races were carded at two miles, and today\u2019s distance is probably more to her liking. A threat if she\u2019s at her best.<\/p>\n 7 – ST. LOUIS ORCHESTRA (7-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n This cleverly-named four-year-old Arch filly, out of the Stravinsky mare Violin Ridge, was a late entrant into the field, but looks to be a contender. St. Louis Orchestra<\/strong> is coming off the biggest race of her career, a 2 1\/2 length win at 10 furlongs in the Grade 1 Equinics in her first try in graded company. She posted a career-best 115 speed figure in that effort, and has topped 100 in seven straight races. The gael5 (shagfarms)<\/em>-trainee has just three wins in 14 races, but she’s finished out of the money only once, earning over $900,000. Our only concern about St. Louis Orchestra is that she’s never raced longer than 10 furlongs, but her running lines suggest she might want the extra distance. A definite threat if she can duplicate her last performance.<\/p>\n 8 – ON THE CORNER (27-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Running in the colors of mtzlazbps2 (mtkplaz)<\/em>, On The Corner<\/strong> has earned nearly $350,000 for her connections. The nicely-bred (Elusive Quality x Danehill Dancer x Dynaformer) six-year-old has six wins and 13 in the money finishes in 21 starts. She won her first stakes race in the Grade 3 All Nighter in Ireland in October, but followed that up with a distant eighth place finish in the Grade 1 Saturday Night Girl in the slop in December. On The Corner made her 2018 debut earlier this month, finishing second in Allowance company at 16 furlongs in Italy. She\u2019ll need to take a big step forward today to threaten the likes of these.<\/p>\n 9 – FEELIN\u2019THEFEELIN\u2019 (5-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n A beautifully-bred (Curlin x Seattle Slew x Nureyev) mare, Feelin\u2019Thefeelin\u2019<\/strong> has finished in the money in 14 of 17 starts, recording six wins. The five-year-old has earned almost $850,000 for canyontx2 (canyongate)<\/em>. Feelin\u2019Thefeelin\u2019 has recorded ten consecutive triple-digit speed figures dating back to last March, all at 11 furlongs or longer. She\u2019s coming off a sixth place finish at 12 furlongs in the Grade 1 Equinics. Prior to that she finished in the money in three consecutive starts in graded company, including a 2 \u00be length win in the Grade 2 Disco Inferno Stakes in January, when she recorded a career-best speed figure of 114. Feelin\u2019Thefeelin\u2019 is a threat to win if she runs like that again today, and it\u2019s hard for us to envision a scenario where she\u2019s not in contention coming down the stretch.<\/p>\n 10 – WINNER GIRL (15-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n This four-year-old filly is one of the most lightly-raced horses in today\u2019s star-studded field, with just 14 starts for stablechampion8 (stablechampion)<\/em>, including six wins. Winner Girl<\/strong> has recorded six straight triple digit speed figures, and is coming off a personal-best 108 in an easy Allowance win last month. It took this late bloomer seven tries to earn a win, and she was still racing against Maidens last June. Since recording her first victory, Winner Girl has finished out of the money just once, in the Grade 2 Disco Inferno Stakes in January. A second place finish in the Grade 1 Queen Of Fillies Classic in December suggests Winner Girl can compete with this crew. We note that this French-bred daughter of Dalakhani hasn\u2019t ever raced longer that 12.5 furlongs, however, and we think she may struggle to get the last furlong and a half against these.<\/p>\n 11 – NEWBAWI (10-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n Bizalls15 (bizalls)<\/em>-trained Newbawi<\/strong> is the only horse in today\u2019s race that has won more than half of her starts, with 12 victories in 23 races. The five-year-old daughter of Dubawi is closing in on $2 million in career earnings for her connections. She finished seventh at today\u2019s distance in the Grade 2 The Old Lady last time out in her 2018 debut, posting her worst speed figure (92) in over a year. Before that, Newbawi had delivered an amazing run, hitting the board in every start she had in 2016 and 2017, totaling 17 consecutive races. This incredible mare has multiple wins at both the Grade 1, Grade 2, and Grade 3 levels. We note that Newbawi\u2019s speed figures have fallen in three straight starts, and she\u2019s never had more than two months between races since starting her impressive career. We think she might need a rest, and are putting our money elsewhere today, but note that betting against this potential Hall of Famer has proven to be an awful decision in the past.<\/p>\n 12 – MIDWEEEK (12-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n This four-year-old daughter of Include is one of two Grade 1 winning children of the Grade 3 winning dam Sim Fanatic. Although Midweek<\/strong> has won just five times in 18 starts, she\u2019s finished in the money 13 times. With $2.7 million in earnings, this blankpoin4 (pointblank)<\/em>-trainee has earned more than any other horse in today\u2019s field. She finished second at 12 furlongs last time out in the Grade 1 Equinics, posting a career-best speed figure of 109. After an unremarkable two-year-old season, when she won once in four starts, Midweek burst onto the scene last year as a three-year-old, winning three stakes races, including The Grade 1 New Yorker in open company. She hasn\u2019t won since that race, but does have three in the money finishes in Grade 1 company since then, so she has a proven track record of successfully competing at the highest level. In three previous tries at today\u2019s distance, she\u2019s never posted a speed figure worse than 101. An obvious contender.<\/p>\n 13 – KOCHAM SIE TEZ (7-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n This impeccably-bred (Smart Strike x Medaglia D\u2019Oro x Giant\u2019s Causeway) five-year-old mare has raced at the stakes level only three times in her career, but followed up a win in a listed stakes in December with an easy victory in the Grade 3 Miss Bourbon Street at today\u2019s distance last time out. For her career, Kocham Sie Tez<\/strong> has won six of 23 races, earning over $300,000 for adschus14 (adschus03)<\/em>. Today\u2019s race represents a big step up in class for her, but with three wins in her last four starts and nine straight triple digit speed figures, there\u2019s reason to think she can run with these. While she\u2019s unlikely to be the public\u2019s favorite, we think Kocham Sie Tez is deserving of consideration, especially on the back end of your exotics.<\/p>\n 14 – GOIN\u2019 FOR THE GOLD (8-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n The only Grade 1 winner ever for her connections, Goin\u2019 For The Gold<\/strong> has a pair of wins at the highest level for saratogaspa (pointguard)<\/em>. The five-year-old mare won the Player\u2019s Club National Oaks and Birmingham Stakes back-to-back in 2016, but then went on a 12 race losing streak. This daughter of Arch finally ended almost a year and a half of futility last time out, winning the Hannah\u2019s Boo Boo Dirt Mare Stayer by nearly three lengths. For her career, Goin\u2019 For The Gold has eight wins in 25 starts, and has earned over $1.7 million. A hard one to handicap. Although she\u2019s proven she can win at this level, she\u2019s also been more inconsistent than most of today\u2019s rivals over the course of her career, never stringing together more than three races in a row with triple digit speeds. Your guess is as good as ours.<\/p>\n POINTGUARD’S PICKS:<\/strong><\/p>\n WIN – COMPETITIVE SWAG (9-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n PLACE – FEELIN\u2019THEFEELIN\u2019 (5-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n SHOW – OLLIE SAND (7-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n BEST LONGSHOT – MIDWEEK (12-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" While much attention this weekend will be focused on The Sand Castle Classic and The Sand Castle Derby, there\u2019s an<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2146,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44872","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-previews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44872","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2146"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=44872"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44872\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44925,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44872\/revisions\/44925"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=44872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=44872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=44872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}