Trainer Clay Brinson made another attempt today to get the group a second horse but, once again, we fell victim to bad luck losing a two-way shake.
Clay contacted Jeff and myself this morning about the possibility of claiming Abuela Emma for $10,000 out of the day’s first race at Hawthorne. On paper, Abuela Emma looked like she could be competitive on both dirt and turf and at both short and long distances. Obviously, versatility is a huge plus in horse racing and the more races a horse is eligible for and compete in, the better chance you have of finding a level where she can compete.
Unfortunately, trainer Frank Randazzo and new owner Bob Dallas saw the same qualities in Abuela Emma and won the shake leaving us 1 for 3 in shakes. Abuela Emma went on to sat the fractions in a six furlong sprint before fading to fourth beaten by about five lengths.
Losing a shake isn’t surprising, but what is interesting is the fact that we have been involved in one each time we have tried to claim a horse. Usually, shakes aren’t quiet this frequent. At least it lets you know that you’re seeing qualities that other trainers are seeing.
We’re not done yet, we still have Friday, Saturday and Sunday to find a second horse before the meet begins. We’ll do our best to secure one more runner. Hang in there!
Canterbury Racing Club 
It’s O.K. to lose a couple of shakes … we want to secure one more runner before the meet begins, but we need the right one. ( friends are still razzing me abouts Gowns race…)
We’ll do our best Mike.
What this is telling me is that Clay has a very good eye for horses worthy of a claim. Don’t get discouraged. Let’s hope the weekend yields another winner.
We’ll keep looking!
One of the things that I am interested in is the etiquette of claiming horses at your own track. I have seen it written that claiming from other local owners is considered to be “bad form.” Is this an unwritten rule at Canterbury?
Good question. It’s a bit complicated so let me break it into a couple of parts.
Generally, no. Claiming from local owners is not considered to be bad form at Canterbury (or in most places that I’m aware of). Obviously, racetracks like it when owners claim elsewhere and bring in new horses because it increases the horse population and helps fill races; however, there is absolutely nothing wrong with claiming from other local owners at your track with one small exception.
There is an unwritten rule at almost every racetrack that you don’t claim out of your own barn. What that means is that you don’t go out and claim a horse from a trainer that is stabled in the same barn as your horse. The prevailing logic being that you’ve had much closer access to examine the horse than the rest of the general public that might be able to claim in. That is usually considered “bad form”.
This group operates under a slightly different situation from the norm due to how closely Jeff and I work with a lot of the trainers on the backstretch in regard to our job as media relations people, handicappers, etc. We would prefer to bring horses to the track as opposed to claiming them from people that are here simply to keep a clear line between our responsibilities. That being said, if required, we will claim a horse here. However, the pool will be more limited as Jeff and I will need to be certain that we have no actual or perceived conflicts of interest with the parties we are claiming from.
Hope this answers your question. 🙂
So many thoughts/questions, so little time – here goes
1) has Bam’s teeth and wgt been taken care of?
2) what is the treatment for the thyroid issue?
3) how do horses in the wild keep from having the issue with their teeth?
4) when is Clay planning to arrive at Cby, and how many horses will he be handling overall?
5) do we know what the jockey silks will be for our licensed owner?
I think that is more than enough for now. Three weeks and counting until opening – let the weather and racing and horse gods shine down upon us.
Ps – don’t worry about answering all questions at once, I just wanted to get them out there while the thoughts were flowing.
We’ll try to cover them all as best we can.
1. We’ll ask Clay to give an update soon in regard to how Great Bam is doing and what he’s been working on. Last time we talked to him about Bam, he had plans to get him back on the track jogging a couple of days ago.
2. Treatment for thyroid issues typically are in the form of feed additives and supplements.
3. In the wild, horses typically avoid this problem with their teeth because the ingest a diet that consists of much more corse grain and grass. Chewing these types of food in the wild typically allow the horses teeth to wear in a flatter, and more consistent, pattern.
4. Clay should be heading north within the next 10 days or so.
5. Good question. Not sure at this point. We’re looking into how much it would cost to buy silks for the group. Stay tuned!