Feb 28, 2015 8:42:35 GMT -5
S u N f r O s T ~ and Cruisey like this
Post by creativecause on Feb 28, 2015 8:42:35 GMT -5
Grayson Meadows February Workout Report
Grayson Meadows recently hired a new trainer to handle their sprinters and she’s done a pretty good job so far. Aaron Evertt is a California native and grew up at Santa Anita, her father was a trainer and her grandfather an owner, and together they won a few Breeders’ Cup races and nearly a leg of the triple crown back in the day. Aaron knew from a young age that training horses was her passion and she’s settled right on in with the rest of the team doing what she does best, kicking butt and takin names.
We’ve also recently just finished construction on our new home-based training track and are definitely enjoying the ability to house all of our stock at home and not have to cart them from point a to point b all the time.
We’ll start off our workout report with our newest runners, the juveniles.
First Class - he’s a rather stunning animal, and he’s more than ready to show the world that. Chester may not be running until next week, but he already has his game face on. This colt is out for that win and after a solid second a few weeks ago he’s ready to prove to the world that he’s a force to be reckoned with. Chester has been knocking at the door for his maiden win and trainer Steve Wilson is confident that his next start will be the one. First Class took to the turf and rattled off a 1.00:1/5 bullet work, the front running son of Passionate Class is ready to show the racing world what he’s really made of.
Rough Diamond - the swift daughter of Silent Snap has really been stepping up her game and posing for the cameras in the past week. Beautiful and fast, this filly is out to prove something and there is little doubt that she won’t, Aaron hopped on the snappy bay daughter of Silent Snap and piloted her to an easy four furlong work in 46 seconds flat. She’s certainly knocking on the door of something big and this bay filly isn’t going to wait for her competition to catch her.
A True Hero - the son of two hall of famers certainly didn’t disappoint, although it took two starts to get him comfortable with the track, Hero broke his maiden and is looking better with every workout he runs. The son of HOF Everyday Hero most recently breezed a nice 5 furlongs in 1.05:60 over the dirt. He looked great in his gallop out and it wouldn’t surprise anyone at the stable if he gave his competition a real run for their money in his next start.
All That Jazz - the daughter of Jazzman and Dark Sunrise was a standout in her maiden victory and she followed that up with another gutsy win in the My Dear Girl Stakes. There’s always something about this filly that catches peoples eyes and screams champion. The regally bred filly sets out to improve every time she is out on the track and worked a solid 4 furlongs in 47 2/5 in change and she still seemed to have plenty of spunk in her after that. The black filly is out for her third win and whoever wants to stop her is going to have to race her right down to the wire to take that victory from her.
SmashDashing - the young colt came out and put on quite a show when he broke his maiden and we are pleased to report that he continues to put on that same show in every workout. Dash has worked strongly alongside My Kingdom Come in the past few weeks and they two don’t give eachother a reason to slack off. Dash gives everything he has in his works and it shows as a lot of them result in bullets. He took to the turf the other day and Aaron Evertt was smiling like a the cheshire cat, “I do believe we have a horse that is going to pull upsets in the big leagues here. His time on his last work was simply smash dashing, he’s a fast little sucker I’ll tell you that.”
Tell Me A Fable - Little Abe is definitely taking his time, he always tries his best but we expect him to be a later bloomer and towards the the end of the season we will really see what he’s made out of. He’s yet to break his maiden, but he’s well on his way. Abe has been working along side The Apathy and Dry Your Tears in these past weeks and we are hoping that they all make their comebacks together. Most recently the son of Truth Be Told breezed 4 furlongs in 48 flat. “He tends to take his time more in his workouts than the likes of everyone else, but we’re excited to see where he goes.” Steve Wilson commented on the colt.
Three Year Olds-
Call Me Crooked - The zippidy daughter of Crooked Fire and Royal Assault is back and she’s more vengeful than ever. Paired with new trainer Aaron Evertt and a shiny new title as G2, the racing world is about to see Crook in a whole new way. “She’s been training like a total animal since the Rush stakes, she’s quite a handful around the barn but it wouldn’t surprise me if she does something big this season. Crook is in a league of her own and she does give Tears Of An Angel a serious workout when they work in pairs. Don’t tell Lucy I said this, but Crook has nosed her out for a few wins!”Trainer Aaron Evertt commented on the fillies recent works. Crook most recently put in a stunning 5 furlong work over the turf in 56:3/5 and didn’t even bat an eye. One thing is for sure, Crook is back, and she wants her revenge.
Take Flight - The inconsistent but brilliant son of Merry Bay King has been working hard and it shows in his works which usually consist of quick 1:00 flat to 1:02 1/5 five furlong works over the turf, which are incredibly fast considering he’s normally a 9-12 furlong kind of horse. He’s had his fair share of mishaps and flops for the season already, and his first two starts have consisted of out of money finishes. Not exactly what one would look for in a prospect for the Turf Triple Crown but we’ll remind you that he did win 9 races last season for a reason and surly the colt will get his revenge in the Coronation Cup where the distance is more to his liking. After all, he is the Y14 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Champion for a reason.
The Apathy - She’s been a filly that’s been struggling to get anywhere since, well her beginning. The Apathy hasn’t been given a real chance to shine or really do what she was meant to do and everyone at Grayson Meadows knows she can do. Recently she’s been moved to the dirt to see if we couldn’t find better results there and we’ve found that The Apathy has taken well to the dirt. She’s an absolute speed demon and most recently worked four furlongs in 45:2/5. It’s unknown on when she will make her debut over the dirt, but we’re hoping sometime at the end of February or early March.
Chatoyant - Tayo has always been one to fly under the radar and emerge when you least expect it, this year we’ve seen none of the such. He’s been working strongly aside the likes of Allouette Divine, Attractive Flight and Tears Of An Angel. Tayo has done a great deal of growing and is looking better than ever, he’s filled out nicely and is quite the handsome fella. He’s newly G3 and has been working his little tail off to get to that finish line with his nose down on the wire in first. Trainer Aaron Evertt seems rather excited about the colt that she believes will pull of major upsets similar to the ones he pulled against Sun King in the near future.
Honorary - Fresh off of a win, Honor is as cocky and energetic as ever. She only improves off of every start she makes and with her current progress we are excited to say we will be pointing her for the Triple Tiara but will only send her if we feel she’s ready. “She’s a gutsy beast of an animal and she doesn’t really like to be told no.” Wilson laughed, “you’ll get burned if you do that, and not just a little.” Honorary was just out on the track frothing at the mouth and leaping like a locust and leaving her workmates in the dust. She sizzled through a five furlong work in 1:00 flat.
Older Horses:
Passion Heart - a previous win really did boost this mares confidence and its about time that she’d do something other than snap her teeth at everyone around the stable. She’s become rather cocky in her victory but it doesn’t stop her from yanking on the reins and frothing at the mouth, Passion Heart came into the season ready to take on the best of the best and she’s certainly not slacking in that area. She most recently ran a devastating five furlongs in 57 seconds flat, she may not be a sprinter, but she can certainly run like one. There is a reason why trainer Steve Wilson deemed Y15 the year of Passion Heart. Ally’s been thriving in the past week and everyone is excited to see where she goes.
Prima Donna - The half sister to Call Me Crooked has been hard at work lately, one win from G2, Prima is ready to get her 10th win and after two solid starts under her she’s ready to go out there and dominate her next field. She’s been working nicely over the turf and looks to be improving off of last year, the Juvenile star is looking like her four year old season may be her best. Prima looked strong in her workout with Daddy’s Overdraft and she looked strong in the gallop out. If she indeed makes this the best season of her career, we warn everyone to watch out, because this filly has a closing kick that’ll knock your socks off.
Sweetness Unlimited - One of the newer additions to the barn, Sweetness Unlimited has made herself right at home here. She’s been on a routine work schedule to get her whipped back into racing form and well, judging from her first start being a winning one, it’s working. Ness is a joy to be around and is one of the few horses at Grayson Meadows that isn’t full of energy. We would warn you to not to mistake it for age or fading out. Ness recently worked in the company of Attractive Flight where the two made it an exciting stretch battle with Ness declared the winner by a nose. She’ll be making her next start in the Spring Cup where she can hopefully notch another win.
Speed Rush - If there is a true speed demon at Grayson Meadows this would be the horse. He’s fast, cocky, and quite frankly, impossible to handle. The half brother to Mastermind blasted through a four furlong work in 44 seconds flat and didn’t even bat an eye. What makes this horse crazy is what makes him so much fun to watch. It’s like watching a cheetah, and he gets this expression of pure determination on his face. Theres one thing we’ve learned about Speedy and we learned it very quickly, if he is out on the lead by himself, no one is catching him, no one. He’s expected to run against stablemate Attractive Flight in the Forego Stakes at The Wire, February Week 3. Where, as of now, he is the only front runner in a field of closers.
Attractive Flight - The half brother to Forbidden To Fly is looking to make this season his best. Matty has been riddled with inconsistent finishes and he’d never been given a real chance to shine. However, with most of the big name sprinters out of the picture this year, Matty is looking to become the new leader of the dirt sprinting division. He’s been working strongly over the dirt in the past few weeks and Trainer Aaron Evertt commented: “he doesn’t even look like the same horse from December. He’s definitely bigger, more muscular, but it’s like he isn’t thinking the same way he normally does. He’ll get this look on his face while he works that we’ve dubbed the ‘I’m-gonna-kick-all-your-butts’ face. Really he has never looked better and we’re hoping he can score some major upsets this season.”
Tears Of An Angel - The Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf Sprint champ seems to finally be back in top racing form and she’s been lighting up the training track at Grayson Meadows. Lucy posts bullet works just about every day and much like Matty, Lucy is looking to be named the top of the sprinting division. “There’s a lot of things that we’re hoping she can do this season and if she really is as good as we think she is, well, we may have a future hall of famer on our hands!” Trainer Aaron Evertt said about the mare, “of course, we’re trying not to get too excited. She’s got plenty of competition and we’re dying to see how this year plays out for her.”
Lucy will be making her next start in the Spring Cup where she’s looking to nab another HOTY race win, hopefully the first of the season for her.
Allouette Divine - This mare gave the boys a real run for their money in the Triple Sprinter Crown last season and we advise you to not forget who won the middle jewel of the series and outran Optimus Unstoppable in the final two legs. Perhaps popular belief is that she isn’t the same horse that she was back then, but now, at four years old we are confident that Divie is as strong as ever. She runs bullet works about every day and comes off the track almost as energetic as she came onto it. She’s expected to run the final two weeks of February, one of those starts against long time rival Optimus Unstoppable, the other in the Spring Cup where we are hoping Divie can notch herself a HOTY race victory.
Dreaming Of Glory - The chestnut underdog has been flying under the radar mainly because he works very differently than most horses. Glory has to have the assistance of four quarter horses to push him around the track during his workout. Usually his works are anywhere between 8-11 furlongs and he gets at least a mile long jog every day. All this work would tire a normal race horse out but Glory isn’t exactly normal. He’s as energetic as they come, but his lack of confidence in himself is his biggest problem. Thus the reason why he has the assistance of four other horses to push him through his works. “We came to the conclusion that this horse wasn’t giving us everything he had in every race, or every work.” Steve Wilson said about the colt, “so we purchased four quarter horses that were ex-racehorses to assist him in his works with hopes that his confidence would be boosted and his stamina would as well. Well, he’s as fit as a fiddle but seems to have issues finding his way to the wire in first place. However, as I always say, every horse is a puzzle that simply needs to be solved and we’ve only solved half of Glory’s complex puzzle. A horse with as much talent as he is bound to hit his stride some day and we’re hoping this season is the season.”
Daddy's Overdraft - A dead last finish in the International Stakes couldn't keep the spirit of this mare down, Cobweb was out two days later with her ears perked and her head held high blasting through a 5 furlong work in 1:00 flat. "She's honestly never looked better, yes she had a bad race last time out but with how she's working she'll bounce back nicely, and by nicely I mean she'll dominate the next field she has thrown at her." Wilson said about the grey mare, "this mare has been with us pretty much from the start, and we couldn't be more thankful to her as she has taught as a great deal." Cobweb has been working strongly all week and is pointing to an under card race February week 4, where she will hopefully notch that 13th win to make her G1.
Dare To Impress - Now G1 Dare To Impress has a whole new aura about her. "She's ready to come back and take her revenge on all of the horses who've beat her several times." Steve Wilson said confidently, "she's been running against top class horses for a large majority of her career and now that all the older horses from Y14 have retired, well, she'll have a chance to show everyone that the Turf Triple Crown near miss was no fluke." Imp has been working in company with Take Flight and has been galloping out strongly. One thing is for sure, fitness isn't an issue with this mare, Imp is ready to take on the big dogs again and she's scheduled to run in The Spring Cup.
Dry Your Tears - The talented daughter of Cryin' Out Loud just keeps getting better and better. She most recently rattled off a four furlong bullet in 44 seconds flat. "It's incredible that she's as low of a grade as she is. Tia has so much talent and you can see it just by watching her run and pick off her opponents one by one as the race goes on." Aaron Evertt expressed the importance to not underestimate the G5 nearly G4 daughter of Cryin' Out Loud and Foxtrot. "I think we're all in for a treat this season, she may be one to make a huge grade leap." Tia has worked alongside fellow sprinters Allouette Divine and Chatoyant recently, both resulted in narrow losses for the chestnut mare, but Divie and Tayo are upper class horses. "Given some more time, Tia really will shine. Wow that Rhymes." Evertt giggled and walked away with Tia to their racing barn, both looked very confident in what was to come in the near future.
On another note, Union Jaque and Blood Of The Angel have given birth to their foals for the Y15 season.
Y15 GS Royal Crown x Union Jaque
"He's quite a cheeky fella. He's fascinated by the cameras and he's a tad clumsy." Tanner Grayson laughed when talking about the colt. "He's always out exploring new things and often times he finds himself in trouble for doing so. He reminds me a lot of a dog named Jacque I had back when I was a kid so we decided to name him Jacque Cousteau because of his adventurous tendencies." 
Y15 Impassioned Wind x Blood Of The Angel
We'd be lying if we said that this wasn't one the most anticipated foals for Y15. Impassioned Wind has been an incredible sire and Blood Of The Angel has been proving herself to be a stellar broodmare. With the recent success of Hellfire we expect that this little filly will have no problem running over a mile for us." Tanner Grayson said about the chestnut filly, "she's really reserved, she doesn't seem to favor a whole lot of contact from people, which is a trait from her dam, although she isn't nasty like Angel."
