Battle Brook July Y16 Collection!

[Ripley]

STUNNER IN THE 'WALES!

If any horse was seeking redemption going into the Canadian Triple Crown, it was Firestorm. The bay three year old ended his two year old season on the upswing, nailing his third HOTY victory in the Louisiana Champions Day Classic Stakes in December Wk 3 and a second place finish in the Blue Mountain Stakes, December Week Four. Things had never looked better. He was a maturing colt, growing into his best form--or so Battle Brook thought. January Year Sixteen started off rocky with one second and two thirds and that was exactly how Firestorm's Year Sixteen continued until July Week Two. A hard-knocking colt, Firestorm struggled to find the winner's circle outside of the Hiolio Derby and Middleground Derby at 8 and 9 furlongs on two different surfaces. There was always some higher caliber horse to steal victory from Firestorm's gaping jaws, a frustration felt by everyone connected to the half-brother of Canadian Triple Crown winner Anodyne.

Against the little doubts in Ripley's mind, she decided to continue on with the colt in the CTC. He'd been the bridesmaid for so long, surely after all of the gut wrenching losses, luck would turn his way. It was not to be in the Queen's Plate--a race BBS won last year with Casualty Of War. Firestorm ran into a buzz saw in Natural Selection who won the first leg impressively and lost second to Valkyrie's Wyvern, a colt that was experiencing a similar season to Firestorm's.

Moving onto the second leg, BBS was cautiously optimistic. The colt had come out of his third place effort quite well and his gallops were stronger than expected. Ripley spoke with Laura after the colt's strongest gallop three days before the race and it was decided he would run against Natural Selection and Tiger Heart. The nine and a half-furlong distance drew everything out of the colt. Under a vigorous ride, Firestorm held off the hard-charging Natural Selection by a mere whisker. Coated in dirt and dripping with sweat, Firestorm was led by to his winner's circle, finally the victor of the fairy tale.

The son of Kyoujin brought his record to 28-8-7-10 with the victory. The connections are still aiming for the final leg of the CTC, the Breeders' Stakes at 12 furlongs. A second place finish in the Tonalist Stakes at Battlestone Downs assures them that the colt can get the distance. The question will be can he get there quicker than the true turf horses.

[Ripley]

NO LONGER SECRET: TABOO MAKES STIRRING RUN TO VICTORY IN ALLEN LACOMBE MEMORIAL

It is no secret that Ripley Marsh has Breeders' Cup on the brain when it comes to Taboo. Amber Black made sure the pressure was on when it came to the daughter of Forbidden Wings. Every prodigy of that great broodmare has managed to slide through the wire first at some point in a Breeders' Cup race. Taboo is the only one racing that has not. And not for lack of trying. At two, the younger version of Taboo finished third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Filly Turf. Another year older and more relaxed, Taboo finished third again in the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf Sprint. Time is ticking and with plans for the Everyday Hero daughter to retire at the end of the season, the hourglass is running down.

The early season was slow, but that's nothing new for Taboo. Out of all of her starts, eleven of Taboo's seventeen victories have come after the first week of June. It is something to think about for Taboo's future rivals because the gray mare is flashing signs of brilliance at four and her prime season is just getting started. Her victory in the Wire Finish Cup Sprint was scintillating and although, she is not one to win going away, her consistency as a mature four year old is nothing short of great in the face of so much competition in the high echelons.

At 7.5 furlongs, Taboo's patience was on display as she watched Silver Serendipity and Call Me Crooked cut through solid fractions for the distance. Once a fractious, nervous horse, Taboo tracked the top duo with professionalism until the final two furlongs. Under a drive by Reese, the mare drew even with her competitors with yards to go and swept to her seventeenth career victory.

"We're just getting started with her this year," Ripley remarked as she followed Taboo to the testing barn. "If she comes out of this good, we're heading to the Nearctic Stakes next. Outside of the Breeders Cup and her prep in the Bella Pacifica at Battle Stone Downs, Taboo will be staying at The Wire for the remainder of the season."

Taboo has had to follow in the hoofsteps of Cross My Heart and Paranormal Hunter, but her own record is nothing to sneeze at. The victory in the Allen Laombe Memorial Handicap provided Taboo with her 17th victory in 45 career starts. She has only finished out of the money three times. Perhaps Taboo is ready to make her own sort of history. Either way, her connections are certainly looking forward to the ride.

[Ripley]

WELCOME TO THE SHARK TANK, JUVENILES

The juvenile division is as cut-throat as it is clouded in Year Sixteen. Never before has every barn sent out such terrific young horses to the starting line up and expected a victory. Some have struggled more than others in the face of the increased competition and it is no secret that Battle Brook has not hit their high watermark halfway through Year Sixteen. Breaking Point and Cascabel have led the charge with a somewhat surprising run by Pele's Wrath, a filly from the first crop of Ashes to Ashes. The public wants to know about the horses that Battle Brook bred first, the ones that were expected to be superstars, but have otherwise met a lukewarm reception.


Shatter: The daughter of brilliant sire Worldbreaker and the gutsy Screaming Mimi has been a bit of a challenge in early Year Sixteen. Her lines are made of well-oiled layers of speed, stamina and heart, but the chestnut two year old has only demonstrated a tendency for the erratic. Out of her eleven starts, Shatter has won three, finished second three times and and third twice. She's also finished out of the money three times, one of which was the biggest race of her short career. Her rider Justin Santiago assures that there is more than meets the eye when it comes to Shatter. "I think we're experiencing a backwards year because we have such volatile personalities. Shatter is among those horses. She is a workaholic, but she likes to work on her schedule. She can be a high strung brat, but when you get her going off in that ground eating gallop, she feels like she's special. I know she's special. Her talent stares me right in the face every time I get on her and every now and then she shows it to me on the track."

Although juvenile plans are always tentative, Ripley is confident that Shatter will be ready come Year Seventeen for the Turf Triple Tiara.


Wire Tap: There is something magnificent about watching this colt run. We saw him galloping the turf track this week, in a prep for the second start of his career. He has an effortless stride, a carefree look. Maggiletti Reynolds, BBS's top jock in Year Sixteen, barely moved on the colt as he moved down the lane with his ears pricked. I wasn't expecting to see such glee on Ripley's face as she watched the colt gallop out, her finger tapping on her polished stop watch. "Five furlongs in 1:00.10, six in 1:11.45." Unbeknownst to me, I had just seen a workout from the son of Foolish Lad and Royal Assault. Word has it that the strapping colt needed time on the farm because he was a bit of a bad boy, not because of a lack of talent. I witnessed a ground shattering workout from a colt that didn't even come back blowing and still can't believe he's only made one start to date.

"We're just working on breaking his maiden now," Ripley said tersely when this fact was pointed out. "Racing gets tough right now. You either have competition or you don't. We think he's a great turf horse. We just wanted to get inside his head. He'll be a big horse and we don't need a monstrosity on our hands. For now we want good maiden races until we win and then we'll discuss the future."

However, I couldn't help but note that as of right now, Wire Tap is the only horse that could be capable of continuing Battle Brook's domination in the Turf Triple Crown series. Watching him move, I believe there is a lot more in the works than just winning a maiden race.


Kismet: Walking among Battle Brook on a daily basis, you notice the little things. How they treat certain horses, how they refer to them. While everyone at Battle Brook is treated like a king or queen, there seems to be a hush that follows Kismet around. It falls down on her connections when she gallops, but especially when she works out. The daughter of BBS champion Frozen Motion and Hall of Famer Deadly Desires is clearly something special to her connections. While her record is outstanding, it is not exactly what everyone at Battle Brook expected. The 11-2-6-2 leaves a little to be desired until you look at the quality of races the gray filly has been running in. Out of the 11, only 3 are non-HOTY races. High company for a filly with only two wins to her name.

"She's been a challenge. She's flighty, but fast. I can blame both parents for those traits. Freeze wasn't truly the horse he became until the age of three. She seems to be the same way. It's frustrating to see her miss first, but she's never a disappointment. She brings her A-game even when she moves too soon or too late. She has heart and drive... We just need to time her right and then we'll really see some fireworks."

The remainder of Year Sixteen is marked with a big ol' question mark for the fine filly, but Year Seventeen looks bright to say the least. She could make runs in the turf tiara, the turf sprint or the Green Mile series. Her versatility behooves her and makes her a horse that plenty of barns want.


Gold Rush: While the others prior to this had a degree of hyperness, that is one thing that doesn't define Gold Rush. The son of Frontier and TizNow doesn't have a flighty, hyper bone in his body. He is a true blue collar workman, a pleasure around the barn and he was a comet in the spring, taking home all three of his victories within a month. No one at BBS expects Gold Rush to be a flash in the pan type. His half-sister Nightshade took durability and consistency to a whole new level over the course of her dominating career. Though he is not as flashy, Rush is still one to bear watching. He oozes class and self confidence that belong to a horse far older than him.

"He's giving me some trouble. I see this horse that I expected to take a while to bloom, snapping to life without warning. One morning he just went from the kid everyone liked to the superstar quarterback. We tried him on the turf, but at the moment, he stands out the most on the dirt. We'll keep him running there for now, build his confidence up in a similar way that Intrepid Racing did with Natural Selection this year and then try turf again next year."