fbpx
Skip to main content

Author: Tony Podlaski

Rising Stars on the Track and a Racing Hero in the Classroom

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Featured, Sports, Winner's Circle.


Photo courtesy of the National Museum of Racing

As the Travers showcased rising champions, Saratoga enters the transitional phrase of ending the racing season with some people heading back to the classroom

This year’s 155th running of the Travers Stakes at Saratoga Race Course provided another exciting finish with 2-year-old champion Fierceness holding off a determined run from 3-year-old filly divisional leader Thorpedo Anna.

The Travers is somewhat of the transitional point for the Saratoga meet, especially going into the last week and Labor Day weekend, for horses, those involved in the industry, and even seasonal and retired employees around the track.

While Fierceness and Thorpedo Anna, as well as Sierra Leone, Dornoch, and perhaps a couple of the other finishers coming out of the race, transition into the fall by preparing the Breeders’ Cup in November at Del Mar, many people in the Saratoga Springs region are also getting ready for the upcoming school year, whether it is being a student or a teacher.

One of those people is legendary track announcer, broadcaster, and speaker Tom Durkin, who is teaching public speaking at Saratoga Catholic High School starting in September.

This is not the first time that Durkin has taught a public speaking course. Shortly after retiring with a 24-year career as the track announcer for the New York Racing Association in 2014, he taught a public speaking class for the Saratoga Springs High School Continuing Education program.

“This is something that I always that I always wanted to do,” he said. “I did one for adults in the continuing education, and I liked that. I really wanted to teach high school-aged kids about public speaking.”

Durkin approached Saratoga Catholic principal and alumni Chris Signor about teaching the class. While Durkin’s approach and idea came as a surprise for Signor, he is excited about this learning opportunity for the students, which is a joint project in both the English and Business Departments.

“This came out of the blue. I never planned this in my wildest dreams,” Signor said. “He has some great ideas about teaching a course that he wanted to expand upon when he taught it as an adult continuing education class. This is going to be a popular course with the kids. This has been very well received.”

Durkin’s interest in public speaking started in a class at a catholic high school in Chicago where he grew up. Not only did Durkin only enjoy the small-sized class, he also found it beneficial as those skills became the foundation to his race calling for NYRA and the Breeders’ Cup, his sportscasting for NBC and ESPN, and speaking engagements that include the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame Inductions.

While race calling, broadcasting, and being an emcee for the Hall of Fame inductions reflect an aspect of entertainment in public speaking, Durkin believes that rhetoric and discourse are important to both persuasion and analysis.

“There are all different kinds of discourse,” he said. “Rhetoric is the art or science on convincing someone to your point of view by the means of speech. If you want to ask your parents to borrow the car, you can use a lot of rhetorical skills to try to persuade them.”

By taking a student-centered approach to his teaching, one of Durkin’s objectives is providing students the skills and experience they need, which includes writing speeches, appearance, and body language, so they can deliver an effective speech.

“I will give them many of the tools,” he said. “The primary objective will be having the students get in front of other people and speak at least once every class. It’s just getting that experience of getting in front of people and communicate to them. It’s important for them to sound good. If you don’t sound good, it’s much harder to keep the audience’s attention.”

Durkin’s lesson plans also include teaching students about when to memorize speeches, how to use adrenaline to their benefit, and how to overcome perhaps the common challenge many public speakers – fear.

“It’s the No. 1 phobia in America,” Durkin said about fear. “People are more afraid of public speaking than they are afraid of dying. If there is any of that, we are going to deal with that off the bat. If you make a mistake, so what? The ceiling didn’t fall. You didn’t get struck by lightning.”

As part of the lesson, Durkin plans to emphasize that one of the ways for students to overcome the paralysis of fear and being confident is preparation.

“If you are over-the-top totally prepared, you are going to have a good experience because you will be confident,” he said. “If you are not prepared, all you will be thinking about is the mistakes that you are going to make.”

Durkin plans to share plenty of personal examples for being prepared, as well as other concepts covered in this class. Some of these include his retirement speech in the Saratoga Winner’s Circle, his speech for receiving the Eclipse Award for Merit, and his mother’s eulogy – all of which required a thorough revision process.

 “The key to writing a good speech is rewrite and brevity,” he said. “Part of rewriting is editing out extraneous stuff, but adding stuff by using various rhetorical tropes to make it a good speech.”

While Durkin plans to cover the objectives for the course, he would also like to work with students on cultivating their creativity over the academic year.

“I really like to take somebody who was intrepid on public speaking. I want to foster creativity.” he said. “This course is going to teach creativity and conviction. I will point them in certain directions on how they can do that and how to convince people. There are several ways to do it: pathos, ethos, and logos.”

With a student-centered classroom, teaching can be a two-way street as the students gain knowledge and skills from the teacher, and the teacher learns from them as well. Durkin indicated that he wants to learn something from the students.

“I would like to have an ability to connect to younger people,” he said. “There is a lot of stuff that they do, which I don’t understand. I’m sure there is a lot of stuff that I do that they don’t understand. It’s just being around young people and open up my understanding about the real person behind the teenager.”

If the class goes well and he learns something from the students, Durkin said he would “absolutely” come back to do it again next year.

From Selling Newspapers at Saratoga to Being in the Winner’s Circle

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Winner's Circle.

Saratoga Spring native Jennifer Paragallo wins her first race at Saratoga Race Course as trainer following a horse racing path that started with selling the Daily Racing Form and newspapers.

Photo by Tony Podlaski

Jennifer Paragallo’s career path in horse racing may be an atypical one, but the path has recently become a winning one.

Paragallo won her first race as a trainer at Saratoga Race Course on Friday when Dunedin Causeway took the lead inside the sixteenth pole before inching away to a three-quarter length margin in the maiden claiming race.

“A win anywhere, regardless of the track, is special,” she said with a hoarse and raspy voice from shouting with excitement. “Though, a win at Saratoga is special. This one is my biggest deal because it’s home. Being from Saratoga and growing up here, this means the world to me.”

Paragallo’s world in horse racing started as a child when she was selling the Daily Racing Form and other newspapers with her mother outside the track. During that time, she became familiar with jockeys and their agents, as well as trainers and other horsemen.

Entering her teenage years, Paragallo evolved into a dedicated fan of the sport, which part of it was reflected constantly watching the first Breeders’ Cup on her recorded VHS tape before it broke from overuse.

By the time Paragallo entered Saratoga Springs High School in the late 1980s, she had aspirations of going to the “big leagues” at Belmont Park and Aqueduct where she could gallop horses. However, she never realized that Saratoga was always the place to be.

“When I was a kid, I knew that Saratoga was big, but I couldn’t wait to leave,” she said. “I never knew this was the big leagues, and I’ve been to a lot of tracks all over the country –California, Florida, Arkansas, Texas, Indiana, New Jersey and Delaware. There is no place like Saratoga.”

Once Paragallo left Saratoga Springs in 1991, she started galloping horses for trainers that included Mike Daggett, Mike Sedlacek, and Terri Pompey. After galloping horses for a few years, Paragallo wanted to follow her dream of becoming a jockey.

During the Oaklawn Park meet in 1994 while riding under her maiden name Jennifer Robinson, Paragallo had just five mounts during that meet with none of them finishing in the money.

Once the Oaklawn Park meet ended, Paragrallo migrated to Finger Lakes where she was getting closer to her first victory with three second-place finishes. With no Winner Circle appearance, she ended that year with a second-place and third-place finish at Aqueduct.

With more riding opportunities in 1995 at Atlantic City, Paragallo finally won her first race aboard Prize Writer in a claiming race. Just over a week later, she guided Delightful Marine to his first victory after 41 attempts as a maiden.

That was the last winner for Paragallo as she finished her jockey career at Hoosier Park on Oct. 15, 1995 due to limited opportunities and other challenges.

“I was bound and determined to be some great jockey,” she said. “I didn’t plan to quit. I was making a decent living, but I was fighting my weight. It was probably not in my cards to be a jockey because I wasn’t naturally light.”

Paragallo came back to New York as an exercise rider for a plethora of trainers that include Hall of Famers Bill Mott and Nick Zito for the next two decades. 

Paragallo eventually transitioned into an assistant trainer with her early opportunity coming from Bruce Brown in 2009. During her 4½ years with Brown, she took care of the 30 horses that he stabled at Saratoga once the Oklahoma Training Track opened in the spring.

During her time with Brown, Paragallo traveled to Santa Anita for the Breeders’ Cup Turf Spring with Spring to the Sky and Churchill Downs for Breeders’ Cup Mile with Compliance Officer. She also went to Woodbine for the graded stakes races with New York-bred Strong Impact and Night Officer.

“This was an important part of me,” Paragallo said. “Bruce is the easiest-going and simple kind of guy. He was one of the best bosses that I had. There is so much [public relations] at Saratoga. He liked how I handled that.”

Paragallo made the decision to become a trainer in late 2022. About three months since her first starter at Tampa Bay Downs, she won her first race with Redzilla on Mar. 4, and that followed with a victory from Mylastredcent and another win from Redzilla.

Now, she has just five horses at Barn 42 at Saratoga. Four of those horses are still looking for their first wins: Althena, Devil of Ramadi, Fire Baron, and Theregoesmymiracle.

Though, Paragallo wasn’t the only trainer who earned her first Saratoga win based at Barn 42. In fact, she gave up one of her stalls for Kathleen O’Connell, who also picked up her first Saratoga victory – and her 2,500th career win – with Thirty Thou Kelvin in Wednesday’s allowance race.

Paragallo likes the manageable stable size that is supported by just her exercise rider and roommate Makaia Carpenter, as well as and her assistant and groom Richie Suttle, who once had his lone stakes win with Dontletthebigonego in the Grade 3 Lafayette Stakes and his only Saratoga victory with Momsmercedes in a maiden race – both in 1998.

“We have a small team. We’re best friends,” Paragallo said. “My friends are my team. We’re working with horses every day – inside and out. We get up 4:30 in the morning and stay until noon. It doesn’t matter if it is hot out, cold out, or raining. We enjoy this small stable.”

 Even with the support of her team, Paragallo knows that being a trainer is still a lifelong learning experience, especially since that has been reinforced by the late Hall of Fame trainer H. Allen Jerkens and his former assistant Chuck Simon, also a Saratoga Springs native.

“I’m still on a learning curve,” Paragallo said. “Jerkens trained horses for more than 50 years. He said you never stop learning. Even Chuck said that you never stop learning.”

“I am a little thick-headed,” she added. “Sometimes, you don’t always see stuff when you are in the moment,” she added. “I might be overtraining. I might be overreading. I might be trying too hard sometimes. When you are trying to force something, you cannot make it happen. I understanding these things. No one teaches you these things.”

While Paragallo never had intention of training horses, she has embraced this part of her career path, but she had never forgotten about being a fan of horse racing, especially at Saratoga.

“They say, ‘Do what you love and you will never work a day in your life.’ I’m living my dream. I don’t want to miss a moment with my horses. Coming to Saratoga, I am still a fan. This is where I fell in love with the sport.”

A “Goose” That Has Caught Horse Racing Attention

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Winner's Circle.

For more than a decade, attorneys Wesley Lawrence and Elizabeth Kruska have entertained horse racing fans and others in the industry with a parody Twitter account based on the late Saratoga infield goose, which has also gotten them involved as owners and aftercare.

Photo by Tony Podlaski

There are many social media parody accounts that personalize dogs, cats, and even horses.

However, there is one Twitter account that has been migrating around the horse racing community for more than a decade: the Spa Infield Goose.

The parody account, which now has over 7,000 followers, was created by Vermont attorneys Wesley Lawrence and Elizabeth Kruska 12 years ago when they were at Saratoga Race Course.

While watching the Olympics in between races from their clubhouse seats, both of them were captivated by an unusual goose, named “Lippy” for having part of a missing beak, meandering around the infield and the pond that is the host for the Travers canoe.

That’s when they had some ideas flying through their mind.

“We thought this goose has seen a lot of things,” Lawrence said. “It would be funny if [we had something] from the perspective of the goose with the ongoings of the track.”

It was an opportunity since also animal-related accounts emerged during that time: The Bronx Zoo Cobra, Rafalca Romney (the dressage horse for U.S. Senator Mitt Romney), Gator Kitten, and Juba (the Gray) who raced at Saratoga.

“It was the peak of animal parody accounts at the time,” Kruska said. “At first, we didn’t know what to expect. We sometimes do joke that many people talk to a goose. At the same time, we work at it. It’s fun, and it’s a lot of observational stuff. You have to keep it up.”

Not only does the Spa Infield Goose account continue to attract followers, it has also brought Lawrence and Kruska further into the sport as fans, owners, and even aftercare.

“It is surprising on the connections that we have made and people who we have met by virtue of it,” Lawrence said. “It has helped us professionally and being observant and analytical to the details by walking around here.”

Prior to handling the parody Twitter account, Lawrence and Kruska had some interest and background as horse racing fans.

Growing up in New Jersey and central Long Island, Lawrence came from a family who enjoyed horse racing that included his father, who often attended the Kentucky Derby while attending the University of Louisville, as well as his grandparents who started bringing Lawrence to Monmouth Park when he was seven years old.

By 18, Lawrence occasionally went to the Meadowlands while attending the University of Delaware before going to Vermont Law School where he later met Kruska.

Both of them started going to the racetrack together in 2008 for races that included Big Brown’s Triple Crown campaign, then that followed with Rachel Alexandra’s 3-year-old season with the Preakness and Woodward Stakes.

During the first couple of years as the Spa Infield Goose on Twitter, Lawrence and Kruska interacted with many horse racing fans, as well as those in the industry. By 2015, that interaction guided them into becoming an owner of the Thoroughbred horses through Zilla Racing Stables based in Guilderland.

Their first horse, Benevolence, graduated from the maiden ranks at Saratoga in July 2016, then the New York-bred gelding was claimed nearly two years later. From there, Lawrence and Kruska bought into more horses that included their favorite horse English Soul.

Starting her career with a second-place finish at Saratoga near the end of August 2017, then following that a victory in the East View Stakes, English Soul came back to Saratoga a year later to beat Take Charge Aubrey by a nose in the Fleet Indian Stakes.

At the Keeneland Breeding Stock Sales in November 2019, Calumet Farm bought English Soul for $170,000 and raced just four more times before starting a career as a broodmare.

However, after unsuccessful attempts at breeding and little interest in racing, English Soul’s future was a little uncertain. That was until Lawrence and Kruska visited Calumet Farm during the Kentucky Derby weekend in 2021.

“They raced her and they were going to breed her,” Lawrence said. “She couldn’t be bred and didn’t want to race anymore. When we visited her, they knew the connection and asked if we wanted her. So, then decided to take back the mare.”

The thought of Thoroughbred aftercare was not a new concept for both Lawrence and Kruska. Along with their interactions through Twitter, they became familiar in aftercare after visiting an information table while attending the Mass Cap at Suffolk Downs in 2008 – the last edition of the race which was won by Commentator, who has been long retired at Old Friends at Cabin Creek in Greenfield Center.

Lawrence and Kruska still had a challenge: finding a home where English Soul could have a new life as a possible riding horse. Though, they learned the New York-bred mare had physical limitations after her examination at Tufts University.

“It became apparent that there was something physically wrong with her,” Kruska said. “It was pretty clear that it wasn’t going to work in retraining her. So, we moved her to another farm.”

Today, English Soul is living on a family farm in Hartford, Vt. with another retired Thoroughbred: At the Bell, who once raced against Funny Cide as a two-year-old maiden. Kruska said both horses have the life as “beautiful lawnmowers.”

However, English Soul is not the only horse who they have admired. Out of Trouble, one of the early daughters of Into Mischief, was also part of their partnership with Zilla Racing.

After winning six races, including two here at Saratoga, the mare was retired and sent to Wynnstay Farm in Winchester, Ky. where she was bred to Volatile, winner of the 2020 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap. That combination produced Haleakala, who finished third in her debut at Ellis Park on Saturday.

While those horses continue to have a post-racing life, Lawrence and Kruska continue to be part of the Zilla Racing partnership with their recent winner at Saratoga: Tongue Twister.

Unlike many geese who will start migrating to the south after the Saratoga meet comes to an end, Lawrence and Kruska plan to stay in the region with their primary home in Woodstock, Vt.

However, after purchasing a Saratoga Springs “nest” in earlier this year, they plan to make a longer stay in the area, especially on the weekends.

“This is a very nice town,” Kruska said. “Obviously, we are here for the racing. However, I expect to be here quite a lot over the rest of the year. There is a lot going around here.”

Off To A Good Start

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Winner's Circle.

Photo by Tony Podlaski

With the support of trainers and his father, Saratoga Springs native Dylan Davis looks to exceed his personal best at Saratoga Race Course this year.

Like most jockeys, Dylan Davis has to work hard, get the right support to be competitive, and remain confident in his riding, especially at Saratoga Race Course.

Right now, that seems to be working for him.

Within the first 14 days of the Saratoga Race Course meet, Davis has a good start as a sixth-leading jockey with 11 winners and 13 others finishing either second or third.

That’s a sharp contrast to when Davis had just two winners in 2020 within that same time fame. However, those numbers improved with five wins in 2021, six wins in 2022, and nine winners last year – all within the same time span.

“It has been great,” Davis said. “I try to go in with a lot of confidence. The outcome, getting the winners early, has exceeded my expectations.”

Davis is also close to exceeding his expectations of total winners for the Saratoga meet after finishing with 17 in 2002, 18 in 2021, 15 in 2023, and 19 last year, which has been his personal best.

“I set a personal goal. I was trying to get to 19 [winners],” the 2011 Saratoga Springs High School graduate said. “I try to beat my personal best. I haven’t been focusing on what the other riders are doing. I am focusing on me. We aren’t halfway through the meet. Everything is going well. I’ve got guys behind me and support me.”

It didn’t take Davis that long to get his first winner of the meet. For his second mount on Opening Day, he guided first-time starter Punch the Clock to a front-running victory for trainer Raymond Handal. That followed with riding longshot The Queens M G to victory in the Schuylerville Stakes.

“It is incredible,” he said. “Saratoga-native and any win is special here, but to win the feature of the day is great.”

Just over a week later, Davis had a four-win day that included another Handal-trainee Union Dolly and two for trainer Mark Casse with Full Screen in an allowance and Pounce in the Grade 3 Lake George Stakes.

Even during the dark days of the Saratoga’s first week, Davis picked up another win by going to Finger Lakes where he helped Pandagate, trained by Clement, outfinish Doc Sullivan in the New York Derby.

“I try to stay available,” Davis said. “Going to Finger Lakes for guys who are [trying to get] a good shot are the guys who ride me since I am based in New York. They give me opportunities.”

Over his 13-year career, which included his first winner at Suffolk Downs in September 2012, Davis has slowly moved up the standings as one of the top 10 jockeys on the New York circuit while riding his fair share of stakes winners. He eventually took the New York riding title in 2022 with 186 winners.

Though, a lot of that success could not happen without support of numerous trainers, which includes Clement.

In Fall 2020, Clement had Davis ride Mutamakina in the Long Island Handicap in which they won. For the following year, Davis guided Mutamakina to victory in the E. P. Taylor Stakes and the Dance Smartly Stakes at Woodbine.

Last year, Clement gave Davis another opportunity with Carson’s Run, who won his career debut that followed with a close second-place finish in the With Anticipation Stakes at Saratoga. A month later, Davis and Carson’s Run won the bet365 Summer Stakes at Woodbine that earned both a trip to the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf.

Davis and Carson’s Run reunite again for the Saratoga Derby Invitational as part of Saturday’s Whitney undercard.

Because of Carson’s Run, Mutamakina and several other horses, Clement had confidence in putting Davis on Pandagate for the UAE Derby at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai as they finished third to Japan’s talented 3-year-old Forever Young.

“Clement has had a big impact on my career as of late,” Davis said. “If he wants me to go somewhere, I am available. He knows that. It’s not like I am going to say ‘no’ to him.”

Another person who has helped him is his father and retired jockey Robbie Davis. As a teenager, Dylan Davis wanted to be an aspiring motocross racer, not a jockey. With his father’s encouragement, Davis got on horse and enjoyed riding it around the paddock.

“With my father on my side, coach, mentor, everything, I knew he was someone who was going to give me true advice,” he said. “I knew he has been 100 percent on my side. That has been great to have as a top rider in New York. He has helped me to be professional – both on and off the track – and always think that the camera is on you all of the time. Then, you will never do anything wrong.”

Just like with the other riders, Davis knows it’s difficult to compete at Saratoga – both on and off the track. Along with the challenge of getting horses to ride, there is also the difficult task of making the right decisions on the track.

“It’s tough,” he said. “The other day, there were 34 riders in the room. Many of them had just 1 or 2 mounts. I was riding seven. It’s a matter of staying focused out there. I’ve been riding for almost 12 years. It’s trial and error through the years.”

“When I have been riding up here, every decision that I have been making has been working out,” he added. “Obviously, you need the horse to get the job done. Whether it is waiting, moving early, staying inside longer, or moving out early and getting the jump, all of those decisions has been all on cue.”

Breeding on the Route 4 Corridor 

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Uncategorized, Winner's Circle.


Mechanicville breeder Peter Beals and Schuylerviller breeders Dan and Kathy Barraclough work as a team to help create and develop impressive maiden winner Bellacose

Horse racing is a team effort from breeding, sales preparation, training, and racing, regardless of the level. Bellacose proved that last week.

The 2-year-old filly left quite of an impression at Saratoga Race Course on July 17 with her front-running debut victory by 10¾ lengths before jockey Manny Franco eased on the filly until the last 70 yards.

That impressive victory could not happen without a team of people within the 15-mile Route 4 corridor from Schuylerville to Mechanicville: trainer Jeremiah Englehart, breeder Dan and Kathy Barraclough of Saratoga Glen Farm, and breeder Peter Beals of Beals Racing Stable, LLC.

“It makes you feel proud and happy to be friends and partners with good people,” Beals said. “We were optimistic going into the race, but you never know what to expect from a first-time starter. Jeremiah, per usual, had her ready to go.”

“Dan and Kathy do a wonderful job,” Beals added. “There are a few things that can go right in the breeding and racing, and there are a hundred things that can go wrong. It really hits you when you have success like the other day.”

That success started at the breeding farm. The Barracloughs and Beals have been in a breeding partnership over the last few years. During that time, they have produced several horses who have earned six-digit sales in the ring.

Some of these include the following:

• a filly by King for a Day out of the mare Downtown Daria who sold for $130,000 at the 2022 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga fall mixed sale;

• a colt by Audible out of the mare Bears Measure who sold for $200,000 at Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Preferred New York-bred sales in August 2022;

• a colt by Volatile out of the mare Scat’s Lassie who sold for $280,000 as a 2-year-old at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Sales in Timonium, Maryland in May.

About three years ago, Beals wanted to breed his small mare Little Bullet, whom he bought as an unraced mare for $11,000 from Taylor Made at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Mixed Sales in February 2020.

Beals took the risk by breeding his mare for the first time to 2017 Jim Dandy winner Good Samaritan. They produced Sox for Daughters, who won her first career race at Finger Lakes last month. After the foaling Sox for Daughters, Beals wanted to breed Little Bullet again, but to a larger stallion.

As part of a breeding package with WinStar Farm, Beals and the Barracloughs pooled five mares to be physically matched with ideal stallions, which included Audible, the New York-bred 3-year-old champion in 2018 after winning the Florida Derby and finishing third in the Kentucky Derby.

Once Little Bullet became in foal to Audible, Beals sent her to the Saratoga Glen Farm, which the Barracloughs converted the deteriorated dairy farm into a well-maintained 77-acre farm with self-made ponds and three barns that hold 42 stalls.

“Primarily, everything happens here.” Kathy Barraclough said. “We do all of the foaling here. We raise the babies here. We do the sales prep here. When we wean, we work with the facilities of our partners.”

When Bellacose was born April 10, 2022, the Barracloughs raised and prepped her for the Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Fall Mixed Sales where she sold as a weanling for $33,000. While raising the filly, the Barracloughs had concerns about her small size, which is now 15.1 hands or about 60 inches, but they also satisfied with her physicality.

“She isn’t small, but she is on the small end of average,” Dan Barraclough said. “She is very well-muscled, forward and mature. She just isn’t big. There have been plenty of good horses who have been that size. Northern Dancer was 15.2 hands. Foolish Pleasure wasn’t that big.”

Just over a year later, Englehart purchased her for $82,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Keeneland Yearling Sales.

“We were pretty high on her at the sales. We felt pretty strong about her,” Englehart said. “She has a nice look on her. She had a nice shoulder angle and nice hip. She had a racy look to her. She was our type of horse.”

Englehart also credited the Barracloughs for their prior work with Bellacose.

“They do a great job in following their horses from having a mare, foaling, and raising the yearling,” he said “They do a phenomenal job. They always go above and beyond.”

After breaking and training at the Travis Durr Center in South Carolina during the winter, Bellacose arrived the Englehart’s barn on the Oklahoma Annex around the third week of April, shortly after the Oklahoma Training Track opened.

Coming into the race, Bellacosa posted 11 workouts – four of them at three furlongs in May and the remaining at a half mile. While she was coming into the race in good shape, Englehart knew this would not be any easy outing as he was surprised with the outcome

“I was worried about a few horses in that race. It looked like it was good on paper,” Englehart said. “Manny said when she got to the front, her ears kind of went out and she was looking around. When he asked her, she went. I was a little surprised in how she won. She is very competitive and fiery.”

Englehart indicated there is a likelihood that Bellacose, owned by Christopher T. Dunn, Blue Tarp Racing, Chris Mara, Greyhound Stables, Nicholas Sgroi, Arthur Sgroi, Jonathan M. Sacks, and Corrin Genovese, could be racing again at Saratoga in the Seeking the Ante Stakes for New York-bred juvenile fillies competing at six furlongs on Aug. 25.

While Bellacose’s win pleased the owners and Englehart, it was just as important to both Beals and the Barracloughs since they receive breeding awards that benefit their farms.

“For us, breeders awards are a big deal,” Beals said. “They really keep us going. That race the other day was a big chunk of change for us. It really helps us. That victory does so many things on so many levels.”

“It also gets other trainers and people buying these horses to know that if you get a horse from Beales [Racing] and Saratoga Glen [Farm] bred and raised by Saratoga Glen, you are going to get a horse that is raised properly,” he added. “I think that’s important. That’s why there is a connection that reoccurs.”

Clawing Away To A Victory

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Winner's Circle.

Levine & Brown Eyed Cat. Photo by Tony Podlaski

Long-time trainer Bruce Levine wins his first Saratoga race of the meet with an impressive run from locally-bred Brown Eyed Cat

Bruce Levine pretty much started his Saratoga Race Course meet with nearly the way he ended his Belmont at Aqueduct meet.

However, he had to watch some anxious moments from the start to the finish for that Saratoga victory.

Brown Eyed Cat, a 3-year-old making his debut on Opening Day, was off a step slow while getting bumped hard by Romantic Charmer as a soon as the starting gate opened. Through a patient ride from Javier Castellano, Brown Eyed Cat rallied 15½ lengths off the quick pace to run down Call Bob in the last 220 yards to win by a length.

“It was very impressive,” Levine said. “It was a speed-favoring track and he closed a lot of ground. I know there were some fast fractions, but he did put in some run. It’s good to get that first win.”

During Belmont at Aqueduct’s closing weekend two weeks ago, Levine watched Light Man catch pacesetter Kingdom in the final furlong for the 1¼-length win.

While Brown Eyed Cat’s win came across as impressive, Levine said he wasn’t surprised in the colt’s running style. Even with the latest “bullet” workouts from the gate, Levine indicated that his horse has the tendency to start slowly. When Brown Eyed Cat got off to a rough start and fell behind quickly, Levine didn’t know if his horse could overcome that.

“I’m not surprised,” Levine said. “He has never been a good breaker in the morning. Between not being a sharp breaker and getting bumped at the start, and he was so far back, I really couldn’t imagine him winning, especially for a first-time starter.”

After being bred by Dave Valeri with the sire of Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Big Brown and the mare Cat Ferrad at Irish Hill Century Farm, just six miles away from the track in Stillwater, Brown Eyed Cat, owned by AngieV Stables, came to Levine’s barn last summer at Belmont Park.

Even though the colt showed potential through a series of workouts, there were moments when Levine had to give him a break.

“I knew he could run,” Levine said. “We have been fighting quarter crack issues with him. That is what has slowed him in getting to the races. He’s a sound horse. It’s just his feet.”

“I wanted to give him another workout,” he added. “But I said to myself, if this race goes, I got to wait another month to run. Let me give him some experience. He acts a little green around horses. Not only that, there is now fitness on his side.”

Brown Eyed Cat wasn’t the only winner for Levine last week. He also had a winner at Monmouth Park with Kaymus in a claiming race. Though, it’s not uncommon for Levine to run his horses at multiple tracks.

Within the first couple of years as a trainer that started in late 1979, Levine won races at Aqueduct, Belmont, the Meadowlands, Monmouth Park, Delaware Park and even Hialeah Park. This included his first graded stakes winner with I’m It followed by multiple graded stakes winner Lady Eleanor.

In 1982, even though he had been racing horses at Saratoga early in his career, Levine finally brought his stable to Barn 64, where he is still located just next to the gap of the first turn on the Oklahoma Training Track. That is when he also had his first Saratoga winner with Rob’s Lady in a maiden race.

Over the last four decades, several horses have been part of Levine’s stable, which has earned 2,238 victories from nearly 13,000 starters. They include 2008 New York-bred champion sprinter Bustin Stones, three-time Grade 3 Gallant Fox marathon winner Coyote Lakes, John Morrissey Stakes winner Clever Electrician and Saratoga Dew Stakes winner Hot Stones.

Even with Grade 1 winner Bustin Stones and a former claiming horse like Coyote Lakes, both owned by Roddy Valente, Levine continues to look for that promising horse through breeders and sales rather than focusing on the claiming division.

“It has been good, but it’s challenging,” Levine said. “I’m still looking for a good horse. I used to work with a lot claiming horses. I don’t mind claiming, but it’s just harder. If you claim a horse $20,000 and run it for $30,000, you will probably keep it, but you can’t win. If you want to win, then you will have to lose the horse.”

“It’s hard to win a claiming race and have your horse not to get claimed out of it,” he added. “It’s so hard to replace your horses. It takes two months to replace it. It used to be that you could hold onto them longer.”

Beyond a few claiming horses, Levine has other promising horses who have been allowance race winners such as Light Man, Cupid’s Heart, and Fortune’s Nephew.

Levine also has younger and unraced horses. Two of them are scheduled to run in maiden races on Friday: first-time starters Joker on Fire and Posse Rocks.

“I’m so lucky that I have some homebreds, and I can buy some yearlings and 2-year-olds to add to the stable. I am working with more 2-year-olds.” he said “Otherwise, I would be in trouble. With the babies, you can stay in business through trial and error.”

As for Brown Eyed Cat, Levine knows he some options, especially since the colt is eligible to compete in the New York Stallion Series races. However, he will know the next steps based on the horse’s health, body language, and behavior over the next couple of weeks.

“He will tell me,” Levine said. “Horses always do. He may run in an allowance race in three or four weeks. We’ll have to see where he is.”

Saratoga is More Than A Racing Meeting for Gargan

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Winner's Circle.

By arriving at Saratoga Race Course in early May, Danny Gargan has the opportunity to develop his younger horses for a possible brighter future.

One of the common characteristics of spring in Saratoga Springs is the opening of the Oklahoma Training Track and now the Saratoga Race Course main track in mid-April.

Each spring, trainers like Chad Brown, Todd Pletcher, Bill Mott and Christophe Clement bring a plethora of their horses to train and prepare for the Saratoga meet while occasionally racing downstate and other tracks.

Other trainers from downstate and outside of New York bring their smaller group of horses with the similar goal. However, Danny Gargan’s goal is different.

For Gargan, the opening of the training track and main track is more than a preparation for the annual Saratoga meet; it is also an opportunity for his younger horses develop into a possible brighter future.

“We are here to try to accomplish something more than a race meet,” Gargan said. “If we have a decent race meet, that’s fine. We are trying to get these young horses started. We are focused on younger horses developing into better [horses] down the road and in the future.”

Gargan has brought a stable to Saratoga just before the meet each year since 2013. Over the last 11 years, he has won several races that include Tax in the Grade 2 Jim Dandy and R Free Roll in the Grade 3 Honor Miss.

Though, one horse helped Gargan make his decision of brining horses to Saratoga once the tracks opened for training: Dakota Gold.

Toward the end of the Saratoga 2021 meet, Dakota Gold won his debut in an off-the-turf race at Saratoga. Just a little over three weeks later, the New York-bred gelding won the Nownownow Stakes at Monmouth Park, then continued to stay at Saratoga through early November.

Since then, Dakota Gold continues to training at Saratoga during the spring, summer, and fall months before going to Florida for the winter. This training strategy appears to have positive impact on him by winning a pair of New York Stallion Stakes races as a 3-year-old and taking the Hudson Valley Stakes as a 4-year-old. He has also finished either second or third in five other listed stakes races.

Dornoch, winner of the Belmont Stakes here at Saratoga last month, can now be added to the list of Gargan’s horses who have followed that path to stakes-winning success.

In May 2023, Dornoch, as a 2-year-old, arrived to the Saratoga for training, which included 10 published workouts, before finishing second behind Seize the Grey in his first start. After Dornoch finished second in the Sapling Stakes at Monmouth, then winning his first race in October at Keeneland, Gargan brought him back to New York where he won the Grade 2 Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct in December.

Even Gargan’s other stakes-winning 3-year-old Society Man started training here at Saratoga last year. While it took Society Man four races to win his first start in March at Aqueduct, the gelding came back with a respectable second-place finish in the Grade 2 Wood Memorial in April and a convincing victory in the Grade 3 Matt Winn Stakes at Churchill Downs last month.

Gargan believes that serene environment and excellent track maintenance from NYRA Executive Vice President of Operations and Capital Projects Glen Kozak and his staff has helped his horses remain relaxed and sound.

“It’s the tracks and facilities,” Gargan said. “It is peaceful. The horses are relaxed here. We have round pens. We can graze them. It is more like a farm setting. It gives the horses a chance to get not too wound up. Horses develop when they are not stressed. If you train at a racetrack all of the time, I feel like it is harder because they are stressed all of the time. This is a more laid-back environment that gives the horses the best chance to develop.”

“New York is lucky by having the best track man in the country,” Gargan added. “Glen Kozak is, by far, the best track man. He takes unbelievable care of all of these tracks. I give him a lot of credit to where we are. We are lucky to have him as our horses stay sound here. We are trying to get stakes horses every year, and this is how to do it.”

Gargan currently has 38 horses, which includes 14 2-year-olds, that he rotates between here and downstate. One of his 2-year-olds who has gained attention is Complexion, who is a half-sister to multiple Grade 1 winner Jack Christopher.

After arriving at Saratoga in May while posting five solid workouts over the Oklahoma Training Track, Complexion came out with an impressive performance three weeks ago by winning her debut by 6½ lengths at Aqueduct. Based off that performance, Gargan entered her for the $175,000 Schuylerville Stakes on Opening Day.

“I like her a lot. I think she has some talent,” Gargan said. “I have a few [2-year-olds] who I like a lot, but it’s still early. I don’t have a big two-turn horse right now who could be a Dornoch. We don’t get horses like him every day, but we might have a couple of fillies of the caliber.”

Other horses who have been training at Saratoga for Gargan include New York-bred Ramblin’ Wreck (winner of last year’s Rick Violette Stakes) and Queen’s Martini (won debut at Saratoga last year).

“We are trying to get these young horses started,” he added. “We are trying to get them in the right direction down the road. We are trying to look at another Society Man and Dornoch for next year. That’s our goal. We have been coming here, we had multiple stakes horses. Let’s knock on wood and hope that keeps happening.”

 

“We are focused on younger horses developing into better [horses] down the road and in the future.”

It’s All About Love

Written by Tony Podlaski on . Posted in Winner's Circle.


Not For Love. Photo By Tony Leonard.

Veterinarian and breeder John McDermott’s interest in the Not For Love sire line has helped him produce a successful runner with Kant Hurry Love.

What’s “love” got to do with it?

There have been many songs, movies, books, poems, and short stories that have tried to answer this question. In Thoroughbred racing, especially with breeding and bloodlines, “love” may have something to do with it.

One of those people who believe in that “love” is Granville Veterinarian Service co-practice owner John McDermott, who is also a breeder at his Seldom Silent Farm in North Hebron, which is about five miles west of the New York-Vermont border.

Since becoming a breeder, he has been interested in broodmares sired by the well-bred Not For Love, who was the leading Maryland sire from 2003 to 2011 following a modest career that with a couple of wins in allowance races at Saratoga.

McDermott eventually acquired two mares from that linage that became a mother-daughter combination: Baby Love and She’s All Love. Because of that acquisition and his fascination with the Not For Love breeding line, McDermott has produced one of his better offspring so far with stakes-winner Kant Hurry Love.

“Do I love pedigrees? Absolutely,” McDermott said. “I can’t go toe-to-toe with the guys in Kentucky, so I have to be more creative. The Not For Love breeding could really prove herself. You will have results.”

McDermott has some results as a result of his creativity. After purchasing Baby Love from Dan Hayden’s Sugar Maple Farm in 2007, McDermott bred the mare to Majestic Warrior, winner of the 2007 Hopeful. Their product was Bonus Points, who won the Maryland Million Classic Stakes and Parx Derby in 2017.

McDermott also bred Baby Love to Grade 1 winning sprinter Yes It’s True. That combination produced Candid Desire, who earned over $500,000 with a victory in the 2017 Holly Hughes Handicap.

As part of the breeding industry, McDermott eventually sold Baby Love with the hopes to earn breeders’ award money through her. Because of that, he was searching for another mare with the Not For Love pedigree.

After losing opportunities to claim or purchase another mare with that pedigree in both Louisiana and Finger Lakes, McDermott learned about She’s All Love, the daughter of Baby Love who suffered a career-ending injury at Belmont Park and became rehabilitated at repurposing clinic farm in 2017.