let's start the week off on the right foot; not an entirely bad card for a wednesday in january.
r3: erewhon. this is a very nice group of maiden colts taking a spin on the turf course. some of the leading contenders, who would have been beatable, were marooned on the also-eligible list and were scratched, so that takes a bit of the value out of the race. nevertheless, let's play erewhon, who looks like he's been running in the wrong races his first two starts- sprinting and routing on dirt. he's by world-class turf miler kingmambo out of a shirley heights mare, so two-turn turfing is what this one has wanted to do all along. he was rank last time with the blinks, and now they come off, so valdivia should have this one sitting mid-pack along the backstretch. i hope artic dream doesn't jump up and win b/c i hate getting beat by a mazel trick offspring.
r4: chalet chanteuse. it's tough to back any of these 20k claimers with any confidence as this fillies will more than likely be running for 8-10k when they stop writing races for 3 year olds only. in fact, i'm pretty sure this is the lowest level condition for just three year old fillies written at santa anita. in other words, these are very cheap horses. i'm going to take a shot with 'chanteuse who is dropping off two dismal performances, but does have pseed and a good layoff trainer, nick hines, in her corner.
r7: fun house. i've always loved horses like this one- she brings her lunch pail to work every single time she goes out to post. a mile may not be her best distance and she's probably starting to get a little long in the touch, but she has speed, loves the santa anita green and will be right there turning for home. the post will be tricky, but at 9/2 or so, i'll gamble that mike smith can get her good position without using her too much.
good luck.
r3: erewhon. this is a very nice group of maiden colts taking a spin on the turf course. some of the leading contenders, who would have been beatable, were marooned on the also-eligible list and were scratched, so that takes a bit of the value out of the race. nevertheless, let's play erewhon, who looks like he's been running in the wrong races his first two starts- sprinting and routing on dirt. he's by world-class turf miler kingmambo out of a shirley heights mare, so two-turn turfing is what this one has wanted to do all along. he was rank last time with the blinks, and now they come off, so valdivia should have this one sitting mid-pack along the backstretch. i hope artic dream doesn't jump up and win b/c i hate getting beat by a mazel trick offspring.
r4: chalet chanteuse. it's tough to back any of these 20k claimers with any confidence as this fillies will more than likely be running for 8-10k when they stop writing races for 3 year olds only. in fact, i'm pretty sure this is the lowest level condition for just three year old fillies written at santa anita. in other words, these are very cheap horses. i'm going to take a shot with 'chanteuse who is dropping off two dismal performances, but does have pseed and a good layoff trainer, nick hines, in her corner.
r7: fun house. i've always loved horses like this one- she brings her lunch pail to work every single time she goes out to post. a mile may not be her best distance and she's probably starting to get a little long in the touch, but she has speed, loves the santa anita green and will be right there turning for home. the post will be tricky, but at 9/2 or so, i'll gamble that mike smith can get her good position without using her too much.
good luck.
