The Great escape

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/01/2019 (2488 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s superstar mare Escape Clause made a bullet move in the US$100,000 La Canada Stakes-G3 on Saturday to become what is believed to be the first Manitoba-bred in history to win a graded stakes race at Santa Anita Park in southern California.

The La Canada was the first graded stakes win for the five-year-old mare bred in Russell by Cam Ziprick and Arnason Farms, and her 19th win overall from 28 starts, including 17 stakes victories. Purchased for just US$5,000 at the local Manitoba CTHS Yearling Sale in 2015, the US$60,000 winner’s share of the La Canada purse boosted Escape Clause’s official Equibase earnings to US$423,500.

Owned and trained by Don Schnell, Escape Clause was sent off as the heavy favourite in the six-horse field, but surprised even hardcore horseplayers and new jockey Tyler Baze with a bullet move on the turn that shot her to the lead over the wet-fast Santa Anita dirt strip.

Sitting a few lengths off a pressured pace on the outside for the first half-mile of the 1 1/16-mile race, Escape Clause’s quick move carried her to a one-length lead after six furlongs in 1:10.15. She then opened a five-length lead into the stretch after a mile in 1:35.17 and coasted home to win by 5½-lengths over tough New Mexico shipper K P Wildcat, stopping the timer in a 1:41.89 and recording a lifetime-best 91 Beyer Speed Figure.

Schnell had told Baze before the race to be ready for Escape Clause’s powerful acceleration when he asked her, but it still surprised the veteran southern California jockey.

“When I said, ‘GO,’ man… she took off with me,” Baze said. “When she got the lead, she kind of pulled up a little bit and she never really laid down and ran down the lane, so I don’t know how good she is. She cut there around the turn like it was unbelievable, really.

“Down the stretch, she was just galloping. I was hollering, ‘Come on, mama, keep running!’ She’s amazing. I watched all of her replays and it’s just very impressive how easy she did it. And like she was down the lane today, she just kind of got on the lead and there’s a whole lot left so, I just hope I get to ride her back and Don makes me one of her riders, it was fun.”

Escape Clause rattled off eight straight wins, including seven stakes in 2018 at Assiniboia Downs, Canterbury Park, Northlands Park and Century Downs, before venturing to Turf Paradise with Schnell and then shipping in to Del Mar to make it nine wins in row in the US$75,000 Kathryn Crosby Stakes. She then finished third in the US$100,000 Red Carpet Handicap-G3 and the US$150,000 Robert J. Frankel Stakes-G3 on the turf after troubled trips before her big win in the La Canada Stakes.

Schnell, who has been the leading percentage trainer at Assiniboia Downs with over 20 starts for the past three years, improved his personal training record to 897-784-776 from 5,207 starts for purse earnings of US$6,614,275 with the big win. The 66-year-old conditioner from Alberta has developed and trained a number of good horses in the past, including 1990 Alberta Derby winner and US$451,615-earner Majestic Horizon, but he says Escape Clause is the best he’s ever had.

And if she wasn’t already, Escape Clause has to be considered the favourite for the Sovereign Award as Canada’s Champion Older Mare in 2018. The big bay by Going Commando-Danger Pay by Circulating finished in a tie for third in 2018 for most wins in North America with nine, including eight stakes victories, and has now won on dirt and turf at distances from five furlongs to 1 1/8-miles at six different racetracks, including Assiniboia Downs, Century Downs, Canterbury Park, Northlands Park, Del Mar and Santa Anita.

“It hasn’t sunk in yet,” Schnell said from his home base at Turf Paradise in Phoenix.

“She could run again tomorrow. That’s how good she came out of it. She didn’t run yesterday, she just galloped. Tyler (Baze) said he didn’t know how much he had left in the tank, but he said she would win a Grade 1. And we still don’t know what her favourite track or distance is. She opened a lot of people’s eyes.”

She certainly did. Legitimate offers to buy Escape Clause are still coming in. They’re in the US$500,000 range and more now.

Cinderella has arrived.