Manitoba horses continue to impress

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/07/2023 (1139 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba-bred horses continued to show off this week at Assiniboia Downs, which was perfect timing considering the Manitoba CTHS Yearling Sale is only three weeks away on Aug. 20. Before that, we’ve got the 75^th running of the $125,000 Manitoba Derby on Monday, Aug. 7, which could also attract some local horses.

Once again it was trainers Mike Nault and Devon Gittens proving they’re among the cream of the crop when it comes to developing young horses.

Nault saddled Commandoslastdance to win the 34th running of the Debutante Stakes for two-year-old fillies under jockey Chavion Chow on Tuesday night — for the fourth year in a row — an exceptional accomplishment. Gittens stretched out three-year-old filly Russian Pearl to win the 48th running of the R.C. Anderson Stakes on Wednesday night with Damario Bynoe in the saddle.

Bred by Keaton and Aiden Ziprick and owned by the partnership of A2 Thoroughbreds and True North Thoroughbreds, Commandoslastdance was a $17,000 purchase at the local yearling sale. The last foal by top Manitoba sire Going Commando, Commandoslastdance earned $30,600 for her Debutante win and is now basically a “free” horse with a bright future ahead of her.

Russian Pearl has turned out to be an even better bargain than “free” — if that’s possible. Bred by Larry Falloon and Denis Huberdeau, and owned by Falloon and Ron Wiley, the the-year-old Nonios filly was purchased for $1,000 out of the local sale and has now earned more than $75,000.

Interestingly, the backstretch gossip factory was in full swing before Russian Pearl won the R. C. Anderson. Apparently, someone said Gittens couldn’t get a horse ready to run a route of ground. Are you kidding me? Gittens has no proving to do in this area, having been part of the developmental team for routers that included champions Balooga Bull, Magic D’ Oro and Escape Clause, the best racehorse ever to be bred in Manitoba.

On a related note, Nault also exercised Escape Clause right up until she ran in the $750,000 Apple Blossom Handicap at Oaklawn Park in 2019, when she finished second beaten by less than an inch by the top mare in the world at the time, Midnight Bisou. It was the best race ever run by a Manitoba-bred, and that was going a mile and sixteenth.

Russian Pearl ran like Gittens knew what he was doing too. She rebroke at the sixteenth pole in the one-mile Anderson and ran away from her rivals like they were in different race. The margin of victory was six lengths at the wire, but it could have been more. Was she ready to go a route of ground? Uhm…

Another Manitoba-bred who impressed everyone this week was three-year-old Private Frank, yet another horse that was only bid up to $1,000 in the local sale. Trained by Tom Gardipy, Jr. and owned and bred Jerry Lambert and Lynn Mathews, the big chestnut gelding by Going Commando stretched out beyond six furlongs for the first time in his life on Wednesday and romped home over older horses after rating nicely to the final turn for jockey Ronald Ali.

Private Frank galloped out strongly after the 7 1/2 furlong race, enticing Gardipy to nominate him for the Manitoba Derby, joining 19 other nominees, but he’s not likely to run in that race. Rich and developmental restricted stakes are more likely in the future for this talented runner, who has now won four in row.

Buying horses for a thousand dollars and winning stakes races with them in Manitoba seems to be happening more than it should these days. Local breeders have stepped up their game with nicely pedigreed broodmares, but bargains are still slipping through the cracks. Of course there’s a lot more to winning these big races than just pedigree.

First you need the right kind of trainer, who knows how to prepare the horses, you need good owners who allow the trainer to develop the horses slowly but surely, and finally, you need excellent grooms, to get the horses mentally and physically through the trials and tribulations of racing.

Private Frank, or “Big Red” as he is affectionately known in Gardipy’s barn, is groomed and exercised by Douglas Badaloo. Russian Pearl is cared for by Marcia Timms-Fletcher in Gittens’ barn. And Commandoslastdance is groomed by 19-year-old Olive Johnston, who found out about the job from her sister and workmate Charlotte, who completes a trifecta of top grooms at the Nault barn along with Brittany Bergen.

This triple threat was cheering so loud for one of their horses a few weeks ago you could hear them from the backstretch to the grandstand.

“We love what we do,” said Brittany. “And we’ve got a great crew.”

“All the work that goes into it during the winter at the farm until now,” said Charlotte. “And then they come through for you and turn into a real racehorse.”

Olive is only in her second year as a groom, but she’s already hooked. “I came and I fell in love with the horses. And there’s no better feeling than knowing they love you back.”

The horse they were cheering for won.