Howard Hamilton - HORSE SENSE RACING ONCE again rose to the heights of excitement when the two leading sprinters met on Saturday, July 24 at Caymanas Track. They had been scheduled to meet on May 15th but A KING IS BORN had a major setback due to the perennial problems of stones on the Track and Bridle Path.
The connections of LIL' COUNTRY BOY were loudly proclaiming that "The King" was afraid to face "the fastest gun in town" and was avoiding the showdown. "The Boy" has been dominating the sprint races and up to Saturday, July 24 had won four races on the trot over distances varying from 6-1/2 furlongs (1300 meters) to 5-1/2 furlongs (1100 meters) and had carried weights varying from 53 kilos to 58 kilos.
Well the long awaited clash of these two class horses finally materialised on Saturday, July 24th.
Racing scribes had a field day describing the race as the "Clash of Titans". Quoting from the Track and Pools, Orville Clarke had this to say: "Both horses come face to face in the $775,000 Graded Stakes for the She's On Wheels Trophy over 1100 meters and although five runners have been declared, it should come down to a spectacular match race between the super stars of the local turf".
EXERCISE GALLOPS
The American bred four-year-old colt, LIL' COUNTRY BOY, was ridden, as usual by champion Jockey, Trevor Simpson and was asked to carry 59 kilos. He came into this race with excellent exercise gallops and had looked awesome in winning his last four races in post-to-post fashion. In winning the Lotto Sprint over 1100 meters on the 15th May, Lil' Country Boy had splits of 22.2, 45.1 and finished in 1:05.0 - one of the fastest times recorded over this distance since the track was resurfaced.
A KING IS BORN had only run twice for the year. His last race over 1000 meters up the straight was won in awesome style with a time of 56.4. On that occasion he carried 57.0 kilos and was now asked to sit 5 kilos below "The Boy" going over "the Boy's" favourite distance.
The excitement and build-up was worth going miles to see. This is the sort of race that real Promoters wish they could have every week. Not those that we currently have who are obsessed with the turnover at the tote not the quality and quantity of people who come to be entertained.
People who would like to be able to have a good meal in comfortable surroundings, who would also like to browse through retail outlets buying shirts, racing books, and other racing memorabilia. Anyhow, notwithstanding all that, we had a bumper crowd attracted by the "Clash of Titans." And what a race it turned out to be A King Is Born broke winging in front and set a blistering pace from start to finish, clocking splits of 22.1, 44.4, and 1:04.2 - the fastest time ever recorded over this distance since the track was resurfaced in 1998.
'HORSE OF THE YEAR'
LIL' COUNTRY BOY tried desperately to match strides but never got closer than half a length and in the end faded into fourth place some 10 lengths behind last year's 'Horse of the Year'. The connections of "The Boy" are clamouring for a re-match. Certainly there will be other opportunities THE DIGICEL TROPHY race over 6-1/2 Furlongs at the end of August should provide another spectacle, but to my way of thinking the outcome will be the same and the distance between the two horses at the finish may be even greater this time!!
Well in the final analysis, the little country boy came to town and found that life in the fast lane is very much different to what he was accustomed to. In town "The King" rules and he must treat him with respect and courtesy.
NEWSLETTER
P.S. The Ontario Racing Commission does much which should be emulated by our Racing Commission. They publish a regular quarterly newsletter - Integrity Matters which seeks to provide information on regulatory matters in the general public. The latest publication had some interesting news items especially the initiatives for the 2004/2005 year. These will be discussed more fully in next week's article but it is interesting to see that the focus of the commission is on communication initiatives, stakeholder consultation and improved industry standards on that we could have such a focus in Jamaica.
P.P.S. Divestment continues to be the topic of discussion among concerned horsemen. Many still feel that racing is best served by a "new beginning" with a new plant that can incorporate all the entertainment amenities that can enhance the tourism product and move racing to the 21st century and beyond.
A word of caution one must be careful about "name dropping". Offering advice as a consultant is far removed from investing in and/or being part of an investment. The Government also has to be careful about putting too much of our Gaming industry in the hands of one group.
Howard L. Hamilton is a former Chairman of Caymanas Track Limited and is the current President of Thoroughbred Owners & Breeders Association. He can be contacted at howham@cwjamaica.com.
