Nose the Pose (5) duels to the wire with Regal Silver (3) in the 2014 R.C. Anderson.
by George
It wasn't supposed to be this close.
Nose the Pose was the overwhelming favourite to win the restricted $30,000 R. C. Anderson Memorial for Manitoba-foaled 3-year-old fillies on Saturday night, but Regal Silver forgot to read the tote board and took the choice all the way to the wire in a thrilling stretch duel.
Ridden by regular rider Christopher Husbands, Nose the Pose was stretching out to a mile for the first time in her short career in search of her fourth dominating win in a row. She did get the win for trainer Jim Meyaard and the ownership team of Barry Arnason, Al Daley, Darrell Sundsbak and Cam Ziprick, but she made it a little too close for comfort.
Second choice Smoke Show opened up early in the race in an attempt to avenge two straight losses to Nose the Pose, setting fractions of 23.60 and 49.20 and opening a three-length lead at one point, while Nose the Pose rated just back and outside. After six furlongs in 1:15 Smoke Show was surprisingly all done. She relinquished the lead to Nose the Pose on the turn, just as K-5 Stable's Regal Silver, who had tracked the pacesetter from the inside with Jalon Samuel aboard, made her move to challenge up the rail.
Nose the Pose on the outside, Regal Silver on the inside, the pair turned for home heads apart and commenced a stretch-long duel. Regal Silver had a short lead for much of the battle, and although she finally lost the lead late, she was coming back again at the wire. The official margin of victory for Nose the Pose was a neck. It was closer than that, much closer.
The final time for the mile over the fast track was 1:42.60. It was 2 1/4-lengths back to third place finisher Runaway Delite. The winner paid $3.40.
Trainer Shelley Brown had to be satisfied with second and third. Smoke Show faded to finish sixth. Also of note, Renaldo Cumberbatch aboard Katie Shimmers, lodged a claim of foul against Jerry Pruitt aboard Queen of Magic, for interference into the final turn. There was no change, but Katie Shimmers is a one-run rallier who was probably bothered slightly by Queen of Magic going by her and coming over.
The winner, a chestnut filly by Going Commando-She is Impressive by Regal Classic, was bred in Manitoba by Cam Ziprick and Charles Fouillard. Her victory in the R.C. Anderson kept her perfect record for the year intact at 4-for-4, including a victory in the Hazel Wright Memorial Stakes in her previous start. Nose the Pose is now 4-for-5 lifetime, with earnings of $49,440.
"She's still learning," said trainer Jim Meyaard, who also added that Nose the Pose was getting better with every start, but that she would have to in order make the next jump up in class into open company.
"I'd like to thank the connections for the opportunity to train this filly," said Meyaard. "She's just a nice filly. The whole herd they've got over there is nice."
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On Friday night Sir J Windsor gave Tanya Lindsay yet another winner off a long layoff when he won the second race under Chris Husbands and paid $11.90, a great price considering Lindsay had already won with two horses coming off a 2-year layoff.
The Pick-4 on Friday night was both entertaining and lucrative. In the first leg jockey Jerry Pruitt got himself into all kinds of trouble aboard Straight Right, a new shooter from Woodbine, yet still rallied as much the best and paid an overlay $13.90.
In the fifth race Tokyo Drifter wired her field for trainer Irene Britton and paid $17.70 despite the fact that she was a legitimate inside speed threat. And the $2 Superfecta paid a whopping $2,389.90 even though favourite Purged N Proper finished fourth in the 6-horse field.
In the sixth race we were treated to one of the best stretch duels of the meeting with four horses battling into the lane, all wanting to win. At the wire it was favourite Little Brown Guy with Paul Nolan up to win by a head over Rude Bobby. The latter did all the pace work in the race and fought gamely through the stretch under Tyrone Nelson, succumbing only very late after turning back other pace rivals. He deserved to win. The winner paid $6.40.
In the final leg of the Pick-4, the seventh race, Got a Stash and jockey Alexis Batista gave owner-trainer James Compton his third win in as many starts over the past week. Yet another winner who was somehow overlooked in the wagering on Friday night, Got a Stash returned $13.90 to win and topped some excellent exotic payoffs when 8-1 Remarkably Free rallied under Omar Walker to best favourite Unbridled Thoughts for second.
The $2 Exactor paid $228.00 and the $2 Triactor paid $1,313.90. Second choice Workinonnitemoves finished fourth, yet the $2 Superfecta still paid $1,752.10. The $2 Pick-4 paid a $2,899.90. Even better was the $2 Pick-3, which paid $1,161.30.
Someone had a very good night.
Next Post Time for Live Racing: 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 16, 2014
