Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Stride Online

http://issuu.com/stridemagonline/docs/stride7 inside is article about the Mig and photo of him after Withers win on Mr Fantasy

Monday, August 30, 2010

Empire State College Day at the Races- Saratoga


Wayne and I had the pleasure of being invited to take part in the trophy presentation. Thank you to President Alan Davis. And a shout-out to Maureen and Evelyn-you know who you are.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Phosphorescent Update

Phosphorescent is still coughing a little bit and has not returned to the track. His bloodwork and temperature are normal. The vet thinks hes has a touch of pneumonia. They continue to treat him. At this point, there is no chance that we make the Turf Monster. We are hopeful that the vet can knock this infection out within the next few days and we can get this horse back to the track. Before we come up with an alternate race plan, we want to see how long it to takes him to get over this and get back into full training.

Workout

Mr Fantasy worked out at Saratoga this morning going 5F in 1:01:97 10 of 16

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Workout

Sew Your Notes worked out at Finger Lakes this morning going 5F (Gate) in 1:03:20 12 of 23

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Thurs Phos Update

Phosphorescent's fever was elevated at 102.5 again last night. Lupe said it was not much, but it's a sign we're still fighting off an infection. Phosphorescent's blood work this morning looked normal, but he is still on antibiotics. Lupe said that it does not look good for us to make the Turf Monster. Lupe does not think it would be a fitness issue as Phosphorescent is still fit, but he thinks we'll be hard pressed to have him "right" in time to really be prepared for the race. Lupe said there is still a slight chance if he can be 100 percent comfortable and have Phosphorescent in full training by Tuesday, but right now he's considering the race a longshot at best.
Lupe said it best as to how we all feel when he said this morning, "I'm sick to my stomach. The race is on his home course, and we'd be one of the favorites. I don't want to end up getting him sicker or not have him ready to run his best. If he's doing great I won't be afraid to change my mind, but right now it's unlikely."
As for where we'll run if we don't make the Turf Monster, Lupe has nominated Phosphorescent to several races, but we'll sit down with him sometime late next week if we are out and look to map out the best path.

Weds Update

Mr. Fantasy came out of his last work in very good shape. He is set to have his final breeze before his next race on either Sunday or Monday. We are all set for the "two other than" allowance going 6 furlongs on September 4th at Saratoga. It looks like Alan Garcia will have the mount.

Brave Monarch developed a quarter crack earlier in the week. A quarter crack is a vertical split in the hoof wall that does cause irritation if not treated. They have been treating the foot, and Mike is going to have the foot specialist come out and patch up the crack later in the week.
The quarter crack developed in the left front leg, the same leg as the splint. The two minor injuries are not related. There was some swelling in the leg, so Mike held off on having the vet freeze fire the splint. Once they get the foot taken care off, they will treat the splint. Mike did not want to bombard his body with too many treatments at once.
Accordingly, we will miss about another 7 days of training with this horse. That would put him back in training in about 10-14 days

The Defense Rests was x-rayed by the vet at Stonewall Farm and they were pleased with the healing in his knee. He had one tendon that was slightly inflamed, so they went ahead and x-rayed it. There was no structural damage, and the swelling has gone down. They think he may have just banged himself.
He will be shipping south this week to Kip Elser's Kirkwood Farm in Camden, South Carolina instead of David McKathan's farm. He will resume light training upon arrival to the farm. Terry has known Kip for over 15 years, and he is an excellent horseman who runs a top class facility. We are excited to team with Elser and have him work with our horses before they return to their respective trainers.
Once The Defense Rests arrives to the farm, he will resume light training. We will hold a conference call with Kip in about thirty days and have him discuss his progress. The plan is for him to rejoin Mike's string when he ships down to Florida in early December
Phosphorescent's fever remains down and his coughing is down. He walked today. The vet is going to draw blood tomorrow morning just to make sure all of his parameters are normal before he goes back into training. If his bloodwork is normal, and he is not coughing in the morning, he will likely go out and jog. We will have a better idea within the next few days if the Turf Monster remains a realistic target. Lupe thinks this horse is plenty fit for the race, but does not want to run him if we miss much more training. We will send out an update tomorrow on his status.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Phosphorescent Update

Phosphorescent's fever has gone back to normal. Lupe said that he is still coughing a bit, but that he is better. Lupe does not want to train him until the cough completely subsides. Phosphorescent will walk tomorrow and we will go from there. This is good news however. We are hopeful that we knocked this bug out, and will be back to regular training within a few days.

Phos spikes a Fever

Phosphorescent spiked a 104 fever. The vet came out, and Phosphorescent's white blood cell count was very elevated. Phosphorescent has a respiratory infection. They have started him on a aggressive run of antibiotics, but we're going to have to be careful until that fever breaks. It was down to 103 this afternoon. Lupe said we'll likely miss training tomorrow for sure, and it's going to be day by day as we see how he does.

The Turf Monster remains on the board, but if we miss several days the race will be in jeopardy. We all want to make the race, but we're going to make sure we do right by Phosphorescent.

Friday, August 20, 2010

Workout UPDATED

Mr Fantasy worked out at Saratoga going 5F in 1:02:16 7 of 26

Mr. Fantasy worked a very nice five furlongs in 1.02:16 over the main track at Saratoga. The work was 7th of 26 at the distance. Mike had him go easy by design. He wanted nothing more than a leg stretching breeze, and he got just that. The exercise rider said he had plenty of horse the entire way around the track. Mr. Fantasy will have one more breeze next week in preparation for the "two other than" going 6 furlongs on September 4th at Saratoga. We hope to use this race a springboard for stakes races this fall with Mr. Fantasy. Click here to see a video of this morning's work.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Workout UPDATED

Phos worked out at Penn National going 4F in 49:40 8 of 15

Phosphorescent worked four furlongs in 49:40 at Penn National yesterday over the main track. The work was 8th of 15 at the distance. Victor Molina came from Philadelphia Park to breeze him. Phosphorescent went very well according to Lupe. He has shown absolutely no signs of abdominal discomfort since returning back to Lupe's barn. He shipped back to Philadelphia Park this morning, and settled in well. We are all systems go for the $250,000 Turf Monster Handicap on Labor Day, September 6th at Philadelphia Park. Victor Molina will have the call. Click here to see the nominations for the race.

Updates

Phosphorescent had another good week. Lupe plans to breeze him a half-mile tomorrow at Penn National before shipping back to Philadelphia on Friday. We are on target for the $250,000 Turf Monster on September 6th at Philadelphia.


Mr. Fantasy is set to work back on Friday morning at Saratoga. Mike reports that he has had a very solid week of training. He had a strong gallop this morning followed by an uneventful schooling session at the gate.Mike has circled the “two other than” allowance going 6 furlongs on September 4th at Saratoga as our race target (we are still eligible for the race by virtue of the fact that we won restricted races that did not count against this condition). He is not comfortable entering the Charles Dowd Stakes going 7 furlongs first time back to the races since May. He also thinks the race will attract a salty group of horses. We should be very tough in the allowance race. He has run well since he returned off the layoff, but we need to see him win and finish his races with the same kind of authority we saw in the spring of his three-year-old season before we start devising grand plans. Mike did say that if we win this next race, we will have a lot of options moving into Mr. Fantasy’s fall campaign.Click here to see a video of Mr. Fantasy galloping and gate schooling this morning.

The Defense Rests is scheduled to be re-xrayed this week. We will be back in touch later in the week with a report from the vet.

Brave Monarch did not work this week because he has a splint on his left front leg that flared up. A splint is a hard, bony swelling on the inside of the front leg.
A horse's leg contains a cannon bone which is flanked by two small bones on either side. These bones are often referred to as splint bones and they are actually attached to the cannon bone by a ligament. When properly aligned, they serve as a support to the cannon bone, yet if by injury or strain the ligament is damaged, obvious swelling and inflammation are the case. Quite often referred to as a true splint, this condition will cause a horse to experience mild lameness, heat at the affected area, as well as tender swelling. They are quite common in racehorses. This is not a serious issue. Brave Monarch only exhibited mild lameness because of the splint.
He has had the splint for a while, but it was "cold." Many horses have splints that do not bother them. He must have banged himself which caused the splint to become "hot" and sore. Accordingly he will be iced extensively for the next three days to help with the swelling. After three days, the vet will freeze fire the area. Freeze firing the splint will help improve circulation in the area thus helping the bone to heal.
He will be out training for 7 days after the freeze firing. In total he is going to be out of training for 10 days. We will get him back into regular training and look to run in late September or early October at Belmont.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Workout

Sew your Notes worked out at Finger Lakes going 5F from the Gate 1:03:20 5 of 11

Thursday, August 12, 2010

Updates

Phosphorescent is doing well after his colic scare last week. He resumed normal training and is galloping daily. Lupe said you would not really know we missed any time. The timing was fortunate as it came right after a race and we were not pushing on him hard anyway. Phosphorescent will be at Penn National for another couple weeks as the track work at Philly finishes. We are on target for the $250,000 Turf Monster Stakes on September 6th at Philadelphia Park. If we run well in the Turf Monster, we will be hard pressed to not think this horse is a legitimate contender for the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (gr. II) on November 6th at Churchill.

Mr. Fantasy worked an easy four furlongs in 50:97 this morning at Saratoga over the main track. He was originally scheduled to work yesterday, but the track was wet so Mike postponed the work until today. Mike called this a "nice, easy maintenance work." Mr. Fantasy has had a very good week of training and will likely breeze five furlongs next week. Mike is considering two race options. The Charles Dowd Stakes is an overnight NY Bred race going 7 furlongs on August 27th. However, Mike does not love the 7 furlong distance considering this will be Mr. Fantasy's first race back since May. The other race option is the open "two other than" allowance going 6 furlongs on September 4th at Saratoga. Mike is going to see how Mr. Fantasy trains in the coming weeks before nailing down a race target, but those two races are on the radar.

Brave Monarch worked an easy three furlongs in 38 on Friday at Saratoga. He went in company with another colt that Mike is quite high on, and our colt outworked him. He is really moving forward nicely. He galloped out of the gate today and was a true professional. He is scheduled to work back on Friday, and remains on target to debut at Saratoga, which ends September 6th. Mike has not picked out a race target as of yet, but will do so once this colt gets a few more works under his belt. We will have spotlight video of him posted tomorrow.

The Defense Rests will begin turnout in about a week.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Workout

Mr Fantasy workied out this morning at Saratoga going 4F in 50:97 12of 13

Monday, August 9, 2010

Latest Phos News

Phosphorescent is doing well. Lupe shipped his horses to Penn National since Philadelphia Park is closed for training for track resurfacing. Lupe expects to be at Penn National for at least two weeks before shipping back to Philly.
Phosphorescent is set to go back to the track and jog tomorrow. If everything looks good, he will resume normal training within a few days.
We are still pointing for the $250,000 Turf Monster Handicap going 5 furlongs on the turf on September 6th at Philadelphia Park.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Workout

Sow Your Notes worked out this morning at Finger Lakes going 5F in 1:04:60 8 of 11

Thursday, August 5, 2010

University of Liverpool

http://www.liv.ac.uk/equine/

Tina and I were lucky to have a tour of the hospital and talk with the staff about the great work they do with horses with colic in light of the recent case with Phos

UPDATES

The Defense Rests is being handwalked twice a day for 40 minutes. They want to give him one extra week of walking before starting turnout, so he is now on schedule to be turned out in a small paddock in about two weeks time.

Maria's Mon colt breezed an easy three furlongs in company with two other horses in 39:00 on Saturday at Saratoga. This was a very professional work for this horse, and he is getting fitter and fitter. He has a good attitude, and trains with a lot of enthusiasm. He remains on a regular work schedule and is set to breeze back within the next couple days. He will also have some gate schooling sessions this week. He has officially been named Brave Monarch.

Mr. Fantasy worked four furlongs in 47:88 yesterday morning at Saratoga over the main track. Mike was pleased with the work but wishes the rider slowed Mr. Fantasy down a bit. He would have preferred an easier work in 49 or 50. Nonetheless, Mr. Fantasy finished with good energy. He was blowing pretty hard after the work. Mike wants to get a few more half mile breezes into him before going 5 furlongs, especially since he was a bit tired after this work. We understand it is frustrating, but Mike is not willing to commit to a race date off of one half mile breeze. He needs to see this horse string together several works before firming down a race target. Click here to see a video of the work.

Phosphorescent

Race Date 7/31
Condition PA Governor`s Cup
Finish Position 2
Earnings $37,600


Breaking last in a five furlong race is never good. Doing so against a field of stakes runners is usually deadly. Sometimes though, adversity yields character. Such was the case on Saturday as Phosphorescent returned to stakes company for the first time since his two-year-old season and nearly toppled one of the top turf sprinters in the country, Chamberlain Bridge.
Phosphorescent was ninth after a quarter-mile and lacked room down inside. He swung out entering the turn and was more than six wide. He launched a ferocious rally in the stretch and closed stoutly on the winner, but he just ran out of ground falling a half-length short.
Quotes
Lupe Preciado said, "We were the only horse running at the end. They don't hold the horse's head out here, and we broke slow. I thought we would be a lot closer. Victor didn't want to get stopped, so he swings wide. We gave ground to the winner and get beat a half-length. I think he was the best in the race.
Victor Molina said, "He broke a little flat. I didn't want to be that far back, but I didn't want to hustle him. I took him outside and tried to make one run. When I asked him he came running. I was on the best horse."
Where We Go From Here
Phosphorescent earned a career best 96 Beyer in the race. He came out of the race well, and we will point for the $250,000 Turf Monster on Labor Day at Philadelphia Park ( see Health Scare )

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Ultimate Hotel for Race Fans in Dubai

www.jumeirah.com/en/Hotels-and-Resorts/Destinations/Dubai/Jumeirah-Meydan/

Health Scare

Lupe just notified us that Phosphorescent began showing significant abdominal discomfort. The vet is out there now treating him, but thinks we are best served to send him to the University of Pennsylvania New Bolton Center. It is too early to tell if any surgery will be necessary. We will provide you with any information we receive in the coming hours.

UPDATE

Lupe just left the New Bolton clinic where he has been with Phosphorescent since this evening. The horse is currently resting comfortably in a stall and is under observation. No procedure was necessary, and recent blood work came back normal.
To provide some details. Phosphorescent had a routine day. He ate up at lunch time and passed a regular bowel movement earlier today. When it was feed time this afternoon, Phosphorescent was showing visible signs of discomfort. Lupe called Dr. Dan Hanf, and he came out and administered a treatment of banamine to make Phosphorescent more comfortable.
I don't know the exact terms, but Dr. Hanf palpated him rectally and could feel that something was twisted inside. This is not good and can lead to serious complications. Phosphorescent continued to show signs of distress and was not relaxing. Lupe rode with him in the van to the clinic, and the horse continued to be in distress. When he arrived at the clinic he had to be given a short term tranquilizer because he was so worked up. He had a fever. However, when they rectally palpated him again, the area that had "switched sides" in Dr. Hanf's evaluation had returned to place. The vet said that can happen. When they scoped him there was no reflux which is good.
Phosphorescent was a little loopy because of the tranquilizers, but as they wore off he was not exhibiting signs of distress. His temperature was normal again, and he was not agitated. They took him to a stall and he was happy. Since they could not find the twisted area in his intestines upon arrival they did want to keep him overnight for observation.
However, the clinic told Lupe that they felt comfortable enough to say that all they would be doing now is just monitoring him. They did not feel any other action was necessary.
If everything continues like this, then Phosphorescent should be able to return to the barn when cleared. Obviously we're delighted this looks like it might end up being a lot of activity for nothing, but you always want to take whatever precautions possible.

FURTHER UPDATE
Phosphorescent is doing much better. The only abnormality the vets found in his bloodwork was that his creatine levels were off, which is detrimental to the urinary tract. When they tested him later, his levels were back to normal. The vets think we dodged a bullet here and that this horse is going to be just fine. He has not shown further signs of colic.
They are not feeding him yet as they want to give his digestive tract some time to settle down after the twisting. They will probably feed him tomorrow morning, and if there are no problems he will be released and will return to Philadelphia Park.

LATEST UPDATE
We have good news. Phosphorescent was cleared for release from the New Bolton Center. His blood parameters are normal and he is eating and drinking normally. He has shown no signs of diarrhea and is completely comfortable. He will ship back to Philadelphia Park today. Lupe will give him a few days to get back to his normal self before sending him back to the track.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Workout

Mr Fantasy worked out this morning at Saratoga this morning going 4F in 47:88 2 of 16

Monday, August 2, 2010

We All Have These Days



If you use Speed figures you could lose your mind Beyer V Equibase

Taking Phos`s last 2 Races

Philly Park Beyer 86 Equibase 114

Penn National Beyer 96 Equibase 97

so how to read into the figures ????????

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Beyer Figure

Phos earned a great 96 beyer for his brave effort last night

Penn National

Photos from last nights exciting PA Governors Cup which ended with Phos falling just 1/2 length short of beating the heavy favorite . Phos had a troubled trip having to come around horses at the turn to eat up the turf coming up the stretch with a cleaner run i feel he would have won . He stepped up big now we can move onto the Turf Monster at Philly Park feeling good and maybe a big race in November .




Updates ( Belated)

The updates are from earlier in the week except Phos but its been a busy weekend travelled to the Spa Thursday to be at the races Friday with Empire State Collage

Saturday up early over the backstretch saw Mr Fantasy ( looks well ) and the Maria`s Mon colt workout then long drive to Penn National to watch Phos

The Defense Rests- There is no news to report this week

Maria's Mon colt worked three furlongs in 38:00 Monday morning at Saratoga. The work was not picked up by the clockers. He went with two other horses. They were a bit green early on, but then got to business. Mike called this another nice step forward. He will have one more three furlong breeze before graduating onto half mile breezes. We will have video of him later this week.

Mr. Fantasy worked an easy three furlongs in 37:73 this morning at Saratoga over the main track. Both Mike and Mr. Fantasy's exercise rider were happy with how he moved. He was supposed to work yesterday morning, but he got a little bit cut up from rolling around in his stall, so Mike pushed the work back a day. Mike plans to work him a half mile next week. We will have a better idea of our timetable after the next work.

Phosphorescent looks to glow for the third time in a row when he makes his turf stakes debut in tonight's PA Governor's Cup Handicap at Penn National. The race drew a salty group of horses, but we definitely fit in here. Phosphorescent has been training very well, and Lupe could not be happier going into the race.
There is a lot of speed in here on paper, and as you know Phosphorescent has won his last two on the lead. However, when he won at the Fair Grounds this winter, he showed the ability to rate behind the leaders. With the amount of speed in here, that is likely where we will find ourselves early. Lupe will instruct Victor to get out there and see how the race unfolds. We will most likely be close to the pace, but I'd like to see him 1-2 lengths off the dueling pacesetters early. The way I envision the race is at the top of the stretch, we sneak through the rail and run by them all!
A look at the field...
1. Perfect Officer may be in a perfect spot to pounce if there is a torrid pace up front. He has not won since August of last year, and has no recent workouts coming into the race. George Weaver would not ship here if he did not think he had a shot, but there are others in here that are more appealing. The inside post is tough too.
3. Sneaking Uponyou showed speed in his last race and likely will show speed tonight. He has won a five furlong turf stake before. He is coming off of two solid second place finishes at Presque Isle. Will I be surprised if he wins? Yes. I do think he could hit the board though.
4. Blue Sailor is a hard trying horse who has hit the board in 24 of 37 career starts. He won a turf sprint stake three back, and followed that with two decent efforts. He is one that will try to go gate to wire. He has a shot, but I wouldn't bet him. Others appeal to me more.
5. Chamberlain Bridge is one of my favorite turf sprinters. I will admit that I follow him closely because I think he's a cool horse. He is coming off a win in a turf sprint at Arlington and looks to be the class of the field. He's a Grade 3 winner. The race may set up perfectly for him, as he will be a few lengths off the pace early.
6. Hold The Salt appears to be a little bit overmatched. He ran in an overnight stake two back, and was 6th, beaten six lengths. His recent numbers are a bit light, and even though he comes in off of a win, I think he is outclassed. That race was also 12 days ago. That's a big task for an eight-year-old.
7. Cardashi is a hard knocking horse who has hit the board in 29 of 50 races. He won this race last year, and is 3 for 3 over the Penn National turf course. His Beyers are a bit light compared to others in here, but how could you not bet last year's winner? He loves this turf course, and has been running decent races leading up to tonight.
8. Tahoe Warrior ships in for hot trainer Rudy Rodriguez. He won a nice turf sprint at Calder last time out, but prior to that he was running in 20k claimers. He is an intriguing horse. I am not convinced that he didn't get lucky in that last race. He should be close to the pace.
9. Heros Reward was second by a neck in a Grade 2 at Woodbine last time out. I am really high on Woodbine shippers. They have been doing very well at Saratoga, especially on the turf. He has earned over $1 million dollars. This horse and Chamberlain Bridge are my picks in here.
10. Natural Seven is coming off a second place finish in a stake at Suffolk. He's won some stakes on the turf in the past, but nothing in his recent form overly excites me. His numbers are light, and I think he's overmatched.
11. Sacred Journey exits the same race at Arlington as Chamberlain Bridge and Bullet From Abroad. He was fourth that day. He could improve third off the layoff and comes into the race with three bullet works to his name. He should show speed, but with the amount of speed in here I think the outside post will hurt him.
12. Bullet From Abroad exits a turf sprint at Arlingtron won by Chamberlain Bridge. He has been working well at Arlington, and I doubt his trainer would ship here if he didn't think he had a shot. However, the outside post makes him way less appealing. There is nothing about him that makes him really stand out against this bunch

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