2 2011 All American Futurity • Ruidoso Free Press August 30, 2011 The All American Futurity The race everyone dreams of winning f you’ve been involved in Quarter Horse racing in any way, there’s I really only one race that matters. Since its beginnings as a bar bet among breeders and trainers in Santa Fe – with all the money going into a guitar for safekeeping, the All American Futu- rity has grown to be the premiere event in the world of Quarter Horse racing. This year’s purse – a cool $2.4 million – eclipses even the Kentucky Derby. It also has drama and excitement, and anyone who’s been to Ruidoso Downs just to watch the race can tell you of the electric atmosphere as these 10 horses thunder down the track before thousands of screaming fans. In these pages you’ll meet each equine athlete vying for a victory on Labor Day, Todd Fuqua/Ruidoso Free Press and hopefully get a better appreciation of Mr Piloto, winner of last year’s All American Futurity, is led to the winner’s circle after the the world’s richest Quarter Horse race. race. Jockey Esgar Ramirez will be aboard Big Daddy Cartel in this year’s race. August 30, 2011 2011 All American Futurity • Ruidoso Free Press 3 What is a futurity? By Sandi Aguilar A futurity is a little like a poker game – an extremely high-stakes poker game. When an owner has a young horse (yearling) and feels he has a great racing po- tential, he nominates the horse…he antes up. In a couple months, if the horse is proving to be an athlete, he antes up again. The owner periodically antes for the next two years. At any time, the owner can withdraw or ‘fold.’ A futurity is the premier race for these rookie two-year-old horses. A derby is for three-year-old horses continuing to learn their skill. These races can prove even more exciting and unpredictable in Quarter Horse racing with extremely close fi n- ishes. In the 2010 All American Futurity, the top three horses were only separated by inches. Ruidoso Downs Race Track held trials for horses nominated for the All Ameri- can Futurity Aug. 18. Ten of the fastest horses won their spot from the 253 that remained in the nominations. The All American Futurity is the fi nal ‘table’ in that poker game. The All American Futurity, held at the Ruidoso Downs Racetrack on Labor Day, is richest two-year-old Quarter Horse race in the world with a purse totaling $2.4 million. It has an even higher purse than the Kentucky Derby’s purse of $2 million. In 2013, the All American purse rises to another record breaking level of $2.6 million. Want a seat at the table? 4 2011 All American Futurity • Ruidoso Free Press August 30, 2011 DENVER PASS Owner – Weetona Stanley of Madill, Okla. and William Smith of Claremore, Okla. Numerically, trainer Blane Wood has the best shot in this race, as Denver Breeder – Weetona Stanley and William Smith Pass is one of three horses he led to the finals. Trainer – Blane Wood “I’ve qualified three before for this race, and you want to qualify as many • Son of Corona Cartel and First Carolina as you can,” Wood said. “To get three in there is like a mission accomplished.” • Sixth-fastest qualifier with a time of 21.336 “He’s an awesome and huge animal,” Wood said of Denver Pass. “And • Dam won the Heritage Place Futurity and Remington Park Derby the owners are old hands. They raise good horses and this one has a perfect • Won the Rainbow Juvenile pedigree. He hasn’t run yet to his full potential, and we’re hoping he’ll do that on Labor Day.” The All American final will serve as a rematch between Denver Pass and Jess Cuervo, who won their trial race by 3/4 of a length. JESSTrainer Raymond VargasCUERVO comes by his success honestly, having worked for Owner – You And Me Partners of Lawton, Okla. many years with legendary trainer Jack Brooks, who led a record eight horses to Breeder – You And Me Partners wins in the All American Futurity. He’s excited to lead Jess Cuervo to the gate Trainer – Raymond Vargas this Labor Day. • Son of Corona Cartel and Jessica Ravin “I think we’ve got a heck of a shot,” Vargas said. “When we saw him on the • Fourth-fastest qualifier with a time of 21.218 farm, he was already acting like a runner. He wasn’t performing like I thought he would in his first races, but since he’s been moved to Ruidoso Downs, he’s just • Hails from the family of champion and millionaire Florentine run better and better.” • Was third in this year’s Rainbow Futurity Jess Cuervo was the fastest qualifier to the Rainbow Futurity, but finished third in the final. “We had to hold him back, but we’ve made some adjustments and he runs like a different horse now,” Vargas said. August 30, 2011 2011 All American Futurity • Ruidoso Free Press 5 BILLS LAST Owner – Paul Blanchard of Albuquerque Breeder – Jerry Windham Trainer – Carlos Sedillo • Son of Shazoom and Crystalinas • Ninth-fastest qualifier with a time of 21.365 • Won his maiden in his trial, his third start • Brother to $716,000 earner and three-time Grade 1 winner Azoom • A $47,000 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale graduate Trainer Carlos Sedillo won last year’s Rainbow Futurity with Hes Too Icy For Me, so he’s not a stranger to the winner’s circle at Ruidoso downs. 6 2011 All American Futurity • Ruidoso Free Press August 30, 2011 BIG DADDYOwner – Poker RanchCARTEL of Laredo, Texas Breeder – Sunfl ower Supply Company Trainer – Paul Jones • Son of Corona Cartel and Miss Racy Eyes • Eighth-fastest qualifi er with a time of 21.343 • Winner of three of four starts • Fourth in the $700,000 Rainbow Futurity in July • Dam is a stakes winner of $133,000 Big Daddy Cartel is one of two horses in the All American Futurity trained by Paul Jones, a member of the Ruidoso Downs Racehorse Hall of Fame and three-time winner of the big race. “He’s been pretty strong all year long, and has a lot of heart to him,” Jones said. “The thing about this race, there are 10 horses out of 250 that ran in the trials, so they’re all fairly equal, and anyone can win.” The art of the jockey Fans of Quarter Horse racing can obtain collectible fi ne art through Scott Wells who has fundraisers on Labor Day weekend at Ruidoso Downs Racetrack to benefi t written Teaching injured riders. Narcissus to Swim. “These are the greatest athletes, pound-for-pound,” states Ginny Har- Through the eyes of ding, artist and wife of a jockey. Ginny has seen fi rst-hand with which a half Indian, half these athletes must contend. Jockeys barrel down the race track on a cowboy turned 1,000-pound animal traveling at 50 miles an hour with no protection other jockey, this fi ctional than a simple helmet and vest. When they fall, it can be catastrophic. book based in 1958 “Having been married to a rider much of my life; it has been my pas- exposes the sport, sion to do something for these …. athletes that risk their lives every time the people and the they go out on the track.” Ginny’s contribution, trading cards. horses that are so On Sunday and Monday of Labor Day weekend, many of the athletes passionate about will be on hand to sign these fi ne art-colored pencil portraits with interest- this profession. ing stats and facts about the riders on the reverse side. Jacky Martin, Kenny Wells hosts a Hart and Kip Didericksen are members of the third series of trading cards signing on Sat- created in 2011 by Harding, a noted equine artist. Each series of three urday, Sept. different images will include only 1,000 cards, and will not be reprinted, 3 at Ruidoso making them highly collectible. The second trio in the series is Danny Car- Downs with doza, Ramon Sanchez and Sam Thompson. The fi rst series represent Cody profi ts going Jensen, GR Carter and Jerry Nicodemus. All of the athletes with the excep- to the Per- tion of Thompson and Didericksen will be on hand for signing, who have manently pre-signed their cards. Disabled Jockey’s Also heralding the dangerous actions of jockeys, in artistic form, is Fund. August 30, 2011 2011 All American Futurity • Ruidoso Free Press 7 Before the All American Two races are considered the forerunners of the All American Futurity and both have their roots in Ruidoso. In 1946, a local watering hole called the Central Bar & Grill was having a marketing prob- lem: How could the owners promote the casino lo- cated in the back room of the establishment at a time when casinos weren’t legal in New Mexico? The 207 Eagle Drive, near Four Seasons Mall in Midtown answer was to create a horse race and name it after Ruidoso, New Mexico the bar. The resulting Central Bar & Grill Futurity was an important race until the early 1950s when it disappeared, but left a model for a successful event that continued as the Ruidoso Futurity (a different race than the current one with the same name). That early version of the Ruidoso Futurity received wide- spread attention in 1955 when Go Man Go suffered his fi rst defeat in the race.