SUBSCR ER IPT IN IO A N R S ✫ T COMPLIMENTS OF T O L The aratoga A T I H E EC S SP ARATOGA Year 10 • Issue 20 Saratoga’s Daily Newspaper on Thoroughbred Racing Sunday, August 15, 2010 Tall Tale Telling repeats in Sword Dancer Tod Marks Sunday/Monday Stakes Previews • Entries/Handicapping here&there... at Saratoga 517 Broadway, Suite 207 Saratoga Springs, NY 12866 (Second Floor, around the back) The Special quotes from Saratoga Phone: (518) 490-1175 WORTH REPEATING Sean Mobile: (302) 545-7713 Joe Mobile: (302) 545-4424 “Four guys with binoculars, you need to raise your day rate. If they Weather E-mail: [email protected] have condition books, raise it more.” or [email protected] Kiaran McLaughlin to John Terranova, who stood with four Sovereign Stable Today: Partly cloudy. High 85. Internet: www.saratogaspecial.com members (with binoculars) watching a workout Thursday morning Published Wednesday through Sunday Tonight: Scattered thunderstorms. during the racing season. “Confident, yeah, but it’s still a tough race, sometimes the ones you’re Low 67. Every day of Sales Week Aug. 2-8. supposed to win are the hardest ones to win, as we saw last Saturday.” Tomorrow: Scattered thunder- The Staff Trainer Todd Pletcher, after favorite Interactif won the Hall of Fame Stakes Friday; storms. High 79. Editors/Publishers: Sean Clancy, Joe Clancy. Pletcher lost a big one six days earlier when favorite Quality Road lost the Whitney Staff Writers: Phil Janack, Karen Johnson, Mike Kane, Terese Karmel, Ben Meyers, Katie Tuesday: Partly cloudy. High 81. Bo Williams. Layout/Design: Dan Vunk. “It was very close, I was worried about it. As we all know, they can Photographers: Tod Marks, Dave Harmon, go either way.” Connie Bush. Handicappers: Gaile Fitzgerald, Dean Keppler, Jockey Javier Castellano after winning a photo with Interactif Brian Nadeau, John Panagot, John Shapazian Assistants: Chelsea Brown, Maggie Kimmitt. Distribution: Ryan Clancy, Jack Clancy, Nolan Clancy, Jane Motion. “At my age, all the things I can Advertising Sales: Contact a Clancy or call Kathy Rubin at (203) 650-6815. remember clearly probably never happened.” ST Publishing Inc. Home Office Racing fan John Morrison (not the trainer) 364 Fair Hill Drive, Suite F, Elkton, MD 21921 (410) 392-5867 • Fax (410) 392-0170 “That means I have to go to www.st-publishing.com church Sunday.” [email protected] Photographer Barbara Livingston, The Saratoga Special who caught a crowded work tab Steeplechase Times Thoroughbred Racing Calendar with her camera Saturday morning The Best of The Saratoga Special Saratoga Days and other acclaimed products and services “The only way I know I’m in within the equine industry. there is I can see a person in a Call us about your editorial needs. skirt.” Hall of Fame trainer Janet Elliot, “Editorial excellence is not a goal to be looking for herself in a (small) photo sought and one day acquired and then of the Hall of Fame ceremonies retired to the trophy case. It is instead an ambition which must be pursued each day, never ending, never totally achieved. That striving, that ambition is License Plates an essential part of our newspapers, a cornerstone of what we have been, KEENLND. From New Hampshire. Tod Marks what we are, and what we will be.” – Lee Hills, Pulitzer Prize winner, The Spa. Saturday morning at the Oklahoma training track looked good Knight Ridder chief executive, in 1974 7FURLONG. From New York. enough for a postcard. 2 Sunday, August 15, 2010 Continued from Just Sayin’ here&there... previous page “They’re ideal owners. They basically send the horses to my dad to break, they let us do The Special quotes what we think is best.” WORTH REPEATING from Saratoga Todd Pletcher about Interactif’s owners Alain and Gerard Wertheimer “I want to go on there Sunday, not Saturday.” Trainer Bob Ribaudo when asked to go on The Special’s Sword Dancer preview show on Capital OTB and HRTV HORSE TRANSPORTATION 800-523-8143 www.brookledge.com “From the song Box of Rain, words by Robert Hunter, music by Phil Lesh, sung by Phil Lesh, from the Grateful Dead album, American Beauty. I can help you with this my son. As a veteran of over 500 shows I know the path to enlightenment. I may even let you hold my “Read the article on your 10 years. Many good memories.” sacred T-Shirt.” Bill Person, from his home in Florida Pennsylvania-based owner/breeder Larry Ensor, correcting The Special’s credit of a Grateful Dead quote to Jerry Garcia, a day earlier “She’s jogging her entire barn in front of me.” Owner Todd McKenna, who was at the receiving barn, “You’re only human.” watching Linda Rice analyze her stable Thursday morning Trainer Ralph Nicks to The Special’s Sean Clancy, who apologized for calling Nicks’ wife Tracy, instead of Stacy, in Friday’s paper Name of the Day Networking, seventh race. The Jay Em Ess runner is by Officer out of “You went over way too many jumps.” One Turn Eddie, sixth race. John Zealous Connection. Clocker Brian Walls to Clancy after the former steeplechase jockey Gatti’s runner reminds us of some the picked a horse who didn’t warrant a look from Walls in Saturday’s sixth race hotwalkers we’ve known in the past Because I Like It, ninth race. Ad- – Two Hour Lou and Everyotherday irondack starter is owned and bred by Ray, come to mind. Sabine Stable. Simply because we like it. SEVEN 2-year-old winners in 2010 • Third Chance at Arlington Park for Ron Magers and James Divito • Sunday Splitsville at Saratoga for Mike Repole and Todd Pletcher • Another Silver Oak, 3rd in the Sanford at Saratoga for Mike Repole and Todd Pletcher. • Loving Dove at Monmouth Park for Red Oak Farm and Gregory Sacco. • Gambline Geraldine at Belmont Park for Mike Repole and Todd Pletcher. • K.R.’s Jazz at Monmouth Park for A Woman’s Thing and Mary Hartman. • Saratoga Louie at Monmouth Park for Gary Barber and Peter Miller Our graduates include: Vineyard Haven (Gr. l) • Zensational (Gr. l) Contact Jim Crupi Bustin Stones (Gr. l) • Awesome Gem (Gr. l) Toll Free: (866) 313-5400 Macho Again (Gr. l) • Ten Most Wanted (Gr. l) Cell: (352) 427-1600 Stately Character (Gr. I) • Toccet (Gr. l) Bella Bellucci (Gr. l) • Acey Deucey (Gr. l) www.newcastlefarm.com Moon Catcher (Gr. l) • Weekend Magic (Gr. 1) Sunday, August 15, 2010 3 SWORD DANCER STAKES RECAP Still Talking Telling does it again in Grade I turf stakes BY SEAN CLANCY Dave Harmon Telling (right) gets clear of Bearpath and Al Khali late to repeat in the Sword Dancer. Steve Hobby pulled off his tie halfway between the winner’s circle and the Trustees’ Room Saturday. His haven’t won a race. But now it’s all forgotten,” Hobby Desormeaux allowed Al Khali to range up on the work was finished. said. “I gallop him myself, my wife’s his groom and I outside of Interpatation. Expansion tracked that pair Based at Delaware Park, the trainer had just suc- actually thought he was a better horse this year than and Telling held the best seat in the house. The nine- cessfully invaded Saratoga with Alex and JoAnn Lieb- he was last year. He’s a racehorse, on gameday, he horse field had split into a 4-1-4 formation with Tell- long’s Telling. Again. The 6-year-old son of A.P. Indy shows up even if he’s not perfect.” ing playing the key role, well off the leading group of won his second consecutive Sword Dancer Invitation- He might not be perfect in the morning, but he was Marlang, Interpatation, Al Khali and Expansion and al, this time running down Al Khali and staving off perfect on Saturday afternoon in Saratoga. more importantly well in front of the second group of Bearpath to win the Grade I turf stakes under Garrett California shipper Marlang broke sharply and se- Bearpath, Grassy, Romp and Grand Couturier. Gomez. cured the lead from his inside stall as longshot Interpa- Now, it was up to Gomez to decide how close to Telling hadn’t won a race for 364 days, since last tation picked a slot in second. Favorite Expansion and stay to the leaders while saving enough for the clos- year’s Sword Dancer. Hobby never lost faith. Al Khali came next. Garrett Gomez braced against Tell- ers. “I could excuse everything that’s happened all year ing before getting him to switch off in fifth, by himself After three-quarters in 1:13.25, the critical move long but with these kind of horses, you don’t get too and comfortable after a half in 48.27 seconds. was made as Gomez stayed in touch with the lead- many opportunities and it felt like the year was slip- Turning down the backside, Marlang continued See SWORD DANCER page 6 ping away from us, here we are in August and we his head-low, knee-high jaunt on the lead as Kent 4 Sunday, August 15, 2010 Sunday, August 15, 2010 5 “It’s harder the second time, it’s easi- er coming in here when they don’t know Sword Dancer – who the hell you are,” Lieblong said, Continued from page 4 comparing a 33-1 victory last year to a 10-1 win this year. “Hobby has done ing four as the following four allowed a fabulous job with him. I was more a yawning gap of 5 or 6 lengths to de- confident this time, he takes a while to velop.