Opens and Sire Stakes on tap at Cal Expo

A $20,000 California Sire Stakes for the 4-year-old males; a Filly and Mare Open Pace and an Open Trot share the harness racing spotlight Friday night at Cal Expo.

There will be 10 races presented by Watch and Wager LLC with first post set for 6:45 p.m.

The first Sire Stakes of the year finds Polar Storm and Dougsmonkeybusiness heading a cast that also brings out Bin A Mystery Dardick Vic.

Looking at the Distaff Open, Graceful Horizon gets top billing while leaving from the assigned outside post. Graceful Horizon is a 6-year-old daughter of Vertical Horizon who races for Set The Pace Racing LLC and is reined and trained by Nick Roland.

She has been on a tear here since late December, using her powerful late kick to dominate the top distaff pacers on the grounds.

She flew home to capture the December 29 Open, sat a gorgeous pocket trip in the Joe Alto win going away and then came from double digits back to get the job done at even-money in the most recent clash at the head of this class two weeks ago.

Joe Lighthill hero Pridecrest heads the cast for the Open Trot. He is a 12-year-old son of Angus Hall who is owned by Chris Schick, takes his lessons from Kathie Plested and will once again be handled by Mooney Svendsen.

He comes into this assignment with 58 wins from his 237 lifetime trips to the post with $519,000 in his bank account and his 1:53 2/5 mark over this layout is the track record. He was an impressive first-over winner of last week’s Lighthill.

Bold New Beginning sizes up competition

Bold New Beginning was a game victress here last Sunday night, ending up on the right end of a photo with another pacing mare who likes to win races in Senga Nightmare.

Bold New Beginning is a daughter of Jk Endofanera out of the Real Desire mare Emily Flora who is owned and was bred by Billie Schwartz and Jim Wilkinson with Jim doing the training and leading pilot Jake Cutting doing the honors.

Her victory last weekend was her 10th from 34 lifetime trips to the post, with her 1:54 mark coming last season at Hoosier Park.

“She’s the fourth generation from a foundation mare named Toni Ann that Billie and I brought over from New Zealand,” Wilkinson noted.

“She’s a full sister to A Real Miracle, who earned quite a few stakes trophies and over $600,000 for us.

“Bold New Beginning is a big mare and it took her some time to get to the races, but she’s gone some big miles.”

Jim related that he has been owning and training horses with Billie Schwartz for over 30 years and they have won 17 stakes races during that time.

“Billie Schwartz is as big a supporter of California racing as we have,” Wilkinson praised.

by Mark Ratzky, for Cal Expo