Jonathan Sheppard  and Bill Pape have their brooms out.  Lead Us Not, winner of an allowance-optional claiming hurdle race at Saratoga on August 12, will attempt to give owner Bill Pape and trainer Jonathan Sheppard an unprecedented sweep of all five steeplechase races run at Saratoga this season when he starts in a $53,000 allowance-optional claiming hurdle race on Thursday, September 2. The 2 3/8-mile race over 10 fences will conclude the 2010 schedule of jump racing at the historic upstate New York track

Brian Crowley, who rode Lead Us Not to a three-quarter-length victory in the earlier allowance-optional claimer at 2 1/16 miles, will again be in the saddle. The eight-year-old Royal Anthem gelding, bred by Pape and Sheppard, was entered for a $30,000 claiming price and most likely will be favored when he lines up against nine opponents.

Also entered for a $30,000 tag was Irvin Naylor’s Dr. Bloomer, who finished second in the $50,000 David L. “Zeke” Ferguson Memorial (Gr. 3) at Colonial Downs on July 11 and then was seventh behind Pape’s Divine Fortune in Saratoga’s $75,000 A. P. Smithwick Memorial (Gr. 2) on Aug. 5. Darren Nagle will ride the nine-year-old Fantastic Fellow gelding for trainer Desmond Fogarty.

Also entering the field from stakes competition is Mark Dodson’s Moon Dolly, who finished fifth to Pape’s Sermon of Love in the $70,000 Jonathan Kiser Novice Stakes on July 29. Trained by Tom Voss, the nine-year-old Kris S. mare is looking for her first victory since the 2009 Valentine Memorial at Fair Hill, Md. Jody Petty has the mount.

Voss also will saddle Dumbarton Farm’s homebred Easy Red, who picks up the services of champion jockey Paddy Young. The eight-year-old Charismatic gelding left the course at the final fence of the Aug. 12 race.

Three other starters in that allowance-optional claimer are returning to try Lead Us Not again. Mrs. George M. Sensor’s Riddle set the pace to the final fence before tiring to finish fourth. Trained by Will Phipps, the nine-year-old Wagon Limit gelding won a $20,000 claiming race at Colonial on June 13 and was fifth in the Ferguson. Danielle Hodsdon picks up the mount.

Chadds Ford Stable’s Saluda Sam finished fifth after being rank on the inside for much of the race. Trained by Kathy McKenna, the five-year-old Adcat gelding will be ridden by Carl Rafter.

All Together, owned by Sheila Williams and Andre Brewster, left the course at the final fence. Trainer Jack Fisher named Xavier Aizpuru to ride All Together, who won a maiden special weight race at Penn National Race Course on June 18.

Pape and Racing Hall of Fame trainer Sheppard began their unprecedented run with a score by Sermon of Love in the Kiser, and Divine Fortune took the A. P. Smithwick the following week. Lead Us Not did his part in the allowance-optional claimer, and Sermon of Love came back to win the $100,000 New York Turf Writers Cup Handicap (Gr. 1) on Aug. 26.

Pape and Sheppard have been an owner-trainer team since the 1970s, and they have campaigned four champions: Athenian Idol, Martie’s Anger, Flatterer, and Mixed Up, who was last year’s Eclipse Award winner. Flatterer, a four-time champion owned by Pape, Sheppard, and George Harris, was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 1994, four years after Sheppard’s plaque went up on the wall at the National Museum of Racing in Saratoga Springs.

With support from their Saratoga blitz, Pape and Sheppard lead their respective divisions in the 2010 National Steeplechase Association standings. Pape’s Saratoga earnings total $186,050, and Sheppard’s purses were $237,590 from the four races to date.

Edited from NSA press relaease.

FREE PP’s for Saratoga 9/2/10 Race 1

Sermon of Love draws away from Arcadius to win the Grade I New York Turf Writers' Cup Handicap by a length.

Saratoga Springs, NY –  August 26th, 2010

Hall of Fame trainer Jonathan Sheppard and owner William Pape kept their perfect meet record intact when Sermon of Love came from off the pace to win the 69th running of the Grade 1, $100,000 New York Turf Writers Cup steeplechase on Thursday at Saratoga Race Course.

It was the fourth victory in as many starts over fences for Sheppard and Pape at the Spa, and the second for Sermon of Love, who also captured the $70,000 Jonathan Kiser Novice Stakes here on July 29.

Sermon of Love leads (right-to-left) Divine Fortune, Seer, Arcadius, and Virginia Minstrel at the 7th fence of the Turf Writers' Cup.

“He seems to like Saratoga,” said Sheppard, who won the meet’s premiere steeplechase event for the 13th time in his career, and first since 2006. “He’s a useful horse, but his first couple of starts this year were very disappointing. He just seemed kind of flat. I think the blinkers made a big difference.”

Ridden by Brian Crowley, Sermon of Love rated comfortably behind the pace set by 21-1 long shot Swagger Stick, who was making his first start since May 8.

Sermon of Love leads Seer, Arcadius (jumping poorly), Divine Fortune and Virginia Minstrel at the 3rd fence of the Turf Writers' Cup.

A 7-year-old Pulpit gelding, Sermon of Love gathered momentum on the outside approaching the final stretch run, cleared the last of 10 fences and sprinted to the wire in 4:36.83 for 2 3/8th miles. Arcadius, one of three Sheppard-trained horses in the race, made a bid along the inside to finish second, beaten a length.

Swagger Stick held on to finish third, a half-length in front of Divine Fortune, the second half of the even-money favorite entry with Sermon of Love.

Swagger Stick and jockey Willie Dowling lead the field at the 3rd fence of the Turf Writers' Cup.

“We figured there were two or three horses with some speed, and to tuck in not too far behind them and don’t leave him with too much to do, and if he’s going well enough, try not to hit the front too soon,” Sheppard said. “[Crowley] rode a picture-perfect race. He did a very good job.

“I was proud of all three horses. I think Divine Fortune got squeezed a little bit and jostled after the start, and he got too far back. He’s a very good stayer, but I think [jockey Danielle Hodsdon] had to use him a little bit to make up the ground to get into a challenging position, and then he didn’t finish as strongly as he might have. Arcadius ran a very game race. He did his best and ran hard, and just couldn’t quite get there.”

Sermon of Love and jockey Brian Crowley before the start of the Turf Writers' Cup.

Sermon of Love returned $4.30 on a $2 win bet for his second win in six starts this year, and fourth in 25 career tries over jumps, improving his earnings to $275,901.

“He traveled great, as he normally does,” Crowley said. “I had a terrific session with the jumps, and he just hit every one, spot on. He was traveling everywhere that I wanted him to. I just didn’t want him to go to the front too soon, but I got a great jump over the last and I had to send him on his way. He was just brilliant today.”

Edited from NYRA press release.

Result Chart for the 2010 New York Turf Writers’ Cup Handicap

Click here for Sermon of Love’s 5-cross pedigree

Dark Equation (left) with Jeff Murphy up and Divine Fortune with Danielle Hodsdon in the irons, have both been entered in the Grade I New York Turf Writers' Cup Handicap.

A contentious field of nine has been entered in the 69th running of the Grade I $100,000 New York Turf Writers’ Cup Handicap to be run at historic Saratoga Race Course on Thursday, August 26th. Contested at 2 3/8ths miles over 11 hurdles, the New York Turf Writers’ Cup Handicap has been carded as the first race of the day with a post time of 1:00 PM, Eastern Standard Time.

The entries for the New York Turf Writers’ Cup Handicap are headed by William L. Pape’s Divine Fortune will seek his second major victory of the 2010 Saratoga steeplechase season after having captured the Grade II A. P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase on August 5th.
Challenging the seven-year-old Royal Anthem gelding will be the respective second- and third-place finishers in the Smithwick, Arcadius and Slip Away, and the top two finishers from the $70,000 Jonathan Kiser Hurdle Stakes contested on July 29th, winner Sermon of Love and second-place finisher Virginia Minstrel.

Divine Fortune and Sermon of Love will be coupled in the wagering as Pape and Hall of Fame trainer Jonathan Sheppard attempt to continue their domination of the current Saratoga meet. The formidable owner-trainer team swept the last three steeplechase races run at Saratoga, with Divine Fortune, Sermon of Love and Lead Us Not, winner of an allowance-optional claiming race on August 12th. Sheppard also is the trainer of Arcadius.

Divine Fortune, who again will be ridden by Danielle Hodsdon, will be attempting to extend a comeback that struck a high note on August 5th with his three-quarter-length score in the 2 1/16-mile Smithwick, his first stakes victory in nearly three years. He won the Carolina First Block House, an allowance race at the Block House Races in Tryon, N.C., on April 17 after finishing a good second to Spy in the Sky in the Grade II Carolina First Carolina Cup on March 27th.

Irish jockey Brian Crowley returns aboard Sermon of Love, who surged powerfully to win the Kiser, also at 2 1/16 miles on the Mellon Turf Course. It was the first victory in slightly more than a year for the seven-year-old Pulpit gelding, who won his first race over fences at Saratoga on August 3rd, 2009.

Darren Nagle picks up the mount on Arcadius, who closed ground along the rail under Crowley after having been pinned on the inside for most of the race. Owned by the Hudson River Farms of Albany real-estate developer Edward P. Swyer, Arcadius has placed in all three of his 2010 starts. He won his seasonal debut in the $30,000 Woodward-Kirkover optional allowance at the Carolina Cup Races and then finished third in the Grade I $150,000 Iroquois Steeplechase on May 8th.

Ken and Sarah Ramsey’s Slip Away, who again will have champion jockey Paddy Young in the saddle and will carry the 156-pound high weight, is the probable pacesetter for the New York Turf Writers Cup Handicap. Although the seven-year-old Skip Away gelding and Young set a slow pace in the Smithwick, they could not hold off the late charges of Divine Fortune and Arcadius.

Dark Equation won the Turf Writers' Cup in 2008 and seeks to become the first repaeat winner of the Grade I fixture since Yaw (1991-92).

Trained by Tom Voss, Slip Away was the 1.05-to-1 favorite in the Smithwick and was defeated by only three-quarters of a length. Earlier in the season, he won the Grade III $50,000 Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase at the Middleburg Spring Races in Virginia and finished second in the Iroquois.

Beverly R. Steinman’s Dark Equation will be looking for his first win since his score in the 2008 New York Turf Writers’ Cup Handicap. Jeff Murphy will ride the nine-year-old Polish Numbers gelding for trainer Doug Fout. Dark Equation most recently finished fifth in the Smithwick, 3 3/4 lengths behind Divine Fortune.

Oakwood Stable’s Virginia Minstrel has been steadily stepping up in quality this year, and he looked to have the Kiser won before Sermon of Love surged on the outside. Carl Rafter, currently second in the jockey standings, was named to ride by trainer Julie Gomena.

Jack Fisher, the National Steeplechase Association’s top trainer for the last three years, entered Seer and Swagger Stick, both of whom won at last year’s season-ending Palm Beach Steeplechase in Florida. Seer, who will be ridden by Xavier Aizpuru, will be making his first start since winning the Paul Beach Supreme Hurdle. Mrs. S. K. Johnston Jr.’s Swagger Stick most recently finished second in the Bright Hour amateur hurdle at the Iroquois Races in Nashville on May 8th. Completing the field of nine is owner-trainer Michele Sanger’s Birthday Beau, who finished seventh in the Kiser. He carries the 138-pound lowest weight and will be ridden by Ross Geraghty.

The New York Turf Writers’ Cup Handicap, first run in 1938 at Saratoga, has become a major event on the annual steeplechase calendar over the last 40 years. During that period, it was been won by three Racing Hall of Fame members: Zaccio (1980, ‘82), Flatterer (‘84), and Lonesome Glory (‘95).

Edited from NSA press release.

A complete list of entries for the Grade I New York Turf Writers Cup Handicap is set forth below:

1 Sermon of Love 2-1
1A Divine Fortune 2-1
2 Dark Equation 10-1
3 Seer 12-1
4 Swagger Stick 8-1
5 Slip Away 5-2
6 Birthday Beau 30-1
7 Arcadius 4-1
8 Virginia Minstrel 6-1

FREE PP’s for the Grade I New York Turf Writers’ Cup Handicap

Saratoga Springs, NY –  August 12th, 2010

Longtime owner William L.  Pape and Hall of Fame trainer Jonathan Sheppard continued their mastery over the 2010 Saratoga steeplechase season when Pape’s Lead Us Not won the $53,000 Calvin Houghland allowance /optional claiming race under jockey Brian Crowley.  Lead Us Not set the early pace in the Houghland, dropped back to 3rd place around the final turn behind Riddle and Parker’s Project, and then came on again after the final fence to regain the lead in deep stetch and score by 3/4ths of a length.

Lead Us Not pulls away from Parker's Project, Riddle and Grantor at the finish of the Houghland.

For the second consecutive week, Sheppard claimed the top two spots in the weekly steeplechase race at Saratoga when Parker’s Project moved to the front after the last of nine hurdles and held on for second.  Caves Farm’s Grantor closed ground late to take third, three lengths farther back. Mrs. George M. Sensor’s Riddle, who had led into the final fence, finished fourth.

Sent to the starter as the 6.20-to-1 fourth betting choice in a field of nine, Lead Us Not covered the 2 1/16 miles in 3:52.28 on firm turf. An eight-year-old Royal Anthem gelding bred by Pape and Sheppard in Pennsylvania, Lead Us Not collected his first victory in more than two years.

Riddle (right) and Parker's Project lead the field at the 2nd fence

Pape and Sheppard have been a winning combination for three decades, and they have sent out four Eclipse Award winners, most recently Mixed Up in 2009. They were co-owners with George Harris of Flatterer, a Hall of Fame member who won four titles in the 1980s.

Sheppard, who currently leads the 2010 steeplechase standings by victories (18 from 59 starts, 30% strike rate) and earnings ($469,790), has had a lights-out Saratoga season so far. He won the $70,000 Jonathan Kiser Memorial with Pape’s Sermon of Love at 11.50-to-1 and also had the third and fourth finishers in that July 29 race.

Lead Us Not leads the field at the 6th fence.

A week later, he and Pape combined for a score with Divine Fortune (2.70-to-1) in the $75,000 Grade III A. P. Smithwick Memorial and Sheppard also trained the second finisher, Arcadius, owned by Hudson River Farms. The Hudson River Farms operation of Albany real estate developer Edward Swyer also owns Parker’s Project.

Almost as hot as Pape and Sheppard is Crowley, an Irish-born jockey who rode Sermon of Love in the Kiser and was aboard Arcadius in the Smithwick.

Crowley made a crucial move in the late stages of the race that gave Lead Us Not a chance for the victory. They went out to the early lead, with Riddle close behind them and 2.65-to-1 favorite All Together stalking the pace on the outside.

Lead Us Not and Brian Crowley after winning the Houghland.

Riddle, ridden by Bernie Dalton, assumed the lead shortly before the field entered the backstretch for the second time, with Parker’s Project moving into second position approaching the final fence. Several strides before the fence, Crowley steered Lead Us Not to the outside, and the gelding began his charge as he jumped the final obstacle.

Parker’s Project, ridden by Danielle Hudson, jumped to the lead at the last and appeared to be headed for victory as Riddle tired. But Crowley extended Lead Us Not’s stride, and they closed past a game Parker’s Project shortly before the finish line.

Edited from NSA press release.

Five recent maiden winners will take on veteran steeplechase runners in a $53,000 allowance optional claiming race at Saratoga Race Course on Thursday, Aug. 12. The 2 1/16-mile race over nine hurdles drew a full field of nine and was carded as the first race on the Saratoga program.

Two of the recent winners already have won at Saratoga. Parker’s Project, owned by Hudson River Farms and trained by breeder Jonathan Sheppard, won a maiden special weight race by 1 1/2 lengths on the Saratoga Open House program on July 18.

The four-year-old Parker’s Storm Cat gelding also finished second in the $25,000 Raymond G. Woolfe Memorial at Camden, S.C., last November. Danielle Hodsdon, the regular jockey of Parker’s Project, again will be in the saddle.

Also entering from a Saratoga Open House victory is Cave Farm’s Grantor, who scored by five lengths under Darren Nagle. Trainer Mark O’Dwyer named Nagle to ride the five-year-old New York-bred gelding by Broken Vow.

Sheppard and owner Bill Pape have won both steeplechase races so far in the Saratoga meet, and they will seek to keep the streak alive with Pape’s Lead Us Not, a Royal Anthem gelding who is seeking his first win in more than two years.

Bred by Pape and Sheppard, Lead Us Not most recently finished third to Dalucci in the $35,000 Bright Hour Amateur Hurdle at the Iroquois Races in Nashville on May 8. Brian Crowley has the mount. Pape’s Divine Fortune won the $75,000 A. P. Smithwick Memorial on Aug. 5, and Sermon of Love prevailed in the $70,000 Jonathan Kiser Memorial on July 29.

Jack Fisher, the leading steeplechase trainer for the past three years, entered All Together, who defeated Grantor by 4 1/2 lengths in a maiden special weight at Penn National Race Course on June 18. Willie Dowling was named aboard the five-year-old Danzig gelding, who is owned by Arcadia Stables and Mrs. Rufus Williams.

Veteran steeplechase and flat trainer Tom Voss will saddle The Fields Stable’s Hidden Trail, a five-year-old Empire Maker gelding who won a Philadelphia Park maiden special weight race by 2 3/4 lengths on June 4. Champion jockey Paddy Young will be in the saddle.

Voss named Xavier Aizpuru aboard since Dumbarton Farm’s homebred Easy Red, a stakes winner on the flat who most recently finished fourth to Quiet Approval in the Saratoga Open House’s featured allowance race.

Another recent maiden winner is Chadds Ford Stable’s Saluda Sam, a 6 1/4-length victor in the Henry Collins maiden claiming race at the Radnor Hunt Races in Pennsylvania on May 15. Trainer Kathy McKenna named Carl Rafter to ride.

Mrs. George M. Sensor’s Riddle, who spent more than three years on the sidelines, returned with a ten-length victory in a Colonial Downs claiming race on June 13. He subsequently finished fifth to Class Bopper in the $50,000 Grade III David L. (Zeke) Ferguson Memorial  at the Virginia racetrack on July 11. Trainer William Phipps named Bernie Dalton to ride the nine-year-old Wagon Limit gelding.

Completing the field is Chess Board, who will be ridden by Ross Geraghty. Second to Slip Away in the $50,000 Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase (Gr. 3) at the Middleburg Spring Races in Virginia on April 17, he subsequently finished fourth in the Calvin Houghland Iroquois Steeplechase (Gr. 1) at Nashville and sixth in the Ferguson.

Edited from NSA press release

PP’s for the 1st race at Saratoga 8/12/10

Divine Fortune edging away from Slip Away (center) and Arcadius in the stretch of the Grade II Smitwick.

Saratoga Springs, NY – July 29th, 2010: Divine Fortune tracked favored Slip Away to the final hurdle before grabbing the lead and going on to a three-quarter length victory over stablemate Arcadius in the 31st running of the Grade II, $75,000 A.P. Smithwick Memorial Steeplechase at Saratoga Race Course.

Patiently ridden by Danielle Hodsdon, who took last year’s Smithwick aboard Mixed Up, the 7-year-old gelding completed the 2 1/6th miles in 3:58.98 as he extended his 2010 record to 2-1-1 from four starts for Hall of Fame trainer Jonathan Sheppard and owner William Pape.

“Danielle did give him a beautiful ride- the race didn’t unfold exactly as expected, with Slip Away on the lead like that, but I guess he had to go with no other speed horses in the race,” said Sheppard, now a five-time winner of the Smithwick.

Divine Fortune jumped poorly at the 6th fence of the Smithwick as he lead (right-to-left) Arcadius, Dr. Bloomer, Planets Aligned, Dark Equation and The Price of Love.

“Danielle always does very well when she can have her horse clear on the outside because she is very good at setting her horses up for the fences,” he added. “She timed the ride very well and got a great jump at the last. The other horse [Slip Away] fought back, but we had the best horse today.”

Danielle Hodsdon raises her whip in celebration as she crosses the finish line in the Grade II Smithwick.

Following the first two past the wire were Slip Away, Planets Aligned, Dark Equation, The Price of Love, and Dr. Bloomer.

Dark Equation (left) with Jeff Murphy up and Divine Fortune with Danielle Hodsdon in the irons after the Smithwick.

Part of an entry with The Price of Love, Divine Fortune returned $7.40 for a $2 win bet and earned $45,000. Having raced just once between November 3, 2007, and March 27, 2010, his record over hurdles now stands at 5-3-2 from 16 starts including a victory in an allowance race this spring.

“He missed almost two years so this is the first race we feel we’ve really gotten him back to form,” said Hodsdon. “It’s nice.”

Along with Arcadius, Divine Fortune will likely be pointed to the Grade 1 New York Turf Writers’ Cup on Thursday, August 26, said Sheppard.

Edited from NYRA press release.

Result Chart for the 2010 Smithwick

Ken and Sarah Ramsey’s Slip Away, a nine-length winner of the Grade III Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase earlier this spring, will face seven others in the $75,000 Grade II A. P. Smithwick Memorial at historic Saratga Race Course on Thursday, August 5th.

Trained by Tom Voss, Slip Away ran away from his competition in the $50,000 Grade III Temple Gwathmey at the Middleburg Spring Races in Virginia on April 17. He returned to the races on May 8 in the $150,000 Grade I Calvin Houghland Iroquois Steeplechase in Nashville, where he set the early pace and continued on well to finish second, 4 3/4 lengths behind Tax Ruling.

Slip Away will be seeking to improve on a fourth-place finish behind eventual champion Mixed Up in last year’s Smithwick. Paddy Young, last year’s champion jockey and the current leader, has the mount.

The seven-year-old son of Skip Away will meet a seasoned field with extensive experience in the Smithwick, but his main challenge, may come Gregg Ryan’s Dynantonia, who will be making his first career start at Saratoga.

Carl Rafter, who is challenging Young for the top spot in the jockey standings, will be astride Dynantonia, who won the $50,000 Grade III Marcellus Frost Stakes on the Iroquois program. Trained by Julie Gomena, the eight-year-old son of Dynaformer finished third to Slip Away in the Temple Gwathmey.

Hall of Fame trainer Jonathan Sheppard, who opened the Saratoga steeplechase season with a score by Sermon of Love in the Jonathan Kiser Stakes on July 29, will saddle three starters in the eight-horse Smithwick. Coupled in the wagering will be Bill Pape’s The Price of Love and Divine Fortune, both of whom were bred by the longtime owner and Sheppard.

The Price of Love won last year’s Georgia Cup at the Atlanta Steeplechase and scored in both of Saratoga’s 2008 novice stakes, the Kiser and the Michael G. Walsh Novice Stakes. Willie Dowling will ride the seven-year-old Prenup gelding in his 2010 debut.

Divine Fortune, who will be ridden by Danielle Hodsdon, finished second to Spy in the Sky in the $75,000 Carolina First Carolina Cup (Gr. 2) in Camden, S.C., on March 27 and then won the $25,000 Block House Steeplechase in Tryon, N.C. The Royal Anthem gelding subsequently finished third in the Marcellus Frost.

Sheppard also will saddle Hudson River Farms’ Arcadius, who was a good third in the Iroquois. Last year, the Giant’s Causeway gelding placed in two Saratoga steeplechase stakes races, the Ben Nevis and the Paul R. Fout Handicap. Brian Crowley will ride.

Beverly R. Steinman’s Dark Equation will be attempting to recapture his Saratoga glory after winning the 2008 Grade I New York Turf Writers Cup in 2008. Trained by Doug Fout, the nine-year-old Polish Numbers gelding most recently closed ground to finish third in the Grade III David L. (Zeke) Ferguson Memorial at Colonial Downs on July 11. Jeff Murphy will ride.

In addition to Slip Away, Voss also will also saddle Fox Ridge Farm’s homebred Planets Aligned, who finished third in the 2009 edition of the Smithwick. Xavier Aizpuru will ride.

Completing the field is Irvin S. Naylor’s Dr. Bloomer, who finished second in the Ferguson, his first of the year. Trainer Desmond Fogarty named Darren Nagle to ride the nine-year-old Fantastic Fellow gelding.

Edited from NSA press release.

A complete list of entries for the Grade II Smithwick is set forth below:

PP’s for the A.P. Smithwick Memorial

Saratoga Springs, NY – July 29th, 2010

Sermon of Love overtook Virginia Minstrel in the shadow of the wire to win the $70,000 Jonathan Kiser Memorial Stakes by a half-length at historic Saratoga Race Track.  Owned by William L. Pape, Sermon of Love covered the 2 1/16-miles distance over firm turf in 3:49.56.

Hall of Fame conditioner Jonathan Sheppard trained the winner as well as  the third- and fourth-place finishers, his homebred Italian Wedding and Mary Ann Houghland’s Nationbuilder, respectively.

Ridden by Irish jockey Brian Crowley, seven-year-old Sermon of Love tracked the early pace in third position, just behind front-running Birthday Beau and 2.25-to-1 favorite Mabou. On the final turn, Virginia Minstrel advanced menacingly on the outside under Matt McCarron.  Birthday Beau gave way shortly before the final fence, with Virginia Minstrel gaining ground on Mabou. The favorite stumbled on the landing side of the last fence, and Virginia Minstrel appeared to be headed for his fourth consecutive victory for trainer Julie Gomena.

Sermon of Love jumped the last of nine fences and quickly gained ground on Virginia Minstrel, who fought on gamely but could not hold off the winner. Italian Wedding, who had raced toward the back of the field early, closed well under Willie Dowling to take third, 1 1/4 lengths behind Virginia Minstrel. Nationbuilder was another 1 1/2 lengths back in fourth.

Sermon of Love was dispatched at odds of 11.5-to-1 because he had not won over fences in more than a year, but the 7-year-old son of Pulpit savors the going at Saratoga. He broke his maiden victory on the flat at the upstate New York track a year ago and then finished second to Spy in the Sky in the New York Turf Writers Cup (Gr. 1) on Aug. 27.

The Kiser’s $42,000 first-place purse raised Sermon of Love’s career earnings to $215,901. The Kiser is named for a two-time champion jockey Jonathan Kiser who died in a non-racing accident in 2000.

Edited from NSA press release.

Results of Jonathan Kiser Memorial

A field of nine will line up Thursday, July 29, for the $70,000 Jonathan Kiser Novice Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. The 2 1/16-mile race over National Fences, carded as the first race on the Saratoga program, memorializes the two-time champion jockey who died in a tragic non-racing accident in 2000.

Three prospective starters–Oakwood Stable’s Virginia Minstrel, Ken and Sarah Ramsey’s Mabou and Jonathan Sheppard’s Italian Wedding–carry unbeaten 2010 records into the Kiser.

Virginia Minstrel, who will start on the inside with jockey Matt McCarron, began the season with a narrow victory in a maiden special weight at the Carolina Cup Races in Camden, S.C., on March 27. The six-year-old Pleasant Tap gelding followed up with a 6 1/4-length score in the $25,000 Strawberry Hill Classic at Colonial Downs on May 15. Trainer Julie Gomena returned Virginia Minstrel to the Virginia track for a 3 3/4-length victory in a starter allowance on the flat on July 11.

Italian Wedding won his maiden victory at the year’s first race meet, the Aiken Spring Races in Aiken, S.C., on March 20, and then took the $20,000 Sandhills Cup at the Stoneybrook Races in Raeford, N.C., on April 3. Racing Hall of Fame trainer Sheppard, who also bred the five-year-old Alphabet Soup gelding, named Willie Dowling to ride.

Sheppard also will saddle Mary Ann Houghland’s Nationbuilder, winner of the Queen’s Cup MPC Chase in suburban Charlotte, N.C., on April 24. The six-year-old Came Home gelding, who fell in the National Hunt Cup at the Radnor Hunt Races on May 15, will be ridden by Danielle Hodsdon. Also entering from Sheppard’s barn is Bill Pape’s Sermon of Love, who finished second to Spy in the Sky in last year’s New York Turf Writers Cup at Saratoga.

Mabou left the Saratoga course in the 2009 edition of the Kiser and has not been beaten since that race. Trained by Tom Voss, the seven-year-old Dynaformer gelding won two claiming races to close out last season and stepped up to win the $30,000 Vita C. Thompson Memorial allowance race at the Radnor meet in Malvern, Pa. Leading rider Paddy Young will be in the saddle.

Voss also will send out Mark Dodson’s Moon Dolly, the only mare in the Kiser and most recently fourth in the Valentine Memorial at the Fair Hill Races in Maryland on May 29, and Perry Bolton’s Arch Hero, a maiden winner at Callaway Gardens in Georgia last fall.

After a hiccup in a Philadelphia Park allowance steeplechase on June 4, Move Up Stable’s Quiet Approval moved up a notch with an eight-length victory in an allowance race on the Saratoga Open House program on July 18. Trained by Kathy N. McKenna, the four-year-old Quiet American gelding will be ridden by Jeff Murphy.

Completing the field of nine is owner-trainer Michele Sanger’s Birthday Beau, who will be ridden by Ross Geraghty. The five-year-old Silic gelding streaked to a nine-length victory in an Aiken allowance race but tired after setting the pace in the Marcellus Frost Stakes at Nashville, Tenn., on May 8 and was pulled up.

Edited from NSA press release.

PP’s for the Jonathan Kiser Stakes

New Kent, VA - July 11th, 2010

Class Bopper set all the pace under jockey Richard Boucher and drew away easily after the final fence to win the $68,000 David L. (Zeke) Ferguson Memorial by ten lengths at Colonial Downs on Sunday, July 11.

Class Bopper led the Grade III Ferguson from start to finish

Richard Boucher and Class Bopper at the finish of the Grade III Ferguson. Coady photo.

Irvin S. Naylor’s Dr. Bloomer, who had tracked the pace of the front-runner, finished second, 4 1/4 lengths ahead of Beverly L. Steinman’s Dark Equation. Bill Pape’s Divine Fortune, the 9-to-5 favorite in a field of eight, weakened late and finished fourth, a head behind Dark Equation.

Trainer Lilith Boucher, wife of Class Bopper’s jockey, had kept the five-year-old Virginia-bred in tune for steeplechase racing this year by running him in flat turf races. Winner of the 2009 AFLAC Supreme Hurdle for novice steeplechase horses in Pine Mountain, Ga., Class Bopper most recently finished fourth in a Pimlico Race Course optional claimer and fifth in a Colonial optional claimer on May 29.  He is owned by Rodman W. Moorhead III.

With the withdrawal of Temple Gwathmey (Gr. 3) winner Slip Away, Class Bopper emerged as the probable front-runner, and Boucher immediately placed the Bop gelding on the front end with a clear lead over Mrs. George S. Sensor’s Riddle, ten-length winner of a steeplechase claiming race on the Colonial course on June 13.

As 9-to-5 second choice Riddle weakened after making a brief challenge to the leader on the final run down Colonial’s backstretch, Dr. Bloomer moved into second position behind Class Bopper. But he could not mount a serious attack on the front-runner, who opened a five-length margin after the final fence and extended his lead to the finish line.

Dark Equation, ridden by Jeff Murphy, surged after the final fence to overtake Divine Fortune in the final sixteenth. Riddle finished fifth, 2 1/4 lengths behind Divine Fortune. Sent off as the 4.80-to-1 third betting choice, Class Bopper ran the Ferguson’s 2 1/4 miles over National Fences in 4:05.58 on firm turf.

Edited from NSA press release