News and Notes for June 17, 2016

ttagenericTTA ANNUAL MEETING AND AWARDS BANQUET THIS WEEKEND AT LONE STAR PARK
The TTA Board of Directors will meet at 10:00 a.m. with an agenda including the election of officers and executive committee members.  The membership meeting scheduled for 4:30 p.m. provides an opportunity for TTA members to meet staff and directors, receive an update on activities and initiatives, and ask questions about industry issues.

At Saturday’s Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet, we look forward to meeting new friends, renewing acquaintances and enjoying some great Texas racing, including the 5th annual renewal of the Lane’s End Stallion Scholarship Stakes.

During the awards ceremonies, the Texas Champion “Horse of the Year” and the owners and breeders of the champions of each racing division will be honored, along with the recipients of the Thoroughbred Charities of America Award of Merit, the Allen Bogan Memorial Award for TTA Member of the Year, and the T. I. “Pops” Harkins Award for Lifetime Achievement.  Current Texas Thoroughbred Educational Fund (TTEF) scholarship recipients will be introduced, along with an update on the activities of The Paddock Foundation, a non-profit corporation dedicated to the lifelong welfare of the Thoroughbred horse.

Live and silent auctions will be held to raise funds for the TTEF and Paddock Foundation, with items including a Yeti Roadie 20 hard case cooler, Yeti tumblers, jewelry, art, tack, use of a racetrack suite, and more.

If you have already registered, your tickets will be at Will Call.

 

ACCREDITED TEXAS-BREDS IN WEEKEND STAKES ACTION
The 5th running of the $50,000 Lanes End Stallion Scholarship Stakes at Lone Star Park on Saturday has drawn a field of 9 Accredited Texas-bred fillies and mares going 7 ½ furlongs on the turf.

Stakes winner Seneca Destiny (Seneca Jones – Dixie’s Destiny) has been installed as the 9/5 favorite.  Bred by Keith Asmussen, the 5-year-old stakes winner runs for William B. Anderson.  She has a career record of 33-12-5-7 and leads the field in earnings with 249,570.

Leroy & Loyana Pollok’s multiple-stakes-winning 6-year-old homebred Expect Royalty (Valid Expectations – Autumn Sky) has been given odds of 2/1. She is second in earnings in the field with $242,050 for her record of 21-11-4-1.

More Than Most (Indygo Mountain – Better Than Most) is coming off a huge win in the $75,000 Got Koko Division of the Texas Stallion Stakes at Lone Star on May 15.  The multiple stakes winner was bred by the Estate of Clarence Scharbauer Jr. and runs for Douglas Scharbauer.  She has odds of 4/1.

Completing the field are the W. S. Farish homebred stakes winner Infectious (Valid Expectations – Red Cell) at 8/1; Slew’s Song (My Golden Song – Classic Mirage), bred by Pat Sheetz and owned by Bryan Henderson; H. L. Southard’s multiple-stakes-placed homebred Whiskey Eyes (Special Rate – Hay Costa); Texas Belle (Angliana – Inthemiddleofitall), bred by Eureka Thoroughbred Farm and owned by Richard P. Chandler; Ronald Ellerbee’s homebred multiple-stakes-placed My Silver Lullaby (My Golden Song – Super San San); and Seven Violets (Four Sevens – Mattie M), bred by Brumbaugh and Verstraete and owned by Darrell W. Bravenec.

While Danny Keene is attending Saturday’s TTA Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet to accept his award for Texas Chrome as the 2015 Texas Champion 2-Year-Old Colt/Gelding, Texas Chrome (Grasshopper – Margarita Mistress) will be competing in a field of seven in the $100,000 (Gr.3) Matt Winn Stakes for 3-year-olds going 1 1/16 miles at Churchill Downs.  He won his last out in the $75,000 Stymie Division of the Texas Stallion Stakes on May 15 at Lone Star by over 10 lengths.  Bred by Craig Upham and trained by J. R. Caldwell, the 4-year-old is seeking to add to his bankroll of $242,562.

REMEMBER ME RESCUE CELEBRITY FUNDRAISER AND GALA
Remember Me Rescue’s 4th Annual Gala is scheduled for Friday, June 24th in the Dash For Cash room on the lower level of Lone Star Park.   The fundraiser helps provide rehabilitation and training to prepare retired racehorses for a second career.

Keynote speaker is Barclay Tagg, the trainer of Derby and Preakness winner Funny Cide. Stacie Clark from the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance will also say a few words about the importance of rehoming our horses and Hall of Fame trainer Jack Van Berg will serve as auctioneer.  The Master of Ceremonies for the event will be Mary Cage, an accomplished horsewoman and upcoming writer and photographer of Thoroughbred racing.

Ticket price includes a buffet dinner, open bar, live racing, and a chance to get to know some of the greatest people in racing while supporting the horses we all love.

Get tickets at www.retiredracehorses.org . Payment accepted by credit card on the website or at the door on the night of the event.

TEXAS HORSE RACING HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCES INDUCTEES
The list of 2016 Texas Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductees includes Hugh Fitzsimons, Dr Nat Kieffer, John T. L. Jones and Jay Pumphrey, as well as noted Quarter Horse First Down Dash.

The Hall of Fame Gala will be held on October 29th at Retama Park, with a program to honor these individuals and their families for their great contributions to horse racing in Texas.

NOTES: Congrats to the connections of TTA 2-Year-Old Sale grad Pure Grey (Too Much Bling – Folksy), who won by 13 lengths first time out at Indiana Grand Race Course this week.  Bred by W. S. Farish & E. J. Hudson Jr. Irrevocable Trust, the horse sold for $20,000 to Clark Brewster and Steve Asmussen, who also trains the filly… Entries are still being accepted for the August 29 Texas Summer Yearling Sale, which will include a mixed session.  Contact Tim Boyce at 972.523.0332 or Mary Ruyle at 512.458.6133 or go to www.ttasales.com. …Plan to attend the Roses to Ribbons Old Fashioned Horse Fair at Lone Star Park on July 9. . If you are interested in being a vendor at the event, or presenting a horse for sale, go to www.paddockfoundation.com for information.