A solid collection of juveniles will assemble Dec. 15 for the $250,000 Remington Springboard Mile Stakes at Remington Park, a race in which last year 128-1 shot Texas Bling outran eventual grade I winner Will Take Charge .
The Springboard Mile attracted a field of 12 from all points, with some intriguing connections sending their young horses to the Oklahoma City oval. Larry Jones has a promising maiden winner entered, while Wesley Ward also sends in a duo against some talented local stock. All runners carry 120 pounds.
Brereton Jones' Divine View, a Divine Park colt, broke his maiden at first asking for trainer Larry Jones by 2 3/4 lengths going 6 1/2 furlongs at Churchill Downs Nov. 16 with a bold four-wide move. Norberto Arroyo Jr. gets the mount from post 3.
The Ward-trained Noble Cornerstone won a Nov. 3 maiden special weight at six furlongs at Aqueduct Racetrack Nov. 3; a Noble Causeway gelding bred and owned by My Meadowview Farm, he ships in here for just his second start. Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux picks up the mount from the 8 hole.
Ward's other contender, Larry Bell's homebred Pachanga Party, comes in off a third in the Nov. 9 Juvenile Sprint Stakes at Gulfstream Park and won the Sept. 28 Birdonthewire Stakes at Calder Casino & Race Course off his debut score Sept. 8 at Gulfstream. David Flores rides the Florida-bred son of Indy Wind from post 7.
Trainer Don Von Hemel sends out Clever Trevor Stakes winner Smack Smack, owned and bred by country singer Toby Keith's Dream Walkin Farms. The Closing Argument gelding has four wins and a third from five starts, including that Nov. 8 closing score in the seven-furlong Clever Trevor at Remington and back-to-back wins in the Aug. 10 Prairie Meadows Juvenile Stakes and July 20 Prairie Gold Juvenile Stakes.
Cody Autrey has Guns Loaded for Ywachetta Driver and James Travis, a Florida-bred son of D'Wildcat who was outfinished in the Clever Trevor by half a length in his dirt debut. Prior to that local contest, Guns Loaded made three starts at Del Mar on the synthetic track, breaking his maiden in July, finishing third in the Best Pal Stakes (gr. II) in August, and running fifth of 11 in the Sept. 8 Del Mar Futurity (gr. I). Jockey Clifton Berry gets the mount from the far outside.
Michael Langford's Dunkirk colt Dunkin Bend was fourth in the Clever Trevor for trainer Steve Asmussen, and looks to return to the form that saw him take the Sept. 1 Sapling Stakes (gr. III) at Monmouth Park.
Robert Zoellner's homebred Alpha and Omega gets the rail, and looks to build a win streak off a frontrunning three-length victory in the Nov. 29 Oklahoma Stallion Stakes at Remington. He has two wins and two seconds from four starts for trainer Kari Craddock.
Another local contender of interest is Black Hawk Stable's Run Away and Hide colt Walt, who did just that in his last start. After a solid maiden-breaking score first time out Nov. 7, the Chris Hartman trainee came back Dec. 4 and rolled gate-to-wire by 9 3/4 lengths in a 6 1/2-furlong allowance optional claiming event.
Bret Calhoun also has a back-to-back winner, Louies Flower, a Flower Alley colt who went wire-to-wire in an Oct. 30 one-mile allowance event while rolling by 5 1/4 lengths for owner Wesley Melcher.
Boji Moon is intriguing if only for his versatility early on; the Iowa-bred Cactus Ridge gelding won his first two starts on dirt at Prairie Meadows and successfully transferred that form for trainer Chris Richard to take the Sept. 14 Kentucky Downs Juvenile Stakes at Kentucky Downs by 5 1/4 lengths going seven furlongs on turf. A run on Polytrack in an off-the-turf edition of the Oct. 6 Bourbon Stakes (gr. III) at Keeneland did not go as well; he finished sixth of 13 there last out and returns to dirt again after a brief rest.
Big Sugar Racing's Big Sugar High, who broke his maiden two starts back at Prairie Meadows and was third in the Oklahoma Classics Juvenile for trainer Tim Martin, and stablemate Denali Rahy Ruler, a local allowance winner also trained by Martin for Charles Robinson, complete the field.
$250,000 Remington Springboard Mile Stakes (Race 9, approximate post 5:14 p.m. CST)
PP, Horse, Jockey, Trainer
1. Alpha and Omega (OK), G. Murphy, K Craddock
2. Dunkin Bend (KY), R. A. Vazquez, S M Asmussen
3. Divine View (KY), N. Arroyo, Jr., J L Jones
4. Walt (KY), K.S. Tohill, C A Hartman
5. Smack Smack (KY), J. Barton, D Von Hemel
6. Louies Flower (FL), L.S. Quinonez, W B Calhoun
7. Pachanga Party (FL), D.R. Flores, W A Ward
8. Noble Cornerstone (NY), K.J. Desormeaux, W A Ward
9. Boji Moon (IA), T.J. Thompson, C Richard
10. Big Sugar High (OK), G.W. Corbett, T E Martin
11. Denali Rahy Ruler (KY), A. Birzer, T E Martin
12. Guns Loaded (FL), M.C. Berry, C Autrey
