Grade I winners Sur La Tete and McDynamo are among eight Thoroughbreds nominated to the $150,000 Iroquois (NSA-I) to be run May 13 at Nashville, Tenn. The two last met in the Royal Chase (NSA-I) at Keeneland April 21 with Sur La Tete winning in a romp and McDynamo being pulled up late.Sur La Tete also defeated McDynamo in last year's Iroquois, but the latter has something Sur La Tete doesn't -- Eclipse Awards. Owned by Michael Moran and trained by Sanna Hendriks, McDynamo won steeplechase championships in 2003 and 2005 with the second clinched while Sur La Tete missed the fall season with a foot injury.
The 3-mile Iroquois is the country's longest hurdle stakes, and tests speed and stamina with 18 fences and an uphill finish. Sur La Tete handled it all last year, rolling up the stretch to win by 2 1/2 lengths with McDynamo (who lost momentum with a slip on the final turn) second.The Iroquois nominations (with owner and trainer) in alphabetical order: Bow Strada (Calvin Houghland, Bruce Miller), Erin Go Bragh (Brigadoon Stable, Doug Fout), Feeling So Pretty (Lee McKinney, owner), Free Admission (Bill Pape, Jonathan Sheppard), Meneef (Calvin Houghland, Kathy McKenna), McDynamo (Michael Moran, Sanna Hendriks), Mon Villez (Calvin Houghland, Bruce Miller), Sur La Tete (Kinross Farm, Neil Morris). Entries close Tuesday, May 9.