Chide to Target Falls City Handicap

A strong performance by Claiborne Farm and Adele Dilschneider’s 3-year-old filly Chide in a second level allowance/optional claiming event on Thursday at Churchill Downs has convinced trainer Al Stall Jr. to target his 3-year-old filly to the $200,000 Falls City Handicap (Grade II) on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 26).

After four straight starts against graded stakes company, which included a third in the Mother Goose (GI) at Belmont Park and a runner-up effort in the Dogwood (GIII) during Churchill’s September Meet, Chide had some class relief on Thursday. The daughter of Blame defeated last year’s Golden Rod (GII) runner-up and even-money favorite No Fault of Mine by four lengths while clocking 1 1/16 miles in 1:44.10.

“She came out of [Thursday’s] race well and we think this [Falls City Handicap] will be a nice little spot for her,” Stall Jr. said. “Her sire [Blame] won the [2009] Clark [Handicap] which is the same distance and the same weekend so she should fit in that race well.”

 

On the dam side, Chide is out of the A.P. Indy mare Yell, who ran third in the 2003 Kentucky Oaks behind Marylou Whitney’s Bird Town.

 

“I’ve had a lot of Yell’s babies and they seem to run real well,” Stall said. “One of her first offspring, Cheery won a stakes down at Oaklawn a couple of years ago. As for Blame, his foals just seem to get better and better with age.”

 

This year will mark the 100^th running of the Falls City Handicap, which is run at a distance of 1 1/8 miles. Nominations for the Falls City close Wednesday.

       

LANERIE OFF TO HOT FALL MEET START 

Jockey Corey Lanerie, who rode 36 winners to earn last year’s Fall Meet riding title, is off to hot start with seven wins from 21 mounts through the first three days of the Fall Meet.

A winner of nine of the last 10 riding titles at Churchill Downs, Lanerie, 41, entered the Fall Meet fresh off his first riding crown at Keeneland, where he won 27 races. 

       

Lanerie’s recent success follows a frustrating summer when he went 0-for-57 at Saratoga.

“It picks your head back up, for sure,” Lanerie said. “When you’re up there and not winning races you start thinking, ‘What am I doing wrong?’ but going into Saratoga you know it’s a tough meet. Did I expect to not win a race? No. I thought that I’d win at least a couple. I even had people come up to me this fall at Keeneland and say, ‘You’ve really redeemed yourself after Saratoga,’ and that’s always a good feeling. People notice that.

“I’ve had a lot of riding titles here at Churchill and not that they expect it now but I seem to ride the best horses here. When I took the riding title at Keeneland people really took a notice to that as well. It’s been a great year.”