Patience Pays Off for By the Moon in Bed o’ Roses
Patience paid off for By the Moon and jockey Jose Ortiz in the grade 3 Bed o’ Roses Handicap. Although the race looked like it would be a comeback for Wavell Avenue, it was By the Moon who stole the spotlight. Jose Ortiz held his filly back until there was room to run, allowing By the Moon to save ground and fly home in between horses. They completed the seven furlongs in 1:21.98.
West Coast Chick shot to the front as the gates opened and led the field through fractions of :23.26 and :46.10. Mayla was close behind in second and By the Moon, tucked in close to the rail, allowed Bar of Gold to move up to third. Pangburn fell behind as Wavell Avenue moved out to make an early move.
As the field raced into the far turn, Wavell Avenue was on the outside and began passing horses until she turned for home. The Breeders’ Cup champ and jockey Joel Rosario were swung wide and found themselves in the middle of the track. Meanwhile, By the Moon was in the clear when an opening appeared just off the rail. The race was wide open with the filies and mares lined up in the homestretch, but it was By the Moon who led the field through ¾ of a mile in 1:09.64 before crossing the wire. Wavell Avenue finished 1 ¾ lengths back in second, her best effort since winning the Breeders’ Cup, and Bar of Gold was third. Mayla, Pangburn, and West Coast Chick completed the order of finish.
Off at 2-1, By the Moon returned $6.40, $3.40, and $2.60. Wavell Avenue paid $2.70 and $2.10, and Bar of Gold delivered $2.70 to show.
By the Moon, a four-year-old daughter of Indian Charlie, earned her fourth career victory for Jay Em Ess Stable and trainer Michelle Nevin. “She showed back up today,” commented Nevin. “I'm going to keep my options open for the next couple of weeks but I think she can go further. The way the race set up today, there was a lot of speed in the race and we were in the one-hole. We were either going to have to gun her or sit back. Jose gave her a great ride."
The Bed o’ Roses win gave By the Moon a career record of 11-4-3-1 and boosted her earnings to $790,440.
By Christine Oser