Peace and War Puts in Light Work for Ashland
Darley Alcibiades (G1) winner Peace and War, the 3-1 morning-line favorite for Saturday’s $500,000 Central Bank Ashland (G1), galloped and made a quick dash through the stretch shortly after the main track opened for training Thursday morning.
With Tegan Clark aboard, Peace and War was timed in :23.40 for the quarter-mile with her tempo picking up the last eighth of a mile.
“It is too close to the race to do more than that,” trainer Olly Stevens said. “I just wanted to get a good eighth of a mile. I am still trying to figure out if she is as good as she was last year.”
A minor injury derailed Peace and War’s 2-year-old campaign after the Darley Alcibiades.
“She hasn’t grown any and that still gives me a few nervous moments when I think about it,” Stevens said. “But then I watch her train and know that I am in good shape.”
BIG BLUE KITTEN BEGINS SEASON IN SATURDAY ALLOWANCE
Keeneland’s stakes-filled card on Saturday includes a competitive allowance race that marks the 2015 debut of multiple Grade 1 winner Big Blue Kitten. A homebred racing for Ken and Sarah Ramsey, the 7-year-old son of Kitten’s Joy will take on a field flush with graded stakes performers, including his Grade 2-winning stablemate Hyper and Grade 1 winner Mr Speaker.
Trained by Chad Brown, Big Blue Kitten has more than $1.5 million in earnings and four stakes wins, including the 2013 United Nations (G1) and Sword Dancer Invitational (G1). Last season, he could only manage a restricted stakes victory in five attempts, but was second in three graded events, including the Pattison Canadian International (G1) at Woodbine and Red Smith Handicap (G2) at Aqueduct to close his season.
Big Blue Kitten exits a half-mile work in :49.40 on Sunday at Palm Meadows in Florida.
“He’s training really well for this,” Brown said. “He’s won Grade 1 races in the past, and I hope this (race) leads him back to that. Keeneland races can come up tough, but the track and distance suited both of my horses.”
The Ramsey-Brown team has another seasoned runner in the race, Hyper, a Grade 1-placed two-time stakes winner who has been off since November 2013. The 8-year-old son of Victory Gallop’s big win came in the 2013 Bowling Green Handicap (G2). On Sunday at Palm Meadows, Hyper worked four furlongs in :49.40.
“He’s doing terrific,” Brown said. “I hate to run them against one another, but they’re both doing very well.”
On Saturday, Big Blue Kitten will have John Velazquez aboard and break from Post 1. Gary Stevens will ride Hyper, who is in Post 3.
GALLOPING OUT
Friday, April 3: Opening Day
The Keeneland Gift Shop Presents: Sail to Sable trunk show from 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
College Scholarship Day. Keeneland welcomes thousands of students from colleges and universities in Kentucky and beyond. Admission is free with a college ID. Full-time students can register in the North Terrace to win one of ten $1,000 scholarships and prizes from local vendors after each of the day’s races.
$200,000-Guaranteed Pick Four Presented by TVG. Pick the winners of the day’s final four races.
Sunrise Trackside. Want to experience the sights and sounds of Keeneland many don’t get to see? Sunrise Trackside, sponsored by LEX18 and Dunkin’ Donuts, offers activities for all ages beginning at 7 a.m. Fans can enjoy Breakfast With the Works, a Southern-style breakfast and trackside commentary while horses train on the main track (until 8:30 a.m.); children’s activities in the Kids Club Corner (7-9 a.m.); guided walking tours of Keeneland (8-10:30 a.m.); demonstration in the Paddock from the Maker’s Mark Secretariat Center (9 a.m.); trackside handicapping seminar (11 a.m.); and a Q&A session with jockey Joe Bravo in the Paddock (11:35 a.m.). Keeneland Bugler Steve Buttleman will be on hand to take photos with fans.
The Keeneland Gift Shop Presents: Christine A. Moore trunk show from 9 a.m.-6 p.m.
Craft Beer Tent. Located on the North Terrace patio, the popular Craft Beer Tent offers a special selection, including Blue Stallion, Country Boy, Fat Tire, Kentucky Ale, Land Shark, Shock Top, Sierra Nevada, Sweetwater and Woodchuck Hard Cider.
Guaranteed $300,000 All-Stakes Pick Four: Pick the winners of the Commonwealth (G3), Shakertown (G3), Central Bank Ashland (G1) and Toyota Blue Grass (G1).
Guaranteed $300,000 All-Stakes Pick Five: Pick the winners of the Madison (G1), Commonwealth (G3), Shakertown (G3), Central Bank Ashland (G1) and Toyota Blue Grass (G1).