Man, what a summer of PNW racing we had this year! I wouldn’t have traded this summer for anything, regardless of how hectic it was! The Emerald Racing Club made out pretty darn well this year. We had 14 starts over 52 days of racing with 3 wins, 2 seconds and 1 third placing. The club made $24,341 in earnings this year! Not the best year but certainly in the top 5.
We started the season with two wonderful geldings, Sir Looking Glass (2021 Midnight Lute x Victoria’s Hope [Run Away and Hide]) and Warrens Candy Man (Clubhouse Ride x Warrens Veneda [Affirmative]). We also saw the return of Warren’s Memorable (Misremembered x Warrens Amber [Broadway Moon]) to the ERC ownership group, which really rounded out our season for us.
Sir Looking Glass ended up with four starts for the ERC that brought a third place, a second place and two fifth place finishes. Regretfully, Glass ended up with chips in his knees and was purchased by an ERC member for the cost of his knee surgery and will be rehabbing him to eventually become her dressage horse. Hopefully we will get to see him around the local dressage circuit! Sir Looking Glass finished his career with 10 starts total but still a maiden, meaning he never saw the winner’s circle. He did have two second place finishes and two third place finishes.
Warrens Candy Man also gave us quite a fun season as well, although did sometimes have difficulties with sore ankles. Candy Man ran for the Emerald Racing Club five times with one win, two fourth place finishes, a fifth and regretfully and eighth. The club sold Candy Man from one racing career to another; his next career is going to be in chuckwagon racing. He finished his track career with 44 starts with 3 first place finishes, 4 second place finishes and 5 third place finishes, and earning of $137,885.
After retiring Sir Looking Glass, the club was looking for a second horse to fill our roster for the season and it just happened that Warren’s Memorable came up in a claiming race at Emerald Downs on 6/30/2024 and we were able to claim her back to our barn for another fun year of racing for $2,500. Miss Memorable returned to our barn with 42 starts under her belt, 4 wins, 7 seconds and 8 thirds. After leaving our barn last year she had an additional six starts under her belt, and hit the board in 3 of those six starts. Ever the classy gal, Miss Memorable settled right back in to the ERC stable and started for us on 7/13/2024 with a win right out of the gate. Her most exciting race for us was her race on 8/23/2024 where she took second by fractions of an inch. Warren’s Memorable rounded out the Emerald Racing Club season with our final start and final win on closing weekend.
Overall, this was a great year for the club and really made up for last years less than thrilling performance. Preston and I will continue to participate in this fun experience year after year.
In addition to having our own horses running at Emerald Downs every year, Preston and I have a very special interest in one particular horse. His name is A Skip in the Park, better known in our home as Skip. Skip is a very, VERY special horse because there is EVERY intention of making him a Winter Dance Thoroughbred someday, once his race career is over.
For those that may not know, Skip and I have a little bit of history. When we originally looking for a second horse, we had gone to Ellensburg to visit an adorable gelding named Taco, and when we pulled up to that cute little homestead, the first thing I saw was this ADORABLE bay fuzzy baby! I text the seller to let her know we were at the farm and asked if I could pet the baby and she said “Sure. He bites.” I literally could not have cared less. I leapt out of the car to go greet the baby and his beautiful mama. Subsequently, we ended up returning to that farm several times, to meet Ruffi, to bring her home and we became very close with the breeder of Ruff, and that fuzzy little baby, who you might have guessed by now, was Skip.
I was so lucky that I got to watch Skip grow up over that next year and half. I watched him go from a fuzzy butt foal to a gangly weanling and finally a really LOVELY yearling. At one point, I remember standing out on the farm and looking at Skip and then looking at Jen and saying “When that one is done racing, I want him”. And that has never changed. I got to take his yearling photos, I got to be at the auction with him, and I sat through his bidding, crying the entire time, because my baby was being sold. And his buyers, now owners, are great. He is owned by a 4 person syndicate and trained by a kind, smart and truly wonderful trainer.
Skip did not run as a two year old for a variety of reasons but had a VERY successful start on the track at three years old last year. He had six starts with two seconds, one third, two fourths and finally breaking his maiden in his very last start of the year. He returned this year with 8 starts at Emerald Downs and of those 8 starts, 3 were wins, however he didn’t hit the board outside of those wins. We could NOT have been more proud of Skippy. I am at the rail for every race and I have video of him running and screaming my head off for every race. I have gotten to be in 3 of his four win photos and I get to visit him when he is at the track.
2024 ended up being a great year, pulling in a total of 6 win photos across 4 horses we followed closely. I cannot WAIT to see what next year brings us.
Happy Racing and Riding,
A