STRONG BLOODLINE
“Winning two
Trainer Jimmy Jerkens is a chip off the block.
Breeders’ Cup races
By Sean Clancy
has been terrific. I got lucky”
“EXPERIENCE THE BEST OF HORSE RACING” AT THE RACES By Sean Clancy You don’t have to brave the crowds at the Kentucky Derby to experience the best of horse racing. Here are few of the sport’s premier tracks. Keenleland Keeneland combines old-world tradition – many scenes from the 2003 film Seabiscuit were filmed there – and progressive talent to produce some of the best racing in the world. Buoyed by the sales, the racetrack offers a festival every April and October. The three-week meet in April attracts college students and hard-boot Kentuckians. It’s a rite of passage, the sign that spring has arrived in Lexington. Saratoga The six-week meet in Saratoga Springs, New York, runs from late July to Labor Day. Horses converge from around the country to produce superlative racing action six days a week. Pack your hat and your wallet, and stay in town to enjoy the nightlife of a historic resort town in the Adirondacks. Del Mar Southern California’s version of Saratoga, Del Mar is “where the surf meets the turf,” as the saying goes. The racing isn’t as good as Keeneland and Saratoga, but there is not a more picture postcard perfect setting in which to take in the action. Breeders’ Cup World Championships The Super Bowl of racing visits a different track every fall, in late October or early November. Racing enthusiasts will be California dreamin’ in 2008 as the race, which crowns champions in all divisions, opens its gates at Santa Anita.
J
immy Jerkens lives in his father’s shadow. That’s because dad is legendary trainer Allen “The Chief” Jerkens and just about everybody in racing walks in his shadow. In 1975, he became the youngest trainer inducted into the horseracing Hall of Fame. Today, he’s 78 and still going strong, winning premier races from Saratoga to Gulfstream Park. And, it seems, he’s passed the magic touch on to his son. At 48 years old, Jimmy recently collected his second career Breeders’ Cup victory when he saddled Centennial Farms’ Corinthian to win the first edition of the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile on October 26. To put a Breeders’ Cup victory in perspective: the Chief has never won one. For Jerkens, who worked for his father until 1997, it was a moment when he wasn’t just Allen Jerkens’ son. “The Chief. He’s one in a zillion. I worked for him like it was my own outfit. He knew it. He appreciated it. We won a lot of good races,” Jerkens said. “Winning two Breeders’ Cup races has been terrific. I got lucky. Both horses just trained up to the race perfect and at the right time.” An enigmatic colt, Corinthian never made anything easy for Centennial or Jerkens. Nerves could sometimes lead to melt downs. Jerkens learned to ice Corinthian’s nerves from the moment he walked into the horse’s barn two years ago. The gifted chestnut colt retired with six wins and more than $1.2 million in earnings. He will stand stud at Gainesway Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, retiring a winner. The $1 million Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile was run at a mile and 70 yards, due to Monmouth Park’s configuration. Out of the gates, jockey Kent Desormeaux settled Corinthian in fourth position, inside Discreet Cat, just off Wanderin Boy. Desormeaux guided Corinthian along the rail, streaking past Discreet Cat, before making a move outside the pace setter, Gottcha Gold. In the mud and slop, Corinthian ran to a 6 ½-length victory over Gottcha Gold. The Chief, at home in Bellerose Terrace, New York, cheered all the way.