2011 Cal Cup

This Saturday is the equivalent to the Breeders Cup for anyone involved in racehorses bred in the state of California. There are a few horses that are participating that were debating whether or not to run here or in next weeks Breeders Cup. One of them, Unzip Me, Team O’Neill is going to make wish she went back east to the Breeders Cup by beating her with California Nectar. It should be an exciting day of racing. I hope you can all make it out and bring some friends along for fun at the track and to pay tribute to all the farm owners, breeders, trainers, grooms and everyone else who make California horseracing what it is.

Team O’Neill’s New Claimer, Shy Humor-

Shy Humor is a two year old son of Sharp Humor he lead most of the way yesterday and just got a little bit tired the last sixteenth of mile. Paul and Zillah Reddam put up the $75K plus tax to claim him and we are all very happy with him back at our barn. We look forward to him breaking his maiden over at Hollywood Park and going up the ladder from there. 

Premiere Night for “And They’re Off”

Not that long ago I was approached by a big time moviemaker (ok maybe this is the first movie he has ever done) and was asked some questions about my daily life as a trainer. He kept saying to me, “God you remind me a lot of Dusty.” Little did I know, the character he was referring to is a struggling horse trainer, whose loved ones are trying to convince him to change careers. Though the director passed me over for the part of Dusty and instead gave it to Sean Astin, he did let me have a couple lines; hopefully, I didn’t end up on the editing room floor. The premiere is tonight in Hollywood; I’m pulling my prom tux out of the mothballs and will be sitting in the front row with my popcorn and slushie.  

Robert Master’s Farm

Robert has campaigned stakes horses such as, Score With Cater and Bench The Judge to name a couple. He has just recently purchased and refurbished some acreage in the beautiful Big Bear area and he has begun to design a half-mile track on the property. Though we are never looking to see our horses to the farm to get laid up, keep Robert’s place in mind when that time arises. I have one of my own horses laid up there and have been very happy with the care and communication. Good luck on your new endeavor, Robert.

The Final Couple Weeks of Santa Anita Fall Meet (formerly known as Oak Tree)

It was good to read that business at the current meet is up from the last couple years. As we look around and see so many other things going sideways or downwards, it is nice to see a little up tick in our local horseracing business. Chris Quinn, the head of it seems like just about everything here at Santa Anita, continues to implement and think of new ways of getting people out at the races. If you have and suggestions, let me know and I will let him know. Lastly, Chris has designed a Suite in the Clubhouse section and we are hoping to have that for an upcoming day, before the end of the meet, to hold a little “thank you” barn party. Hope to see you all soon. 

Clocker’s Corner @ Santa Anita

It would be difficult to find a more picturesque and relaxing setting than Clocker’s Corner every weekend morning. It is a great chance to grab a halfway decent breakfast and watch the beautiful horses train. The cast of characters you can mingle with is large- from Jimmy The Hat to Gary Stevens to some of the actors who will appear on the new HBO series, “Luck.” With only a few weekends left before shifting over to Inglewood, see if you can fit it in your schedule to come out and join us for the morning workouts. Great times!

Shooting for the Oak Tree Derby

This afternoon, in the 9^th and featured race of the day will be the 1 1/8^th mile turf event known as the Oak Tree Derby. It is a Grade 2 event and Team O’Neill is proudly represented by California homebred, Thirtyfirststreet, who is ridden by future hall of famer, Patrick Valenzuela. Though he has shown speed in the past, the intent today is to win from off the pace. Here we go?

Team O’Neill Giving Back

     Yesterday, due to having an easy morning in the Team O’Neill Barn, Doug left early to visit the Mattel Children’s Hospital.

     

     Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA ranks among the world's elite institutions for pediatric research, teaching and care. Serving more than 6,000 inpatients and 100,000 outpatients annually, Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA offers a full spectrum of primary and specialized medical care for infants, children and adolescents. Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA is a vital part of the new Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, which continues to be ranked as "Best in the West" by U.S.News & World Report's annual survey of America's hospitals.

  

   Even though Team O’Neill isn’t tearing up the Winner’s Circle at the moment, we do have the ability to turn this around; some people aren’t so lucky. Let’s be thankful for every day we get and especially if those are days that we can spend time with our friends, family and HORSES.

Today In The O'Neill Barn

Scantily Clad is training great- 3/4^ths in  1:12.1 hopefully there will be a race for her soon.

Today at Santa Anita we have two runners, Race 3- WalkingOnaDream and Race 6- Octogarian. They both have good chances. Let's have a winning day.           

Selection Of Jockeys

     Selection of Jockeys- On a daily basis we enter a handful of horses on the Southern California circuit but trying to find the perfect rider who fits our horse is not always easy to do. Because the guys who are on the top of the standings are in high demand, if we wait too long to decide where we are going, we have less of a chance of getting their services. At the same time, some of the top rider’s agents are known to commit early and “spin” you late on day of entry; this happens when they feel like they can ride a better horse. Luckily, here in Southern California we have 5-10 world-class jockeys and a handful of up and coming stars. However, the next time you pick up an overnight and see “so and so” on your horse… he/she may not have been the first choice.