willsherun
WILL SHE RUN?
May 27, 2016
cricketheader
Hot Flash!
June 1, 2016
Show all

Goodbye, Cornelio!

cricketheader

Cornelio Velasquez leaves for Florida

FlatteryWillGetYou‘s regular rider, Cornelio Velasquez has decided to move to Florida. He hopes to get more and better mounts down south. During the winter months, he is one of the leading riders in New York… and has even been number one. However, when winter ends, lots of highly regarded snowbird jockeys come back and, while he’s still in the top ten, he’s not where he should be, so he hopes for greener pastures at Gulfstream.

More on that in a bit. First, how was your weekend? Ours was packed full. Had a fun and tasty dinner with good friends who returned after a long stint in Florida on Friday night. Went to a Bar Mitzvah in Riverdale on Saturday and to a film, Love and Friendship, on Saturday night. Then, out for dinner at Tengda with dessert at 16 Handles.

On Sunday, we went sailing out of Calf Pasture Beach in Norwalk. It was the first time in quite a while. At first, there was no wind but when we picked up the wind, we had a lovely sail with Deborah & William for 4 hours. Then we all went out for delicious dinner at Jordan’s.

Yesterday created a lot of anxiety. Based on the position of Flattery‘s race in the Condition Book, we thought it would be the 4th race, giving us plenty of time to get to a dinner honoring our friends. We were the honorary Chairpeople.

Unfortunately, the actual race schedule had us in the 8th race with a post time of 5:13. The dinner in Greenwich was starting at 5:30. With the heavy rain forecast and the end of the Memorial Weekend, we assumed traffic would be very bad. So, even when our friends, Hillary & Bob, were nice enough to allow us to come late to the dinner, we were worried when we’d actually get there. Happily, the weather was good and the traffic light, so we got there by 6:20 pm. We even got to meet up with Jim, so he could join us for the race.

We got to Belmont in time for the 5th race. Our friends, Sheila and Iris (Unfortunately Iris was not there), had their Champion of the Nile running in the 6th race and we wanted to meet them in the paddock before the race. Then, we went to see him run. He ran a fabulous race, running very fast fractions against another horse who faded to last. Champion of the Nile hung in there for 3rd!

The next race saw some old competitors of Hear the Footsteps running in the Mt. Vernon Stakes: King Kreesa, Kharafa, Lubash. They ran 2nd, 3rd and 4th, when Tapitation passed them all to win it. We were in the Trustees Room to watch that race and ran into Cathy and Elliott, fellow horse owners and theater people. They had Miss Matzoball, their Stakes winning filly, in the 9th race, which we couldn’t stay for.

Jim was also with us on Halloween night at Meadowlands in 2007 when Ahvee’s Destiny ran in a small Stakes race called the Witches Brew. I was so nervous, the adrenaline running up my back made me sit down. I was feeling a little like that before our race yesterday.

In the paddock, it was clear that FlatteryWillGetYou was also nervous. Linda told us that her right knee was acting up. Flattery was a little wet and a little harder to handle. This was worrisome. On top of that, I was already looking at the clock and worrying about getting to Greenwich in time. Nonetheless, I placed a win bet on her. At the time, the odds were 5-2 and i didn’t think a Place or Show bet would have any value.

Cornelio comes out in our racing silks which feature our first dog, Cricket. We wish him well in the race and on his upcoming move. We ask him to get her out of the gate fast and not to prompt her left-handed (if he needs to use the crop at all), since she “gets out” (veers to the outside) when he does that.

Off we trudge behind the parade of horses. We go to the owners’ boxes beyond the finish line in the Clubhouse. I an anxious and stoic. The odds move up to 7-2 at post time. She’s the number 2. They’re all in the gate. The bell rings and the gates open.

Flattery is not first but she’s out fast, a good beginning. She settles back in second to the post-time favorite, Bag of Tricks, who seems to be running easy on the lead. They’re past the half-way mark in this 7 furlong contest (7/8 of a mile), when some other horses range up on her outside, Cornelio decides he cannot let them pass, so he goes with them. For a moment, it seems like there are four across the track as they head into the head of the stretch. Bag of Tricks is fading on the inside. FlatteryWillGetYou is taking the lead.

It’s a long stretch. Belmont has the biggest oval in the country, 1 1/2 miles long. So, I know that Flattery has to hold the lead for quite a while. I am anxious to see the finish line or at least the striped rail that precedes the finish line. We don’t notice it during the race but on replay, we see Cornelio prompting her with the crop left-handed and holding her right rein tight, so she doesn’t get out. Flattery is resolute. She has them coming behind her but they never get any closer than her heinie. She wins The Bouwerie Stakes by a length. I jump up, hands raised high. Yay!

Jim tells me my face is all red. Now the stress of the race will disappear. It is replaced by a few thankful tears and a really big smile. Time to make like Clark Kent and put on my racing silks for the Winner’s Circle!

his is the first time one of our horses has ever won four in a row. It was also the highest purse at $125,000. Here’s the race chart:

Comments are closed.