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'Triple' challenge at Montpelier
MONTPELIER STATION — Call it his "Triple" challenge: To win Saturday's Noel Laing stakes, Triple Dip had to last the testing 2 1/2 miles round the unrelenting swells of the historic Montpelier estate racecourse — longer than he's ever raced.
He had to negotiate 11 tall, natural hedges, similar to but patently unlike the American national fence he'd jumped in a dozen prior starts.
The biggest roadblock of all? Blocking the way to his $40,000 victory was the unvanquished king of Montpelier, Mon Villez, a horse going for his fourth consecutive Laing victory.
Triple Dip was up to the challenge.
Though Joe Henderson's 5-year-old son of Storm Broker spent much of the year on the injured reserve list, the bay gelding came out swinging Saturday, rating patiently behind the pace of front-runner Preemptive Strike, warding off a last fence challenge by Mon Villez and weaving through traffic in the late stretch to notch his first stakes score.
Liam McVicar rode the winner for trainer Jimmy Day.
"He's had a tough year," said McVicar in a bit of an understatement.
Triple Dip won a point-to-point last spring and broke his sanctioned maiden in tough company at the Virginia Gold Cup meet. He was unplaced in one start last fall, then was injured in a pasture accident at Day's Millwood farm in November.
And that wasn't all. Immune system compromised by a hip injury, Triple Dip came down with EPM, a sometimes fatal disease that affects the horse's spine and nervous system.
Day was right to be concerned. "He just wasn't right," he said, noting that they treated Triple Dip with medications plus chiropractic and acupuncture for more than six months, only getting the talented horse back to full work in time for a late fall campaign.
Though he tripped over a falling horse at the Oct. 18 Gold Cup, he finished second at a point-to-point last week, proving to McVicar and Day that Triple Dip was finally back on track.
"The Laing seemed like a good choice," Day said. "I knew he wouldn't be bothered by the natural hedges. And I like the distance." At two and a half miles, the Montpelier feature rewards stamina coupled with speed.
Day said that Triple Dip's next target could be the Nov. 16 Colonial Cup. A $150,000 stakes over big, stuffed brush hedges similar to Montpelier's natural course, Day said he thought the 2 3/4 miles would suit the local runner. "He beat a serious field of horses here today," Day said. "I really like this horse."
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Note: For complete race results, look at this story online at www.Fauquier.com. Click under Sports, then Horse Sports.
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Results
Training flat. 1 mile. Time: 1:46 4/5. 1. Poplar Grove, o/Kinross Farm, r/Matt McCarron; 2. E Racer, o/Kinross Farm, r/John Delaney; 3. Pan Adam, o/r Michael Harris.
Conditioned hurdle. Purse: $15,000. 2 3/8 miles. Time: 4:38 2/5. 1. Humdinger, o/Kinross Farm, r/Matt McCarron; 2. Zozimus, o/Dale Theil, r/Jody Petty; 3. Algezir, o/Bill Wofford, r/Jeff Murphy. 9 started.
Maiden claiming hurdle. Purse: $10,000. 2 3/8 miles. Time: 4:42 4/5. 1. Bounding Cat, o/Janet Elliot, r/Richard Spate; 2. Meshwaar, o/Doris Brooks, r/Gregg Ryan; 3. Simon, o/Terrrapin Stables, r/Xavier Aizpuru. 14 started.
Maiden distaff hurdle. Purse: $10,000. 2 miles. Time: 4:15 4/5. 1. Wolf Shadow, o/Peter Jay, r/Jody Petty; 2. Swallow Creek, o/Tria Dove, r/Nick Carter; 3. Scandalizer, o/Peter Hitchen, r/Richard Spate. 7 started.
Maiden hurdle. Purse: $15,000. 2 miles. Time: 4:07 3/5. 1. Right Hand Red, o/Ivy Hill Stable, r/Billy Santoro; 2. Jimtown, o/Julia Thieriot, r/Rod MacKenzie; 3. Coupe De Ville, o/Eldon Farm, r/Paddy Young. 12 started.
Allowance hurdle. Purse: $20,000. 2 3/8 miles. Time: 4:30 2/5. 1. Hawk Hill, o/Stewart Strawbridge, r/Jody Petty; 2. Ordered to Listen, o/Kinross Farm, r/Liam McVicar; 3. Gigger, o/Kinross Farm, r/Matt McCarron. 9 started.
Noel Laing brush stakes. Purse: $40,000. 2 1/2 miles. Time: 5:10 2/5. 1. Triple Dip, o/Joe Henderson, r/Liam McVicar; 2. Orison, o/EMO Stables, r/Matt McCarron; 3. Preemptive Strike, o/Polaris Stables, r/Jody Petty. 8 started.
Training flat. 1 1/2 miles. Time: 2:43 3/5. 1. Dark Equation, o/Peggy Steinman, r/Matt McCarron; 2. Artists Stroke, o/Diana Gillam, r/Bernie Dalton; 3. Commodore, o/ Nick Arundel, r/Xavier Aizpuru. 6 started.
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