August 2003

TWO-YEAR-OLD WINNERS 100%

We ran our first two-year-olds of the season in August and scored victoriously with both starters, for a win percentage of 100% for two-year-old starters. Reade tops the overall list of trainers with a 38% win average, with two-year-olds who have raced since the beginning of the 2002 racing season, to-date.

Woodbine, August 2nd, $60,600, 2yo, f, 5 1/2f, muddy 1:05.9

SILVER BIRD, 115, G f, 2, by Lit de Justice ­ Family Enterprise by Tri Jet. Owner, Jim McAlpine; Breeder, Adena Springs (ON); Trainer, Reade Baker; Jockey, McAleney, Jim. $36,360.
2nd ­ Blonde Executive
3rd ­ Explosive Affair

Silver Bird was the first of the two-year-olds to debut and win a maiden allowance race. On August 2nd, she ran 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:05.9 to score a 3 length victory and a 79 beyer speed rating. Silver Bird is by Lit de Justice out of stakes winner Family Enterprise and was purchased by Jim McAlpine at the Adena Springs’ two-year-olds in training sale in March.

Woodbine, August 8th, $60,600, 2yo, f, 5f, fast :58.3

ONTHEQT, 115, B f, 2, by Mazel Trick - Confidential by Smarten. Owner, Janis Maine and Reade Baker; Breeder, Reade Baker (ON); Trainer, Reade Baker; Jockey, McAleney, Jim. $36,360.
2nd ­ Dream About
3rd ­ Finnerty’s Frolic

Ontheqt was the second two-year-old starter and she was similarly impressive in her debut on August 8th. Ontheqt is by Mazel Trick out of Confidential. This homebred ran 5 furlongs in :58.3 to win by 2 1/2 lengths earning a 79 beyer speed rating for Reade Baker and Janis Maine. Her half brother yearling colt by Ascot Knight sells at Woodbine September 6th, hip #402.

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Yearlings for Sale

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Stall Upgrades

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Fire Safety Education     It was horrible to learn that the horrific fire which raged through barns 7 and 7a claiming the lives of 34 horses last year was the result of arson. In the year following the tragedy, Woodbine Entertainment has taken initiatives to implement fire preventative measures and ensure fire safety awareness around the stable areas. Bob Webb was hired in September 2002 as manager of fire safety. After 33 years with the Etobicoke Fire Department, Bob Webb was heading into retirement until this opportunity presented itself. He now spends his days evaluating, implementing and enforcing fire safety techniques at Woodbine. His primary focus was to educate backstretch personnel on fire safety. Trainers, grooms, exercise riders, and horse walkers attended a mandatory 2-hour presentation. Over the course of the seminar, a short film outlining the nature of fire was shown; new safety rules were discussed followed by a series of questions and answers. The bottom line message was clear: fires can spread relentlessly in a stable area, are usually started by negligence and can usually be prevented by care. The workshop ended with a “hands on” demonstration on how to use a fire extinguisher. Bob Webb, manager of fire safety, teaches stable personnel how to use a fire extinguisher during a mandatory workshop.

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Congratulations to Reade Baker on his election June 21, 2003 as a member of the Jockey Club of Canada. The J.C.C. is dedicated to promoting and improving the quality of thoroughbred racing in Canada. Reade is one of only three trainers in history to be so elected. Look for Reade sporting his J.C.C pin and tie.

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Reade Tops the Two-Year-Old Trainers List

The following is a list of Woodbine’s leading 2-year-old trainers in terms of win percentage, with at least 25 starters since the beginning of 2002.
- Compiled by Ron Gierkink, published in the Daily Racing Form.

Trainer	Wins	Starts	%
Reade Baker	11	29	38
Bob Tiller	10	35	28.5
Jack Nemett	7	25	28
Abraham Katryan	11	44	25
Vito Armata	8	33	24
Sid Attard	11	46	24
Mike Keogh	6	26	23
John Ross	8	39	20.5
Josie Carroll	9	47	19
Malcolm Pierce	5	28	18
Mac Benson	6	27	16
Roger Attfield	9	59	15
Paul Buttigieg	5	33	15
Dove Cotey	9	62	14.5
Mark Casse	27	192	14
Norm McKnight	7	50	14

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Owner of the Month

What started as a joke quietly became a competition amongst owners at the barn as we referred to the client whose payment arrived first as Owner of the Month. We had a few dead heats in June, and honourable mention must go to Peter Ho and Arthur Barkin. Here is a list of owners of the month. Congratulations but most of all, thank you!

Month	Winner	Runner-Up
March	Farr, George	Narine Jai
April	Farr, George	Ho, Peter
May	Farr, George	Narine Jai
June	Farr, George Narine, Jai	Freigman, Leonard Geary, Peter Smithen, Rob
July	Farr, George	Narine, Jai
August	Farr, George	Stronach Stable

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2003 RACING UPDATE ­ by JM

March
Following one of the coldest winters in Toronto, the first day of spring was our first day back in Toronto after almost 4 months in Ocala, Florida. On March 22nd the Woodbine live thoroughbred racing season opened and Elusive Thought got things off to a winning start. She won a maiden allowance race going 5 furlongs to give Reade Baker his first win with his first starter of the season. Bred and owned by Reade Baker and Janis Maine, the grand looking filly is a three year old by Elusive Quality out of Closerthanyouthink. The following weekend was just as exciting as George Farr’s good three year old Bold Executive filly named Regal n Bold, won an allowance race, and Who’s Twining Who came off a winter rest to win at first asking for the partnership of Farr, Sachettii, Hutcheson and Baker.

With racing only on weekends in March, the total starts stood at 9. The scoreboard of 3 wins, 4 seconds, 1 third and 1 fifth, earned Reade second place in the trainer standings at Woodbine for March and a win percentage of 33%.

April
In April we made our way to the winner’s circle three times.

The first winner was by the three-year-old filly Nystar. She won an allowance race on April 18th for her owners Jai Narine and Lloyd Simpson. Nystar is by I Can’t Believe out of Vacation Hop. Reade purchased Nystar on behalf of the partnership as a yearling. On April 19th, Alpha Heat a four year old filly by Alphabet Soup out of Don’t Fear the Heat won an allowance race in dominant fashion. Drawing away from the rest of the field, she scored a 6-length victory going 6 furlongs in 1:11.4 for owner, Stronach Stable. On the 25th, Spitfire Man scored a 2 1/2 length allowance win earning a speed beyer figure of 102. He certainly was impressive. Spitfire Man is a 4-yr-old gelding by Meadowlake out of Parisian Flight.

The score board for April was 7 wins, 6 seconds and 3 thirds for a win percentage of 35%. That put Reade 4th in the Trainer Standings at Woodbine in April.

May
Elusive Thought started off the month of May with a win in the $150,000 added, Fury Stakes race on Sunday May 4th at Woodbine. This is the second win for Elusive Thought in as many starts this year. It was an especially rewarding victory for Reade Baker as breeder, trainer and co-owner with his wife Janis Maine.

This was the second time that Reade Baker trained a Fury Stakes winner. He trained George Farr’s filly named Gonetofarr to win the 2002 running of the Fury. You may be interested to know that Gonetofarr has been bred to Jump Start.

Hour of Justice won the Alywow Stakes on May 31st, to score a total of two stakes winners for trainer Reade Baker in the month of May. Hour of Justice is by Lit de Justice out of Dark Hours. This talented 3 year old is owned by Stronach Stable and is the first stakes winner Reade has trained for the Stronach Stable. Hour of Justice ran twice as a two year old and won both races to finish the 2002 season undefeated. Her 2003 debut came in the Star Shoot Stakes where she was rated during the early part of the race and ended up 1/2 length off the winner at the finish line. In the Alywow Stakes on the turf, Hour of Justice ran along the rail until they turned into the stretch and jockey Jim McAleney asked her to go in between horses, she ran on to win the race by 2 lengths in a gutsy effort.

Along with the two stakes wins, we scored five wins altogether in May. The first winner was Elusive Thought on the 4th followed by Greased Bullet on the 18th for Stronach Stable. The third victory was on the 25th by Regal n Bold for owner George Farr, and then we completed the month with two wins on the 31st, Hour of Justice and Alpha Heat, both owned by the Stronach Stable.

The scoreboard for May looked like this; 13 starters, 5 wins, 2 seconds, 2 thirds, 2 fourths and 2 sixth place finishes. The win percentage for the month of May 38%, and the percentage of runners in May who finished in the money was 84%.

June
Winners in June include Lucky Tom, Regal n’ Bold, Spitfire Man, Real Doll, and Alpha Heat, for a total of 5 wins.

Lucky Tom by Lucky Lionel out of Tomoza kicked off the month winning an allowance race by 2 1/2 lengths going 6 furlongs in 1:11.3. It was exciting to witness Regal n Bold win her third allowance race this year. On June 14th she won by 3 lengths going 6 furlongs in 1:10.4 for owner George Farr. On the 15th, Spitfire Man won his second allowance race this year going 6 furlongs in 1:10.2. It was off to Fort Erie for Real Doll as she got to the wire at the last jump to win the Adena Springs Matchmaker Stake race. Originally scheduled for the turf, the race was moved to the dirt due to the poor condition of the rain soaked turf. Under jockey Frank Todd, Real Doll raced along the rail from off the pace in :57.4 for the 5 furlong event. Owned by Stronach Stable, Real Doll is a three-year-old filly by Known Fact out of Magic Spin. On the final day of June, the 4-year-old filly Alpha Heat by Alphabet Soup out of Don’t Fear the Heat, made her stakes winning debut by capturing the Zadracarta Stakes race for the Stronach Stable.

The score board has Reade Baker at 15 wins to-date including 4 Stakes wins, a 31% win average.

July
July started off with honest competitors for the first three weeks of the month, but it was not until the 20th day of the month when we saw our first of 4 winners.

Hour of Justice scored the first victory, running 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:17.3 Hour of Justice won by 2 1/2 lengths over her competitors. Next to win was a 4 yr old colt by Lit de Justice named Above Justice, out of A Dream Above. Previously trained by Joe Orseno in the USA, this was the first start for Above Justice under trainer Reade Baker. Above Justice won the race by 3 1/2 lengths in a time of 1:45.3 going 1 1/16. Lucky Tom by Lucky Lionel, out of Tomoza, won an allowance race going 6 furlongs on the turf. Under a hand ride, Lucky Tom won the race by 2 1/2 lengths in 1:09.4. The fourth winner in July was on the 27th day of the month with the gelding Fame and Honour by Regal Classic, out of Conquering Angel. Following the race owner Peter Ho was beaming in the winners’ circle with his fiancée Amy Cheong and friends. Fame and Honour won the 7-furlong race by 3 1/2 lengths under jockey Jim McAleney, in 1:24.2.

August
We kicked off the month of August on a very positive note. As of the publication deadline date of August 10th, we ran seven horses.

We had four allowance level winners, two seconds and a third. The first winner was by Silver Bird on the 2nd, Ontheqt and Spitfire Man on the 8th, and Fame and Honour on the 10th. Silver Bird is a two year old by Lit de Justice out of the stakes winning mare Family Enterprise. Bred by Adena Springs and now owned by Jim McAlpine, she is the first two-year old starter in 2003 and the very first horse ever owned by Jim McAlpine. Ontheqt is by Mazel Trick out of Confidential, bred and owned by Reade and Janis, and is the second two-year-old winner in as many starts in 2003 for a win average of 100%. The yearling colt out of Confidential by Ascot Knight sells in the Fasig-Tipton Woodbine Sale. Spitfire Man by Meadowlake out of Parisian Flight won a 6-furlong dash by a neck in 1:10 for the Stronach Stable earning a speed beyer rating of 104, and Fame and Honour was a winner going 7 furlongs in 1:24 for Peter Ho and earning a speed beyer of 85.

Current win percentage stands at 30%, with 77 starts, 23 wins, 14 seconds and 9 thirds.

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Horse Exerciser

As you can see in the photo, our horse exerciser is now completed. There is room for up to five horses at one time. We use the facility to cool out horses after their morning exercise and to jog horses from time to time. Dubbed “the playroom”, horses are led into the individual compartments and left free. There is a screen separating each horse and if one decides to stop for too long while the machine is running, the screen gently nudges the horse and it knows that it is time to move on. The horse can kick alittle, jump around a little, squeal with delight, go nose to nose with the horses on the other side of the screen, and can have a little bit of fun “horsing around” while it cools down without the customary horsewalker to restrict it. The horse knows what its limitations are while in the playroom. A practical advantage for us is that the shedrow is clear, and the riders with horses going out in the next sets are not held up in the shedrow with the typical traffic of horses walking.

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Stakes Winners - Highlights

Fury Stakes
Woodbine, May 4th, $162,750, 3yo, f, ®, 7f, fast 1:24.1

ELUSIVE THOUGHT, 115, B f, 3, by Elusive Quality ­ Closerthanyouthink by Ascot Knight. Owner, Janis Maine and Reade Baker; Breeder, Reade Baker (ON); Trainer, Reade Baker; Jockey, McAleney, Jim. $97,650.
2nd ­ Mountain Dawn
3rd ­ Buffalo Jump
Also ran: Brattothecore, Miss Crissy, Alpha Saphire.

Alywow Stakes
Woodbine, May 31st, $110,000, 3yo, f, 6 1/2f, Turf, fast 1:17.3

HOUR OF JUSTICE, 116, B f, 3, by Lit de Justice ­ Dark Hours by Dynaformer. Owner, Stronach Stable Inc.; Breeder, Adena Springs (KY); Trainer, Reade Baker; Jockey, McAleney, Jim. $66,000.
2nd ­ Teewee’s Hope
3rd ­ Miss Crissy
Also ran: Queen Mindy, Honey Green, Alpha Saphire, Awesome Touch, Smart Angel, Beautiful Baroness, Sweet Storm Creek.

Adena Springs Matchmaker Stakes
Fort Erie Racetrack, June 15th, $60,000, 3yo & up, f & m, 5f, fast :57.4

REAL DOLL, 117, B f, 4, by Known Fact ­ Magic Spin by Lord Avie. Owner, Stronach Stable Inc.; Breeder, Adena Springs (KY); Trainer, Reade Baker; Jockey, Todd, Frank. $36,000.
2nd ­ Freedom Come
3rd ­ Diablo’s Peak
Also ran: Leading Role, Miss Sweep, Whistling Maid, Branksome Hall, Kenzie Girl, Madiera, American in Paris, Call Me Sue, Myway West.

Zadracarta Stakes
Woodbine, June 30th, $107,000, 3yo & up, f & m, ®, 6f, Turf, good, 1:11.4

ALPHA HEAT, 116, Ch f, 4, by Alphabet Soup ­ Don’t Fear The Heat by Dawn Quixote. Owner, Stronach Stable Inc.; Breeder, Adena Springs (ON); Trainer, Reade Baker; Jockey, McAleney, Jim. $64,200.
2nd ­ Freedom Come
3rd ­ Mysterious Affair
Also ran: Heyahohowdy, Spanish Decree, Marisa Go, Quick Blue.

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Winter in Ocala

After spending previous winters in cultural mecca’s like Miami, Toronto, and New York, Reade and I were uncertain how we would be entertained in Ocala, Florida. The longest amount of time we had ever spent in Ocala was five days and that was always around the horse sales and so we had plenty to do. Lo and behold! There is an abundance of fun and interesting things to do in Ocala and the surrounding area. These are a few of our favourite things:

The Wine Bar: Choose your favourite from an excellent selection of wines on the main floor of this two level establishment in the heart of downtown Ocala. Proceed to the moody, hip upper level to imbibe while funky musicians entertain a small relaxed group of patrons with sounds ranging from classic guitar, folk, bluesy jazz and rock classics.

The Livestock Pavilion: Horses, horses and more horses: mountain horses, paints, draft horses, paso fino’s, and riders: western and English of all backgrounds, experience and ages. In a casual outdoor but covered arena events are free and the enthusiasm is contagious. Bring your most comfortable outdoor chair and socialize midst the pizza boxes and beer and wine-filled coolers.

OBS Off Track Betting: Catch thoroughbred racing action from the east coast to the west at the OBS satellite facility. This is a great way to keep informed with all the horse racing action, bet on your favourites, and to meet with other horse racing devotees.

Crystal River: Just a one hour drive from Ocala will place you at Crystal River. Once there, your choices are numerous - rent a canoe or pontoon boat, fish with a guide, or simply take in the sights. There are manatees, osprey nests, catches of fish, and surfacing dolphins to amuse. Wrap up the day by catching the sunset and enjoying dinner at one of the waterfront restaurants.

OBS Sales Pavilion: Not much is needed in the way of description here. Looking to purchase a thoroughbred while at Ocala, other than at Adena Springs, the sales pavilion is the site for you.

Arthur Appleton Museum: Like an oasis, the Arthur Appleton Museum is a welcome and refreshing addition to the Ocala cityscape. It is home to a huge private collection owned by Arthur Appleton, and visiting international collections.

Silver Springs Park: Lush and vast, this park is steeped in history. The main feature is the natural Springs which are best seen from the glass bottom boat ride. The original Tarzan movie was filmed at the park along with numerous Hollywood films and the memories are on display at the park.

Cutting Horses: As the successful bidder of this silent auction item at the Florida Breeders Charity Dinner, Reade had an opportunity to ride a champion cutting horse. The evening started at the farm where the horses were loaded into the trailer and then we proceeded to the practice arena near the Village. Country music played over the sound system as the cattle were released into the arena and one by one, each rider has an opportunity to show their skill at cutting a calf from the herd. After 6 successful cuts, and a few hours of fun, Reade was deemed a real cowboy.

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Congratulations

To our niece Samantha Leach on her graduation from Osgoode Hall Law School.

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New Clients Are Welcome

Contact Reade at 416-207-1783 to discuss training your horses.

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Calendar Of Events

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Reade Baker Racing Stable News

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