Several Breeze Towards Travers Day

Phipps Stable’s Sightseeing put in the best workout of 11 horses going five furlongs over the Oklahoma Training Track Sunday morning for Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey. In preparation for the Travers, Sightseeing handled five furlongs in 1:00.88, which was 1.14 seconds faster than the second-best workout.

“He breezed nicely,” McGaughey said. “I wanted him to go 49 seconds [for the half] and gallop out in 1:01 [for five furlongs]. For three quarters, I had him out in 1:13 4/5. If everything goes as well as it has been going, he should make a good account of himself. Whether that is good enough or not, I don’t know.”

Sightseeing will take another run at Street Sense after finishing third in the Jim Dandy (G2) here at Saratoga nearly four weeks ago. Sightseeing recorded his first graded stakes victory in the Peter Pan (G2) at Belmont. He was also second to Nobiz Like Shobiz in the Wood Memorial (G1) at Aqueduct and third to Any Given Saturday in the Dwyer (G2) at Belmont Park.

Trainer Larry Jones worked Hard Spun at Delaware Park Sunday in preparation for the $250,000 King’s Bishop Stakes (G1) for three-year-olds at seven furlongs, which is part of the Travers Day undercard. Hard Spun breezed four furlongs in 47.00 seconds over a fast track.

“Everything is a go for the King’s Bishop,” Jones said. “Usually, we work him longer before the race. Because he’s running shorter, we wanted to tune up his speed. He looked really sharp out there by himself.”

Jones will ship Hard Spun to Saratoga tomorrow morning where he will likely be stabled in the stakes barn.
Hard Spun is coming off a second-place finish to Any Given Saturday in the Haskell Invitational (G1). After winning the Lanes End Stakes (G2) at Turfway Park earlier this year, Hard Spun was second in the Kentucky Derby (G1), third in the Preakness (G1) and fourth in the Belmont (G1).

Also working for the King’s Bishop (G1) was Juddmonte Farms’ First Defence. Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel had First Defence go five furlongs over the main track in 59.83 seconds – the third-fastest time of the morning to 2006 Darley Test (G1) winner Swap Fliparoo, who handled it in 59.17 seconds, under supervision of Hall of Fame trainer H. Allen Jerkens.

First Defence has been perfect in both starts this year – an allowance race against older horses at Belmont and the Long Branch Breeders’ Cup Stakes at Monmouth Park.

Grasshopper, who might find himself in the starting gate in Saturday’s Travers, worked six furlongs over the main track this morning in 1:13.86, handily. Grasshopper ran at Saratoga on July 30th and with no trouble, blitzed a field of older, second-level allowance horses. His winning time of 1:49 2/5 in the nine-furlong race earned him a Beyer Speed Figure of 104 and brought his record to 3-1-1 from five starts.

Trained by Neil Howard for owner William S. Farish, Grasshopper is a colt by Dixie Union. Dixie Union finished fourth as the 5-2 favorite in the 2000 Travers behind the Carl Nafzger-trained Unshaded.

“His work this morning was solid,” Howard said. “We were pleased with his last race. I’ve been training him with (the Travers) as a good possibility. We’re looking at the races strictly excluding Street Sense; there’s no sense in paying attention to him. I guess we’re leaning toward running, but these are always hard decisions to make. There are some plusses; it’ll be a short field and he’s got a nice race over the track.”

If Grasshopper bypasses the Travers, he is likely to run in the Pennsylvania Derby Labor Day weekend.

For You Reppo, another potential Travers starter, breezed five furlongs over the main track this morning in 1:01.69. Trained by Helen Pitts, For You Reppo owns one victory from six career starts. He is winless in three races since his Gulfstream maiden score on February 4th.

“From what I was told, he breezed great and galloped out great,” said Pitts, who is based at Churchill Downs. “Right now, I’d say we’re 50-50 to run. If it’s a small field, we’ll take a shot. If there are seven or eight horses, we’ll go someplace else.”

The Ken McPeek-trained Loose Leaf, a definite Travers starter with Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux to ride, walked the shedrow today after he breezed five furlongs Saturday in 1:02.30. Loose Leaf easily won the nine-furlong Lemon Drop Kid here earlier in the meet.

“This is a horse that, the longer you wait, the better,” McPeek said. “If he can stretch out another eighth of a mile, he’ll be fine.”

McPeek has had two Travers starters: Repent, who was second to Medaglia d’Oro in 2002 and Wild and Wicked, who was fourth in 2003.

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