July 6, 2008 — Quelbe Queen turned in an electrifying performance Sunday as she wired the field to win the day’s feature race, the 7 ½ Furlongs Buddhoe Classic for native thoroughbreds, in a time of 1:37.2. Quelbe Queen, who was edged in this same race last year to finish a very close second, rebounded this year to take home the lion’s share of the $5,000 prize money.
"In her last race we messed her up by tinkering a bit with her preparations and she did not respond well — this time I just tell the jockey to drop the reins and let her run her race," said trainer Dean "Shakuma" Isles.
He added, " I heard some people saying, when she was far out front, that she was going to stop, she is going too fast. Well, they were right, she did stop — after the race."
One of the largest crowds of the year at the Randall "Doc" James racetrack saw the "Shakuma" Isles trained filly take the lead, in the day’s sixth race, just as the field passed the grandstand for the first time. With jockey Miguel Sanchez in the irons, the filly set a high cruising speed that the others could not match.
The horse that many thought would have been Quelbe Queen’s main competitor and who could have possibly won the race, King David, got stuck in the gate at the start and was never in the race. Fightforyourright, another who was supposed to give her a challenge, proved to be no match on Sunday. He made something of a move at the far turn, overtaking Bronco’s Jig and seemed to close a little on the lead, but when Quelbe Queen hit the top of the stretch she was gone. She crossed the finish line in front by a comfortable five lengths with Sanchez triumphantly standing in the irons with his hunter raised in salute to the crowd. Fightforyourright with jockey Warren Knight was second, and Bronco’s Jig and jockey Elmo Barnes held on for third.
In the day's second richest race, the Emancipation Handicap, Carse, Velma Dunbar’s grey gelding, wowed the crowd with yet another scintillating performance. In his last start Carse ran the fastest 7 ½ furlongs at the Randall "Doc" James racetrack since 1999. This time the grey blur equaled the track record for a mile in a time of 1:36.1.
It was a run that had many at the track buzzing long after Carse was back in his barn. For the Cruzan horseracing fans, they finally have something to challenge the best St. Thomas has to offer.
This was supposed to be a big step up in class for Carse, but according to his handlers they were not worried. They only wished that the big horse from St. Thomas, Kentucky Kris, was in the race. "I had no problem stepping up in class because I know he was ready," said Trainer Luis Brown.
This race was as dominating a performance as any in recent years. Carse was first out of the gates and he quickly sprinted away from the field. Barnes, the veteran local jockey, appeared to be just along for the ride as Carse set sizzling early fractions of 12, 23, 35, and unmatched for the day, 46 seconds at the half. He went on to post 58.3 seconds for the five furlongs, 1:11 for six, and 1:23 for the seven, on his way to tying the one mile record.
None of the other thoroughbreds in the field could match his pace and relegated themselves to a fight for second place. Idol Worship with jockey Benjamin Lopez in the irons closed well for second and pre-race favorite, Silver Horn with jockey Andy Hernandez aboard was third.
"This race was all Carse and the story should be told as such," according to one fan.
The rest of the day results were as follows:
Race1 5 F Class N-6, Jockey
Time: 1:03.3
1. Emerald Star, Benjamin Lopez
2. Them Ah Talk, Warren Knight
3. Top Shelf, Christian Soto
Race2 1 M Class I-5
Time: 1:41.1
1. Lobito, Alberto Ojeda
2. Tulsa Boy, Christian Soto
3. Puertorican Emblem, Benjamin Lopez
Race3 1 M Class I-4
Time: 1:40.3
1. Prayerful, Benjamin Lopez
2. El Rollo, Alphonso Claudio
3. Big Thunder Reflec, Elmo Barnes
Race4 1 M Open M&F
Time: 1:40.4
1. Trick Hunter, Alphonso Claudio
2. Honor the Queen, Elmo Barnes
3. She’s Got the Helm, Christian Soto
Race5 6F Open Race
Time: 1:27.4
1. Sir Pyy, Andy Hernandez
2. Marfin Express, Angel Viera
3. Crafty Smile, Alberto Ojeda
Race8 1 M Class I-5
Time: 1:39.3
1. Eltish Mota, Andy Hernandez
2. Maridi, Miguel Sanchez
3. Smallest, Alberto Ojeda
