GRANTVILLE,Pa.--It doesn't get much better than this - a mother and son own a mare together, breed her and race her daughter in ownership together and, with the son training, win a stakes race.

Simply Stated winning the Penn Ladies Dash Stakes (Photo by Bill Denver)The Houghtons made it a family affair when Simply Stated, bred by Bernie Houghton's WMT Stables and Betsy Houghton's Sylmar Farm, foaled and raised at Sylmar in Christiana, Pa., owned by Betsy and Bernie and trained by Bernie, won the $50,000, 6 furlong Penn Ladies Dash Stakes by a neck at Penn National on Aug. 18.

"She's a nice filly," said Bernie. "I had to find a prep race race for her, so I found an allowance race. I told the jock, `Just take care of her. She has a stake in 10 days.' The plan was to run her right back in this stake.  David Cora just sat on her in the allowance, but she went to the front and won easily."

"I was nervous about this Stakes race, because she's only a 3-year-old, and she was running against older fillies," said Bernie. "I'm going to give her some time now, as she had two races in 10 days. It's hard to find a race for her."

"We own the mare, Sharp and Sassy, together," said Betsy. "We lost her second foal, Beyond the Bend, to a claim, but he's still running and doing good. We have a 2-year-old, half brother of Simply Stated and the mare is in foal now."

 

"SHARP AND SASSY is a nice filly," said Betsy. "She won the first time we ran her as a 2-year-old. She was still growing and immature, so we brought her home and gave her time. The first time she ran this year, Bernie couldn't find a race for her, so he ran her in an allowance against the boys. She ran terrific and was second. Then she ran in an allowance a couple of weeks ago and won easily."

"She was the only 3-year-old in the Penn Ladies," said Betsy. "The filly that was second had won five races. "We were very happy with her."

Sharp and Sassy has now run six times with four wins, one second and a third and has earned $110,108.

 

KERI BRION, who had a fantastic year in her first year of training steeplechase horses, has struggled with jumpers this year, with only four wins from 73 starts, but she's run a lot of horses on the flat and had a break-out day on Aug.19, with two wins in Maiden races and a close second in a Stakes race.

Blue Creek (Photo by Coady Photography)Upland Flats Racing's Blue Creek won a $75,000, 1 mile Maiden Special Weight for 2-year-olds on the turf by 1/2 length at Colonial Downs on Aug. 19.

This was Blue Creek's second race, having finished third in his first start.

Leonard Fusco, Daniel Brackle and Josephine Malta Brackle's Holla At your Boy won a $25,000, 5 furlong Maiden Optional Claiming race on the turf at Delaware Park by 1 1/4 lengths.

Charles Blandfor's Crabs N Beer ran second, beaten just a neck, in the $75,000, 1 1/16 mile Find Stakes on the turf at Laurel Park.

Brion only began training Crabs N Ber this year, and the 4-year-old gelding has finished second twice and once third in three races after previous having won four times with four seconds and five thirds from 19 starts.

 

GRAHAM MOTION has had two stakes wins and three allowance wins in the last week.

Wertheimer and Frere's homebred Dataman won the $100,000, 1 3/16 mile Bald Eagle Derby on the turf at Laurel by 3/4 length on Aug. 13.

Dataman (Photo by James McCue)This was Dataman's second win in three starts this year and first Stakes win.

Eclipse Thoroughbred Partner's Sister Otoole won the $100,0001 3/8 mile CTT and TOC Stakes on the turf at Del Mar by 1 1/4 lengths on Aug. 18.

This was Sister Otoole's second Stakes win and second win in the CTT and TOC Stakes.

Sycamore Hall Thoroughbreds and Hillwood Stables' Hardspun Reason won a $59,760, 1 1/8 mile Allowance at Laurel by a nose on Aug. 18.

Andrew Stone's Eidikos won a $54,600, 1 1/8 mile turf Allowance by 2 1/4 lengths on Aug. 13, also a t Laurel.

Calumet Farm's homebred Sun Bee won a $38,500, 1 mile and 70 yards turf Allowance race by 1/2 length at Delaware Park on Aug.17.

 

McLANE HENDRIKS had three winners, including one for his mother Liz Merryman.

Hasting Farm's homebred Jean Valjean won a $32,000, 6 furlong Starter Optional Claiming race by 2 lengths at Delaware Park on Aug. 17.

Elizabeth Merryman's homebred Mission Man won a $31,000, 7 1/2 furlong turf Starter Optional Claiming race by 4 1/4 lengths at Delaware Park on Aug. 16, and Greyledge Thoroughbreds' Princess Javoncia won a $28,000, 1 mile turf Allowance race by 1 length at Penn National on Aug. 16.

 

MICHAEL MATZ had two Allowance winners, Emory Hamilton's homebred La Traviesa in a $56,010, 5 1/2 furlong Allowance by a 1/2 length on Ag. 12, and Runnymoore Racing's Alla Breve in a 5 1/2 furlong Allowance by 1 1/2 lengths on Aug. 5, both at Laurel.

 

ARCH KINGSLEY saddled Hurricana Farm's Fingal to win a $34,500,1 1/8 mile turf Claiming race at Colonial Downs by 3 lengths on Aug. 19.