HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla.--Michael Matz saddled Amy N. Moore's Beale Street to win a $51,000, 1 3/16 mile Allowance race on the turf at Gulfstream Park by 1/2 length on Feb. 23.
"I was pleased with her," said Matz. "She's probably run about 10 times, and she's been pretty consistent."
Beale Street has run 10 times with two firsts, two seconds and four thirds and earnings of $98.970.
"This was the first time we stretched her out," said Matz. "Maybe we'll stretch her out again. Johnny (Valazques, her jockey at Gulfstream) said she could run all day. Maybe we'll try a stakes at Keeneland. There's a 1 1/2 mile stakes there at the end of the meet. We'll take a look at the entries and see how she'll fit there.
"She's a nicely bred filly," said Matz. "If we can put some black type on her, she would be worth quite a bit of money."
Beale Street is a 4-year-old filly by Quality Road out of Striking Tomisue, by Smart Strike.
BERNIE HOUGHTON saddled four winners from Feb. 1 to 22, one for himself, one for his sister and two for his mother, all Pa-bred homebreds.
The Houghtons will collect a nice amount of breeders' awards, particularly his mother Elizabeth (Betsy) R. Houghton,, whose Sylmar Farm in Christiana, Pa., breeds numerous mares each year ,selling most of them, then sitting back to collect the breeders' awards.
"We call it mailbox money," said Betsy. "We just walk to the mailbox and pick up all the checks for our Pa-breds that we've sold that have gone on to win."
Houghton saddled his own Octoraro Orphie to win a $27,100, 6 furlong Maiden Special Weight race for 3 year olds at Penn National by a nose on Feb. 1.
"He ran one time before and was fourth," said Houghton. "I'm going to try him longer next time, I'll try to find an allowance race for him. I think he's a nice horse."
On Feb. 14, Houghton saddled his mother's Musical times to win a $14,400 , 5 1/2 furlong Claiming race at Penn by 1 3/4 lengths.
"That was his second win," said Houghton of the 3-year-old filly. "She tries real hard. We'll try an allowance race for her next time."
The next evening, Houghton saddled another winner for his mother, Shark City, in a $15,400. 6 furlong Maiden Claiming race by 1 length at Penn.
"We put blinkers on him," said Houghton. "He ran twice before, no good. So we put blinkers on him and he ran great, We;ll run him back at Penn in a Pa-bred race."
Then on Feb. 22, Houghton saddled Spot of Gold for his sister Robin H. Perry to win a $17,000, 6 furlong Maiden Claiming race by a head.
"Robin's in charge of all the book work at Sylmar," said Houghton. "Spot of Gold has run a couple of times. He's been second a couple of times. He's a useful kind of horse."
GRAHAM MOTION had two winners in mid-February, one in an allowance and one in a stakes.
Motion saddled Hillwood Stable LLC and Richard L. Golden's Majestic Reason to win the G3 $250,000, 7 furlong Runhappy Barbara Fritchie Stakes for fillies and mares 4 years old and up at Laurel Park on Feb. 15.
Majestic Reason stalked the pace, took the lead at the sixteenth pole and drove clear to win by 2 1/4 lengths.
Motion also saddled Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners' Duchess of Sussex to win a $50,000. 1 mile Maiden Special Weight for 3-year-old fillies at Gulfstream on Feb. 23.
Duchess of Sussex vied for the lead from the start to take command in late stretch and held on to win by 1/2 length.
Elizabeth Barr bred Brandywines Secret, by Rimrod, who was claimed while winning first time out on Dec. 3, 2016, by Vicki Nightingale and is now owned and trained by Nightingale's husband Elbert Fenimore.
Brandywines Secret won again on Feb. 14 in a $28,900, 6 furlong Allowance Optional Claiming race at Penn.