ERIE, Pa.--Caravel, bred owned and trained by Elizabeth M. (Liz) Merryman, won the $75,000, 6 furlong Lake Erie Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at Presque Isle on Aug. 24.
Caravel winningt he Lake Erie Stakes (Photo by Coady Photography)Caravel has now started three times and won three times, having won a Maiden Special Weight on June 24 and an Allowance on July 28, both 5 furlongs on the turf at Penn National.
Merryman, who has been training for 18 years, keeps her string of horses at the Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland but also has a few mares that she keeps and breeds at her farm in Coatesville,
"I always keep a few mares and breed a couple every year," said Merryman, who said she had been down to just one mare about five years ago and had been looking for another.
"A GIRL who used to work for me, Kim Brett, who, has an incredible eye for a horse, called me out of the blue and said that she knew of a filly that had broken her maiden at Saratoga but then had bowed a tendon, and that she was free to a good home," said Merryman. "I looked up her pedigree and asked around about her and finally agreed to take her sight unseen."
Liz Merryman accepting the trophy at Presque Isle (Photo by Coady Photoraphy)"Her dam had been a really good turf horse, so I decide it looked like a turf family, so I sent her straight to Kentucky to be bred to Mizzen Mast," said Merryman. "I had never seen her until she arrived pregnant at the farm."
"He foal was a lovely filly," said Merryman. "I was going to sell her, but with a mare's first foal I like to see it gets the best care, because the first foal stamps the mare, so I kept her."
"Caravel was late maturing, so I didn't start her a a 2-year-old," said Merryman. "I turned her out for the winter but obviously, when she was ready to run in the spring, there was no racing."
"The mare, Zeezee Zoomzoom, has had three more babies, all perfect conformation, and I stiill have them all," she said. " I have a 2-yar-old by Bourbon Courage named Tipsy Chatter, a stunning yearling by Great Nation and a foal by Holy Boss. I liked the Great Nation foal, so I bred her back to him."
"Caravel was bred to run long, but she won a maiden sprint, so I ran her back in a sprint," said Merryman, saying that each time she started her she had wanted to run her longer but didn't want to change the distance when running against a harder field.
"I'm hoping to run her longer, so maybe I'll run her Preakness day at a mile," she said.
Merryman has two children from her marriage with trainer Ricky Hendriks, McLane and Liza Hendriks.
"My daughter Liza has started an online auction company, Wanamakers.com," said Merryman. "If I decide to sell Caravel, I'd sell her at Wanamakers.com."
Mrryman,, who is on the board of directors for the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association, lives on a farm in Coatesville with her husband, who raises buffalo.
GRAHAM MOTION saddled Bye Bye Melvin to win the $100,000. G3. 1 mile Saranac Stakes on the turf at Saratoga on Aug. 29.
Bye Bye Melvin saved ground while rated off the purse, came under a drive entering the stretch and got up to win by a head.
JONATHAN SHEPPARD had a pair of winners, one at Penn National and one at Presque Isle.
Sheppard's homebred 4-year-old Juluca won a $31,600 Allowance race for fillies and mares 3 years old and up at Penn National on Aug. 26
Juluca, ridden by Andrew Wolfsont, was bumped by Katy the Cat on the first turn, rallied through the stretch and won by 1/2 length.
Flushed, a 4-year-old and also a homebred, won a $30,000, 1 mile Maiden Special Weight at Presque Isle on Aug. 27.
Flushed saved ground while tracking the pace. made a steady gain through the stretch and won by 4 1/2 lengths.
MICHAEL MATZ saddled Bass Stables LLC's homebred Line Dancing to win a $48,920, 1 mile Maiden Special Weight on the turf at Laurel Park on Aug. 28.
Line Dancing stalked the pace,, advanced between horses in the stretch and own by 3/4 length.
