BERRYVILLE, Va.--Leslie Young saddled Leipers Fork Steeplechasers LLC's Tomgarrow, ridden by Gerard Galligsn, to win the 3 mile Open Timber race at the Blue Ridge Point-to-Point on Sunday, April 11 by 35 lengths over Mr. Haire, also trained by Young.
Tomgarrow and Leslie Young's son Rory before the Open Timber raceLast year's Timber Horse of the Year, Curve of Stones, was also entered in the race but was pulled up, skipping the last fence.
"Tomgarrow ran over hurdles, and then we converted him to timber last fall," said Yonng. "He won a timber race at Shawan point-to-point and then we ran him in Georgia in a recognized race, and he won there, too, so he's now eligible for a non-winners of two."
"Originally, we were just going in that race for a nice, easy gallop," said Young. "We just wanted to get a race into him before Middleburg. We were just going for a nice gallop around. Gersrd said he never pushed him Hopefully that puts him right for Middleburg. I put Mr Haire, a maiden, in it, just to give him a trip over timber."
Despite Young saying Tomgarrow was in just for an easy gallop, Tomgarrow finished in 6:48 4/5, just 13 seconds slower than the fastest timber race of the day, the Novice Timber, won by Lisa Nelms' Arkadag, trained by David Bourke and ridden by Galligan, who won by 1 3/4 lengths over a field of four.
Curve of Stones pulled up well, said Young, and presumably was just in the race to get a 3 mile gallop into him.
Galligan rode three winners on the day, also winning on Pathfinder Racing's Milton Road,, trained by Neil Morris, in the 1 1/8 mile Maiden Flat race over a field of six and on Morgan's Ford Farm's River Deep, trained by D.M. Smithwick , who won a flat race by a neck over a field of five.
THAT WAS one of five wins for trainer Morris, who also saddled Kinross Farm's Junonia, ridden by Bryan Cullinane, to win the Amateur/Novice Ride Hurdle by 5 lengths over a field of three, Irv Naylor's Family Tree (GB), ridden by Graham Watters, to win the Open Hurdle by 1 length over a field of four, Nalylor's Choo Choo, ridden by Cullinane to win a flat race by 1 1/4 lengths and William Russell's Animal Kingdom, also ridden by Cullinane, to win a flat race bu 6 lengths.
Casey Pinkard Savin saddled two winners, The Filbert Family's Team Tim, ridden by Eddie Keating, to win the Maiden Hurdle by 8 lengths over a filed of four and EHB Racing's Huyana, ridden by Keating, to win a flat race by 8 lengths over a field of four.
Julie Nafe continued her winning ways in the Side Saddle race, riding her Sky Babe to win by 1 1/4 lengths over a field of three.
