MONKTON ,Md.--Beginning with the Aintree Grand National Saturday morning and the My Lady's Manor in the afternoon, April 15 is a day of top notch steeplechase racing.
Joe Davies sent this photo of soon to be US senator Dan Brewster before winning both races at the My Ladys Manor in 1948 ( 75 years ago )
Had just been Decorated WW2 war hero ( 7 times wounded)
Only Marylander ever to win a Presidential primary in 1964 -
Rode in the Manor again in 1978
Book about him just released April 1st
"Self Destruction- the rise, fall, and redemption of US Senator Dan Brewster " by John W FreceThe $50,000 My Lady's Manor Timber Stakes,,, posttime1:30,, kicks off the three weeks of the top timber races in the world.
The stakes at the Manor and the Maryland Grand National on April 22 lead up to the Maryland Hunt Cup April 29.
Three past winners of the Manor lead the list of five entries, with 2021 winner Vintage Vinnie (Ire), trained by Joe Davies, being ridden this year by Teddy Davies, and 2022 winner Tomgarrow, trained by Leslie Young, being ridden again by Freddie Procter, and 2019 winner Mystic Strike , trained by Todd McKenna with a new rider, Frederick Tett.
Goodoldtimes, trained by Alicia Murphy and ridden by Colin Smith, is running in the Manor for the first time but won the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup in 2021 and was third in the Maryland Hunt Cup last year.
Royal Ruse, trained by Sanna Neilson and ridden by Elizabeth Scully, is another first time starter at the Manor but was second in the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup last year and was fourth in the Maryland Hunt Cup in 2021.
Neither Tomgarrow nor Mystic Strike have run in the Maryland Hunt Cup before, but Mystic Strike has won the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup three times.
Although Vintage Vinnie won the Manor two years ago and was the run away winner of the Maryland Hunt Cup in 2021 as well as last year, Davies said he didn't expect him to win this year.
Davies said he thought other horses in this year's Manor were faster than Vintage Vinnie.
The $20,000 John Rush Memorial, the $20,000 Thomas H. Voss Memorial and the $15,000 John D. Shapiro Apprentice Rider Timber close out the day at the Manor.
POST TIME for the €1 Million Aintree Grand National is 12:15 Eastern, and 50 horses are expected to compete in the challenging steeplechase, including one owned by Brian Hayes, who has horses in training in this country with Arch Kingsley..
Noble Yeats, on the inside with orange sleeves, on his way to winning last year's Grand NationalCorach Rambler, trained by Lucinda Russell, is the favorite at 7-1, having won at Cheltenham twice.
Last year's winner, Noble Yeats, trained by Emmet Mullins, who was the Grand National's first ever 7-year-old winner, is second favorite at 8-1.
Three horses are at 12-1, Delta Work, trained by Gordon Elliot, comes into Aintree after a win at Cheltenham, beating double-Grand National winner Tiger Roll
Any Second Now, the 11-year-old who was last year's runner-up to Noble Yeats and finished third in 2021, joins Gordon Elliott's Conflated and Shark Hanlon's Hewick, the U.S. Eclipse Award winner, as top weights at 11st 12lb.
Gaillard Du Mesnil, trained by Willie Mullins, also comes in after a win at Cheltnham.
Brian Hayes, who is the great nephew of Laddie Sanford, who won the Grand National in 1923, runs horses in this country with Kinsley under the stable name Hurricana Farm.
Arch Kingsley, along with wife Wendy and daughter Taylor, is going to Aintree.
"Wendy, Taylor and I will be there (with the rest of our posse) representing the U.S.," said Kingsley. "Cape Gentleman is the horse, the chestnut in the purple and yellow vertical stripes with a white cap, probably down towards the inside quietly popping away for the first 2 1/2 miles, then we'll just have to see what happens."
Cape Gentleman is trained by Shark Hanlon.
"Shark says Cape Gentleman is in excellent form,"said Kinsley. "Everyone connected with him is happy with him. We think he's a live chance. Either way, win or lose, he's coming to me after Aintree."
