COLUMBUS, N.C.--Leslie Young saddled two winners, including Go Poke the Bear in the featured Ratings Handicap Hurdle, at the Tryon Block House Races on Saturday, April 13.
Go Poke the Bear winning at Colonial Dowsn (Photo by Coady Photograph) Go Poke the Bear, owned by a Syndicate and ridden by Jamie Bargary. won the $25,000, 2 mile Ratings Handicap Hurdle by 1 1/2 lengths in 3:39, the fastest time of the day, over Rocket One, trained by Jack Fisher.
"He was a classy flat horse," said Young of the 8-year-old gelding who was an allowance winner at Gulfstream. "He won last year at the Queens Cup and at Colonial Downs. In the fall, we tried a different tactic with him. We tried to rate him, but that didn't work. He does better fresh, He jumped well at Tryon."
"We haven't made up our mind about here he'll go next," said Young. "It depends on how they rate him. If they rate him too high, he might go to a steeplethon."
Young also saddled Green Valley Construction and Ashwell Stable's Tufton Avenue (Ire). ridden by Gerard Galligan, to win the $30,000 Maiden Hurdle by 3/4 length in 3:40 4/5 over Smart Uncle,, trained by Fisher.
"I purchased him from Brian Lenehan,"said Young."He named him after the street the Maryland Hunt Cup is on. This was his first race in America. I've been trying to find him an owner. He'll make a smashing timber horse.
Tufton Avenue had run four times in England over hurdles before Young bought him.
FISHER saddled Riverdee Stable's Jimmy Dan, ridden by Graham Watters, to win the $20,000 Maiden Claiming Hurdle by 8 1/2 lengths in 3:40 4/5 overBeowulf (Ire), trained by Ricky Hendriks.
Icandothat, owned by Vivian E. Rall and trained and ridden by Sean McDermott, won the $25,000 Conditioned Claiming Hurdle by 3 lengths in 3:42 2/5 over Auction Kingdom, trained by Neil Morris.
Hendriks saddled Del Rio Racing's Recent Revelations, ridden by Harry Beswick, to win the Training Flat by 1//2 length over China Beach, trained by Ted Thompson.
