Frankel, Al Mamoon Followed by a Cloud for Arlington Million

Bobby Frankel would appear to be a trainer with no problems.

According to Daily Racing Form statistics, Frankel’s barn, with divisions at Del Mar and in New York, ranks sixth in the country with $2.5 million in purses.

One weekend this month at Del Mar, Frankel didn’t even have to be there as his assistant, Humberto Ascanio, saddled Aberuschka and Al Mamoon, who swept the stakes card.

On Friday, Frankel’s fleet and undefeated filly, Delicate Vine, won her fourth straight by taking the Arlington-Washington Lassie Stakes here.

Sunday, Frankel’s Al Mamoon will be one of the favorites in a 14-horse field for the Budweiser-Arlington Million at Arlington Park.

But bad things keep happening to Bobby Frankel. There have never been any guarantees about life being easy, but Frankel is beginning to look like the character in the “Li’l Abner” comic strip who walks around with a cloud over his head.

Ascanio and the rest of Frankel’s crew at Del Mar had the easy life this summer. Frankel himself was at Saratoga Springs, N.Y., where his entire string was almost flooded out because of persistent rains. Frankel claimed that Saratoga gave him the worst barns possible.

“The Big Apple!” the Brooklyn-born Frankel says derisively. “It’s a good thing I had already sent Delicate Vine to New Jersey. Otherwise, she would have never been able to win that race at Monmouth Park.”

Frankel had gotten into it with New York racing officials earlier this year at Belmont Park. Saying that his star 6-year-old, Garthorn, was unfairly weighted for the Suburban Handicap, Frankel put the horse on a plane and sent him back to California.

Garthorn, who hasn’t run since he won the Metropolitan Handicap at Belmont May 26, became seriously ill during the flight and was knocked out of training. Last week, Garthorn’s temperature again shot up. That proved to be not so serious, however, and Frankel still hopes to run him once in the Oak Tree meeting at Santa Anita in October before his date in the $3-million Breeders’ Cup Classic Stakes there Nov. 1.

Over the years at the Million, if it’s not one crisis it’s another for Frankel. The first time he saddled a horse in the international race, in 1981, P’tite Tete ran last.

Last year, Al Mamoon ran sixth here, and both horse and trainer were nervous wrecks by post time. A 20-minute delay of the race caused by national television left Al Mamoon dripping with sweat in the walking ring. And Frankel himself had been perspiring all week, being the head of the horsemen’s group that was involved in the federal raid of illegal backstretch employees at Del Mar.

Things aren’t going well for Frankel here this year, either. Unable to get Al Mamoon’s regular jockey, Pat Valenzuela, to come to Arlington from Del Mar to work the horse Monday, Frankel used an exercise rider who was unfamiliar with the 5-year-old chestnut. Al Mamoon was clocked in a snail-like 1:17 1/5 for six furlongs.

For all the good that workout did him, Al Mamoon might just as well have stayed in the barn. Frankel was forced to bring Al Mamoon back for another workout Thursday, and this time the same exercise rider did better, taking him four furlongs in 50 seconds and galloping him out in 1:04 3/5. But now there is concern about the horse’s condition going into the Million because of this unusual training schedule.

After the wasted Monday workout, Frankel was unhappy with himself and with Valenzuela’s agent, Jerry Ingordo.

“The jock wanted to come to work the horse Monday, but the agent didn’t want to,” Frankel said. “The agent was afraid the jock might miss out on riding for a $12,000 purse at Del Mar. We’re running for $600,000 (the winner’s share) Sunday. The jock (whose 10% share would be $60,000) can (almost) make more money in this race than he might make the whole season at Del Mar. (Chris) McCarron didn’t have any trouble getting here to work his horse.”

McCarron, who will ride Captain Valid in Monday’s $500,000 Arlington-Washington Futurity here, flew in from California to work that colt early one morning this week, then caught a 7:30 a.m. flight back to the West Coast.

“When my jock didn’t come, it became my fault,” Frankel said. “I put a girl on the horse who had never been on him before. She worked him too slow. But it was just a mistake--it wasn’t crucial.”

Al Mamoon, who has won four of five races this year, among them a three-length victory over top Million contender Zoffany in the Eddie Read Handicap at Del Mar in his last start, may find the grassy 1 miles of the Million too much for his stamina.

Al Mamoon has not run that far this year, and some of his worst races last year were at that distance. Frankel, who says Al Mamoon won’t run again until the Breeders’ Cup, already has penciled him in for the $1-million Mile Stakes that day.

Teleprompter, the English gelding who stole the Million under Tony Ives a year ago, being permitted to take a leisurely early lead, will be challenged by Al Mamoon this time.

“The jock (Sandy Hawley) didn’t have my horse in the right spot (sixth after six furlongs) last year,” Frankel said. “Teleprompter won’t get away on Sunday.”

Al Mamoon drew the No. 2 post position at entry time Friday for the Million. Frankel would have preferred a spot slightly farther away from the rail, but he’s not complaining.

“Do I have a choice?” Frankel said. “He comes out running, so it’s good. Just as long as he didn’t get anything farther out than eight.”

Teleprompter won last year from the No. 1 post. Lord Derby’s horse got No. 9 this time. Here’s the complete field, starting at the rail:

Divulge, with Jean Cruguet riding; Al Mamoon, Pat Valenzuela; Palace Music, Gary Stevens; Uptown Swell, Walter Guerra; Creme Fraiche, Eddie Maple; Over the Ocean, Cash Asmussen; Estrapade, Fernando Toro; Flying Pidgeon, Jose Santos; Teleprompter, Tony Ives; Pennine Walk, Pat Eddery; Zoffany, Eddie Delahoussaye; Alphabatim, Laffit Pincay; Maysoon, Chris McCarron, and Theatrical, Steve Cauthen.

Al Mamoon, Palace Music, Estrapade and Theatrical will be combined in the betting because of an ownership overlap involving Allen Paulson and Bert Firestone. All the horses will carry 126 pounds, except the mare Estrapade, who is weighted at 122, and the filly Maysoon, at 114. Both have lighter imposts because of sex allowances.

Horse Racing Notes Bill Shoemaker, who rode in three of the first six Millions, winning the inaugural running with John Henry in 1981, doesn’t have a mount in this year’s race. Shoemaker had been riding Palace Music but has been replaced by Gary Stevens after three non-winning races on the 5-year-old chestnut. Charlie Whittingham, who trains Palace Music, replaced Shoemaker on another horse earlier this year, hiring Fernando Toro to ride Estrapade just before her victory in the Beverly Hills Handicap at Hollywood Park. A jockey agent indicated that Nelson Bunker Hunt, who has an interest in Palace Music, had suggested replacing Shoemaker.

Arlington Park will run two stakes today, the $100,000 Arlington Matron and the $75,000 Equipoise Mile Handicap. Zenobia Empress and Oriental are the favorites in the Matron, as are Smile and Taylor’s Special in the Equipoise. . . . Trainer Wayne Lukas doesn’t have a starter in the Million--he’s never had a horse in the race--but that’s about the only stake he will miss this weekend. Lukas, way ahead of Whittingham in a bid for a third straight national training title, has horses running at Arlington Park, Belmont Park, Philadelphia Park, Del Mar, Bay Meadows and Canterbury Downs. And Lukas and Mel Hatley, one of the trainer’s thoroughbred clients, own Some Power Play, a quarter-horse colt who will run Monday in the $1-million All-American Futurity at Ruidoso Downs in New Mexico.

Dave Feldman, who covers horse racing for the Chicago Sun-Times, owns and trains Ghostwriter, a 5-year-old gelding who won a $7,500 claiming race at Arlington this week. Ghostwriter’s parents are Hatchet Man and Writer’s Block.