Horse Racing : Profitable Habits Die Hard in Louisville’s Old Kentucky Homes

One of the fears Breeders’ Cup officials had before they approved Churchill Downs as the site for their seven-race, $10-million extravaganza was that Louisville hotels might gouge visitors the way they have been doing for years during Kentucky Derby week.

It is somewhat disconcerting to be renting a room in Louisville for about $70 a day during the early part of Derby week, then have the price of the same room soar to as much as $200 a day for Thursday, Friday and Saturday of the week. The only thing a hotel guest gets for the extra money is slower service.

And if a fan can only manage to be in Louisville for the Friday and Saturday of Derby week, he still must pay for Thursday, as part of a required three-night package.

Breeders’ Cup Ltd. was assured by Churchill Downs that Kentucky Derby fleecing wouldn’t be prevalent during Breeders’ Cup week, so a contract was signed and the seven races will be held in Louisville on Nov. 5.

But now, the hotels are having second thoughts.

One of Louisville’s largest privately owned hotel chains is accepting reservations at reasonable rates for Breeders’ Cup week, but with this caveat:

“These rates are subject to change on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, if we decide to put together three-night packages like we do for the Derby.”

When would they know?

“We’re trying to find out from Churchill Downs if they’re going to run any big races on the Thursday and Friday of that week,” said a hotel spokesman. “If the races those days are good enough, then people would be willing to come and stay for all three days.”

That puts Churchill Downs in an unenviable position. In order not to renege on its commitment to the Breeders’ Cup, it must run inferior races.

Of the seven major preps for the Kentucky Derby, the only one that’s a handicap is the San Felipe, which will be run Sunday at Santa Anita.

Tejano, winner of three major races last year and second in his only 1988 start, is the co-high weight with Lively One at 122 pounds. Lively One’s development since making his debut last November has trainer Charlie Whittingham and jockey Bill Shoemaker saying unusually strong things about his Kentucky Derby potential.

There are six other starters. In post-position order, the field consists of Mi Preferido, with Chris McCarron riding; Purdue King, Fernando Toro; Please Remit, Sandy Hawley; Lively One, Bill Shoemaker; Tejano, Laffit Pincay; Saratoga Passage, Joe Steiner; What a Diplomat, Gary Stevens; and Jet Charlie, Jorge Velasquez.

The rest of the weights are 119 pounds apiece for Mi Preferido, Purdue King and Saratoga Passage; 117 for Please Remit and What a Diplomat; and 113 for Jet Charlie.

Finishing second in the San Felipe has frequently been a good omen for Derby horses. Tomy Lee in 1959, Lucky Debonair in 1965, Gato Del Sol in 1982, and Alysheba in 1987 were second in the Santa Anita race, then won the Derby.

Carotene, the 5-year-old mare who beat males at 28-1 in the Pan American Handicap at Gulfstream Park Feb. 28, is back in California, with her trainer, Roger Attfield, who is aiming the Canadian-bred at the $400,000 San Juan Capistrano Handicap at Santa Anita April 24.

Carotene, who was 22-1, and running with an anti-bleeding medication for the first time when she won the Yellow Ribbon at Santa Anita last fall, will be the starting high weight at 122 pounds today in the $100,000 Santa Ana Handicap for fillies and mares.

Anka Germania was also assigned 122 pounds, but she isn’t running. Carrying second-high weight is Invited Guest, who will make her first start of the year under 120 pounds.

Another Canadian-bred, Regal Classic, is considered a top Kentucky Derby candidate, but his training was sent off schedule when he caught a virus in Florida.

Trainer Jim Day is now planning only two Derby preps--both at Keeneland--for Regal Classic. He will run in the Lafayette April 8 and the Blue Grass April 28.

Regal Classic didn’t win a race in the United States last year, but he was second in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile at Hollywood Park and finished third as the favorite in the Hollywood Futurity.

En route to winning the Kentucky Derby with Carry Back in 1961, owner-trainer Jack Price won the Florida Derby on a sloppy track.

Carry Back won that day while wearing stickers, a special type of calked shoe that sometimes helps horses grab the surface on an off track.

“I had never heard of stickers before that race,” said Price, who grew up around small tracks in Cleveland. “But when I heard another trainer in the race was using them, that was good enough for me, so I put them on the horse.”

In 1980, Temperence Hill, the only horse in the field wearing stickers, won the Belmont Stakes. His trainer Joe Cantey, had fitted the colt with them on the advice of Woody Stephens.

Does that mean that Stephens has sort of won six Belmonts instead of just five?

Horse Racing Notes

Talks apparently are heating up between the Ladbroke Racing Corp. of England and Hollywood Park for the sale of Los Alamitos Race Course. Ladbroke owns Detroit Race Course and recently was granted a license to build eight off-track betting facilities in Wyoming. A recent preliminary ruling by a Superior Court judge indicates that a voter-approved measure that restricts commercial development of the Los Alamitos property may be invalid. Only about half of the 300 acres at Los Alamitos are necessary for the operation of the race track.

Hollywood Park, which marks its 50th anniversary on June 10, would like to run the races at night on that date, but the track is getting resistance from horsemen, who fear that approval of one night racing card might lead to others. . . . It’s unlikely that they’ll ever run against each other, but how would a track announcer handle the call of a race involving Notebook and Note Book? Notebook is a top 3-year-old colt, and Note Book is a recent arrival at trainer Vivian Pulliam’s barn at Santa Anita. Note Book is a Brazilian-bred who has won two of four starts.

Angel Cordero has gone back to Aqueduct to ride, and Russell Baze, who has won 15 straight titles at Bay Meadows and Golden Gate Fields, is heading for Hollywood Park when Golden Gate closes June 26. . . . Discounting Breeders’ Cup days, Woodbine will become the first track to run two $1-million races in the same year. Because Arlington Park is being rebuilt after a fire, Woodbine will have the Arlington Million Aug. 20 and the Toronto-area track is inaugurating the $1-million Molson Export Challenge for 3-year-olds Sept. 11.

Hopeful Word, a thoroughbred who earned $1 million, is being advertised as a stud for both thoroughbreds and quarter horses. . . . The stakes schedule for the Hollywood Park season beginning April 27 includes the Hollywood Invitational May 30, the Californian June 12, the Hollywood Gold Cup June 26 and the Sunset Handicap on closing day, July 25. There are nine other major stakes on the schedule. The Invitational, which has been run as a 1 1/2-mile grass race since 1969, has been shortened to 1 miles.