Experience Gives Trainer a Leg Up

Long-time leading trainer Blane Schvaneveldt, a veteran of more than 30 years of racing, felt pressure from younger trainers when the current quarter horse meet opened at Los Alamitos Race Course last April.

Word was that Schvaneveldt’s stable would be suspect this year.

When Schvaneveldt started slowly--only one of his horses won in the first eight racing programs--those younger trainers gained even more confidence.

Well, Schvaneveldt has won nine consecutive training titles at Los Alamitos and shows no signs of slowing down. Nearly 2 1/2 months into the meet, Schvaneveldt leads the list of trainers with 20 victories, ahead up-and-coming conditioners such as Paul Jones and Jaime Gomez. Schvaneveldt has averaged one win per program since mid-May.

“Right now I’m in a fight to stay on top of the standings,” he said. “Hopefully things will continue to go well for us.”

Schvaneveldt’s stable appears to feature several 2-year-olds who could pose problems for the competition in upcoming stakes races.

Foremost on the list is Resonate, a 2-year-old gelding that captured the first race last Friday with the meet’s best 300-yard clocking (15.44 seconds). He finished third in his first race this year.

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Schvaneveldt has been appointed to serve on the American Quarter Horse Assn. racing council. The 10-member council recommends ways to promote and expand quarter horse racing at more than 100 tracks in North America.

Schvaneveldt, a resident of Cypress, will have a three-year term. He will be charged with representing the interests of the West Coast, and particularly California.

California is home to more than 400 quarter horse farms and ranches with a current market value of more than $430 million. More than a million spectators, largest in the nation, attended California quarter horse races last year.

The AQHA claims 315,000 members and 3.5-million registered horses with annual purses topping the $50-million mark in 1996, 20% of which were generated in California.

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It’s a busy weekend at the track, with several big stakes races on tap.

The 26th running of the $150,000 Vessels Maturity for 4-year-olds is tonight at a distance of 400 yards. Saturday’s card includes the $150,000 Governor’s Cup Futurity for 2-year-olds run at 350 yards.

The winner of the Vessels earns a berth in the $300,000 Champion of Champions on Dec. 21. Defending Champions winner Dashing Folly, who will also run in the Vessels, earns an automatic berth to the Dec. 21 race.

Dashing Folly trainer Donna McArthur is confident in sending her filly out in the Vessels against Watch The Pie, which stopped Dashing Folly’s 10-race winning streak June 13.

“[Watch The Pie’s people] feel they have the best mare on the grounds and that’s how I feel about Dashing Folly,” McArthur said.

Also tonight, trials for the $120,000 Golden State Derby for 2-year-olds are slated to be run over 440 yards. The finals will be July 11.

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The $20,000 Independence Day Handicap is July 4, followed a day later by the $75,000 Gold Rush Derby for 3-year-old distance horses over a course of 870 yards.

The gelding Stevedore turned in the fastest time in Gold Rush trials.

“The derby finals are going to be a lot of fun because this horse is getting better and better with each start at this distance,” said Adolfo Rodriguez, Stevedore’s trainer.

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Even though the rail is supposed to be the best place for a horse to race, it took 28 races over 870 yards before a horse won in that position. It happened in Gold Rush trials when Timothy Pilot became the meet’s first winner from that post. Running in the third of four heats, Timothy Pilot posted the third-best time of qualifiers (45.56) behind Stevedore (45.25) and the filly Loca Chica (45.36).

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Jockey Guillermo Gutierrez, once the leading thoroughbred rider at the track, is back after almost two years trying to rehabilitate his left shoulder. He says if things go sour again, he will retire.

Pins were placed in Gutierrez’s shoulder after a spill during the 1995 meet and he missed most of the season.

His first comeback attempt in early 1996 was too soon, according to doctors, and it eventually led to more surgery. He sat out the remainder of last season and returned to Tijuana last summer to help his family build a house.

After just a few weeks back at the track in the spring, he re-injured the shoulder for the third time. But Gutierrez is confident this time is the charm.

“I’m ready to ride this time and this is the best my shoulder has felt in more than a year and a half,” he said.

The Los Alamitos Notebook runs weekly during the summer. Suggestions are welcome. Call (714) 966-5904, fax 966-5663 or e-mail Paul.McLeod@latimes.com