Dollase Is King of the Road

Wally Dollase’s horses have been virtually nonexistent at Del Mar--a rare starter, Bare Necessities, ran third on Sunday’s undercard--but on the road the Hollywood Park-based trainer has been racking up some important wins.

Dollase worked Good Journey a fast five furlongs on dirt at Hollywood Park on Aug. 26, gave the 6-year-old another five on Woodbine’s grass last Tuesday, and Sunday they combined with jockey Pat Day to win the $1-million Atto Mile, Canada’s richest race.

The Woodbine grass race was Good Journey’s fourth consecutive win, a streak that started with the Citation Handicap at Hollywood Park in November. Good Journey’s next two wins came at Churchill Downs, the most recent in the Firecracker Handicap on July 4.

“This horse runs good fresh,” said Dollase, explaining the three-month layoff. “There was no mile race to run him in between [the Firecracker] and this one, so I figured, what the heck, let’s just train him up to this.”

The second choice behind the 5-2 Noverre, one of Europe’s best milers, Good Journey finished the course in 1:33 1/5 to win by one length and pay $8.40. Noverre finished sixth in the 13-horse field as the filly Chopinina, at 55-1, ran second and Nuclear Debate, a shipper from Del Mar, was third at 16-1 in his first start beyond 6 1/2 furlongs.

Good Journey is owned by a partnership that includes Mike Jarvis, Gary Margolis and Flaxman Holdings.

“I felt like I could pass the filly [Chopinina] at any time,” said Day, who thought he had won the same race in 1999 with Hawksley Hill, but was disqualified by the stewards in favor of Quiet Resolve, who was no factor in Sunday’s running.

Darrell Vienna, who trains Nuclear Debate, started the 19-10 second choice, Janet, in Sunday’s $150,000 Palomar Handicap at Del Mar, and after difficulty loading, the 5-year-old mare contended early before finishing sixth. Voodoo Dancer, the New York shipper and 6-5 favorite, won the Palomar by two lengths over the 23-1 I’m The Business, with Skywriting finishing third.

Voodoo Dancer, ridden by Kent Desormeaux, made her first start at Del Mar since running fourth in the Del Mar Oaks last year. Sunday’s win, her ninth in 15 starts, came in 1:41 2/5 for 1 1/16 miles on grass.

“This filly put me in a nice spot at a critical moment on the first bend,” Desormeaux said of Voodoo Dancer, who overtook Skywriting in mid-stretch.

In another Del Mar stake, the $82,050 Torrey Pines for 3-year-old fillies, Habibti, last year’s Del Mar Debutante winner, made her first start in four months and finished fifth at 3-5 as Got Koko, a Texas-bred ridden by Alex Solis for trainer Bruce Headley, won by 1 1/2 lengths.

*

Atoning for a loss in Sacramento two weeks ago, Black Ruby beat her frequent nemesis, Taz, by about two lengths at Del Mar in a $10,000, non-betting race between the mule breed’s top two performers. Officially, the win was the 48th in 55 starts for the 10-year-old Black Ruby, who unofficially--counting races that don’t appear on her record--has earned more than $200,000.

Time for the 400 yards was 23 1/5 seconds. There will be a rematch, with betting, Saturday at Fairplex Park in Pomona, where the Los Angeles County Fair meet opens Friday.

*

Zippy Chippy, the winless 11-year-old gelding, lost his 95th race, finishing fourth, 15 lengths behind the winner, Mr. Peanut, in a $3,100 maiden race at the Northampton Fair in Massachusetts. Zippy Chippy, who went off at 9-1 in a seven-horse field, earned $185.... When Good Journey runs in the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Arlington Park on Aug. 26, he’ll have to beat Rock Of Gibraltar, who’s won 10 of 11 starts after a half-length win over Banks Hill, last year’s Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare winner, in the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp in Paris. Rock Of Gibraltar is expected to run one more time, in England, before the Breeders’ Cup.