El Conejo field features Idiot Proof
Santa Anita kicks off the new year today with a 10-race noon card featuring a horse named Idiot Proof running in the Grade III, $100,000 El Conejo Handicap.
The name seems fitting going into another year in this often complicated high-tech world because Marty Wygod of Rancho Santa Fe, who owns the horse with his wife Pam, lives by the motto, “Keep it simple.”
Wygod, chairman of WebMD who has made millions of dollars in the medical field, says, “I’m always telling co-workers to make computer printouts easy to read, to make them idiot-proof.”
But it is not only the name that makes Idiot Proof stand out. The horse, trained by Clifford Sise, has a 5-2-1 record in nine starts while earning $830,136. He will carry high weight of 122 pounds in today’s El Conejo, which is the fourth race. Also in the race is In Summation, winner of the Bing Crosby at Del Mar on July 29, who has an 8-5-0 record in 19 races.
Idiot Proof won the Ancient Title Stakes at the Oak Tree meet at Santa Anita before placing second behind Midnight Lute in the Breeders’ Cup Sprint.
Also on today’s card is the Grade III, $100,000 Monrovia Handicap, the eighth, where Society Hostess, a 6-year-old mare is seeking a repeat victory as the 120-pound high weight among 10 fillies and mares.
Another appealing aspect of today’s card is a pick-six carryover of $587,644.
In addition, Gary Stevens makes his debut as an HRTV commentator today.
In Monday’s featured race, the $84,500 Impressive Luck Handicap, 7-1 shot Ever a Friend, ridden by Tyler Baze, was carried extremely wide on the far turn but hung on to beat Bonfante by three-quarters of a length. Favored Night Chapter was third. Ever a Friend paid $17.20 to win.
Another horse with an interesting name is Daytona, the Irish-bred 4-year-old who won Sunday’s Grade II San Gabriel Handicap and may be headed for the Strub Stakes on Feb. 3.
After three successes on grass, Dan Hendricks, the gelding’s trainer, and Alex Solis Jr., who put together the four-person syndicate that owns the horse, said they would like to see how Daytona would fare on Santa Anita’s main synthetic track.
Among those in attendance Sunday to witness Daytona’s impressive win on the turf course was Pro Football Hall of Fame member Dick Butkus. He said his tie to horse racing is that his son Rick went to the same high school as trainer Doug O’Neill, St. Monica in Santa Monica.