Owner View: Prepping a 2 Year Old for Racing

[emasie]

Hi - This is Elliott from MASIE Stable - and I have posted before about our filly, Miss Matzoball.

I wanted to share some of the process as owners to look at the plan for 2 year olds.

Miss Matzoball has 2 half sisters in her barn. Moonshine Cate - who is a 3 year old - and will return to racing in the coming weeks - after a layoff to heal an ankle strain. Her stallion (and also that of the 2 year old) was Giralamo. He was standing in NY one year and we shipped to Kentucky the following year.

And, Kinky Sox - a 2 year old filly and named after one of the Broadway Shows that we produce - Kinky Boots.

There is an interesting conversation about the speed and intensity of bringing 2 year olds to racing - and what their first year looks like.

We are on the conservative side - and never want to rush the 2 year old to the track - even when there are massive purses - as Belmont is offering in the next 2 months.

The reason is to look at the long term health and racing career of the horse. Ultimately, we turn to the trainer - who senses the readiness of the horse - including the development of their bodies in their 2 year old year.

Being based in Saratoga Springs, there is also emotional push from ourselves - to see the horse run in our (and one of the best) tracks. But, there are so many 2 years old that are run often and you never hear from them in year 3.

So, we end up being a "later runner" Stable. Once again, the exercise and work results give the trainer a week by week sense of their development. But, I have learned - as an owner - to avoid the "Is She Ready to Run" statement.

Miss Matzoball had a later and lighter first year - and also needed some down time after - to build back up the strength of her ankle.

Investing in a horse - much like a Broadway show - is never about quick returns. Owners should ideally have a long view - and treat their 2 year olds as "kid athletes" - to allow their bodies and racing sense to develop.

We will post occasional notes about the progress of Kinky Sox and Moonshine Cate. And, watch for Miss Matzoball to be ready in about 5 or 6 weeks for some more racing.

Elliott Masie
MASIE Stables
Saratoga Springs, NY

[classhandicapper]

Best of luck! I'm sure you are very excited.

I've been spending some time at Belmont on Sunday mornings watching a few horses work, including a pretty nice 2yo filly. Lots of fun.

[parlay]

Thanks Elliott. I love betting 2 year old maiden races. As a handicapper i look for precocious breeding and trainers who know how to get it done. I have always felt that a early developing horse is the key to the best wagers in these races. The opposite is also valuable when evaluating horses as they stretch out/get older. Was their early failure a lack of talent or just the expected result of their bloodlines. Look forward to more of your posts.

Missed your show in Toronto, heard it was great.

[1st time lasix]

I have ownership in a March Ny-bred filly. She is a large horse....so we we elected to pass up her two year old year in order to grow into herself. Allow her to fill out and get stronger. No idea if that is wise or not...and I guess we will never ever know if we missed a window of opportunity. She seemed like an "alpha type" on the farm. She is trained by Christophe Clement....because we think she is bred for turf. The temptation to go after those lucrative two year purses is very strong.....but we hope for a good summer/Fall 3 year old campaign. Fingers crossed. Hopefully she will reward our patience.

[lamboguy]

the most important thing with 2 year olds is educating them the good horses just keep on learning and going forward without having to stop on them. the best time to teach them is when they are 2. we generally start breaking our horses in september and october. some of them start breezing in February, most need about 20 works before they make it to the track.

i personally have 2 new york breds. they are a very valuable commodity these days. so instead of waiting i like to start mine by october and then send them back down to florida for the winter. i don't spend much buying horses, i have one that broke his maiden for $40 that i paid $5000 for and now i have his younger sister that i paid $3000 for and she seems better than her brother so far. he was injured the beginning of the year, sent him down to florida and operated on him and he should come back up north the end of july, probably to Finger Lakes. if he doesn't get injured, he will be a heavy favorite to earn $60,000 in purses there and still have his allowance condition to run in downstate the way they write these races.