Eligius was on track this morning working 5/8ths of a mile under Juan Gutierrez, the winning jockey in the 2007 Longacres Mile.Gus went five furlongs in 1 minute and 4/5ths under a "Handily" ride while working by himself today. He had worked in company during his last several track moves.
06/14/2008 - EMD - 5F - 1:00.80 - Handily
06/08/2008 - EMD - 4F - 0:48.80 - Handily
06/01/2008 - EMD - 4F - 0:49.40 - Breezing
05/23/2008 - EMD - 3F - 0:35.00 - Handily (Gate)
05/18/2008 - EMD - 3F - 0:37.80 - Breezing
05/09/2008 - EMD - 3F - 0:39.40 - Breezing
04/24/2008 - EMD - 3F - 0:36.60 - Breezing
04/16/2008 - EMD - 3F - 0:36.60 - Breezing
We're getting close to game time with the big guy...IF everything continues to go well (and that's always a big "IF" in horse racing) we could see a possible first start in the next several weeks. Just for fun I broke out the Emerald Downs Condition Book and looked ahead to what races are scheduled to be run that fit our conditions (maiden races restricted to three year-olds) and came up with the following possibilities:
6/26 - 2nd Race: Maiden Claiming $15,000, One Mile
6/27 - 1st Race: Maiden Claiming $12,500, One Mile
6/27 - 2nd Race: Maiden Claiming $17,500, 6.0 Furlongs
6/28 - 2nd Race: Maiden Claiming $30,000, 6.5 Furlongs
7/05 - 4th Race: Maiden Special Weight, 6.5 Furlongs
7/06 - 3rd Race: Maiden Claiming $17,500, One Mile
Assuming that our trainer decides not to send him up again older horses his first time out (which I think is a good assumption), and also assuming that he makes it to the starting gate in the next three weeks (a much more unknown assumption) then Eligius will most likely make his first start in one of the above six races. I also doubt that his first start will be at a mile, which eliminates three of those races. If I had to make a bet, I would guess that either the 6/28 Maiden Claiming $30,000 or the 7/05 MdSpWt will be his first race...with the 6/27 Maiden Claimer $17,500 a strong third choice.
UPDATED: Here's the video from this morning's work