ICF Juvenile Trot Colony Looks Promising
By Mike Paradise
Last Friday we took a look at some of the ICF two-year-old pacers nominated this year to either or both the Cardinal and Violet events and later the Springfield and Du Quoin State Fair stake races.
This time around we’ll focus on the state-bred two-year-old trotting colony whose owners have aspirations of winning one of the Illinois Department of Agriculture’s summer major stake events.
The ICF freshman trotter most likely to get the most amount of scrutiny is Fistfullofdollars, a Lous Legacy colt out of Lima Sunlight. Fistfullofdollars was the 2019 Illini Classic sales topper at a more than expected price of $52,000. The youngster is being prepared for his first season of racing by the veteran Springfield based trainer Mike Brink.
Fistfullofdollars is the full brother of Encantado (1:54.2), the Jim Eaton trainee who captured the 2018 Springfield and Violet filly crowns, along with a leg of that year’s Fox Valley Flan. Fistfullofdollars is owned for the Illinois quartet of Mark Brown (Chatham), Darin Tournear (Liberty), Jeffrey Clauson (Macomb) and Brink (Springfield).
Interestingly, the well-regarded youngster sold as a yearling by Flacco Family Farms under the name Lous Obsession. The colt’s moniker change to Fistfullofdollars by his new owners does seem fitting, doesn’t it?
Brink will also unveil the $19,000 buy Salute The Hero, another juvenile son of Lous Legacy co-owned by Brink and All-Wright Racing of Morton, Illinois. Salute The Hero’s broodmare Whatsmata Hanover was sired by the former champion trotter Muscles Yankee ($1.4 million)
The “Lou’s” Have It: This year’s Lous Legacy freshman colt colony also incudes the $30,000 purchase Lous Messenger, a full brother to Lous Paschal (1:58.1), along with Priority Lou and his Flacco Family Farms’ stable-mate Tropical Lou. Priority Lou is a full brother to Joe Joes Violet (2:00.2) and Lous Silver Star (1:56.4) while Tropical Lou’s dam Tropical Caprice just a few seasons ago gave us the 25-time career winner Majestic Caprice (1:55.3, $113,385) and Big Garcia Vegas (1:57.3)
Cool Lou, the first foal of the former stakes winning trotter Sara The Spy, pictured here with driver Todd Warren, is ICF two-year-old stakes eligible for horseman Dane May of Newton, Illinois. (REB Photo)
As far as daughters of Lous Legacy in training for the summer’s state-bred stakes there’s the freshman Loulita. Her dam Olives And Caviar delivered the past ICF stake champions White Pants Fever (1:55.4, $99,142) and Louscardamon (1:57.2, $91,397), and there’s also the Flacco Family Farms’ Lous Livia. Her full sister is Lous Credit Report (1:56.2, $130,076).
Other Lous Legacy daughters include Myonly Sin, a $20,000 yearling acquisition and the sister of Loussolataire, a mare who trotted in 1:55.2 in a last season loss, and there’s Ting Ting, a daughter of Liebchen, a Yankee Glide mare who sold for $30,000 last year.
Conditioner Mike Brink snared the Cassis filly Flirtin With Fame for his long-time Illinois owner Bill Wright for a price of $21,000. Mississippi native Charles Arthur was the high bidder at $16,000 on Bal-Linda, a New Balance filly. The Yankee Valor gal Lucky Valerie was a $15,000 purchase for the barn of trainer Gerald Hansen.
You can expect to see most, if not all, of these young trotters compete in summer stake events ahead.
If you’re bored while live racing at Hawthorne is not available at this time why not get some action by supporting the Illinois horsemen when you wager through the Hawthorne Club app. Clubhawthorne.com is the only current source of income for purse generation during this Coronavirus shutdown.
Additional information can be found at Hawthorneracecourse.com.