Page 181 - November_2023

CHICKS FIRST FLASH
by Tracy Gantz
When Chicks First Flash won the Sept. 30 PCQHRA Breeders’ Derby-G2 at Los Alamitos, he became the fifth horse to put together the PCQHRA Breeders’ Futurity and Derby double. He followed Ima Chickie Two, Champion Hawkish, Make It Anywhere, and A Zure Hope Too.
Armando Cervantes, who regularly pilots Chicks First Flash and won the Futurity on him last year, got the gelding out of the gate well in second. Chicks First Flash got to the lead quickly and then put on a powerful surge in the last part of the 400 yards to secure the
win with an easy 1 1/2-length
advantage in :19.791, while
posting a 90 speed index.
Having qualified the fastest, Chicks First Flash went off
as the 2-5 favorite for trainer Monty Arrossa. But Melinda Roche of owner/breeder Five Livestock Company LLC and co-owner Steve Wright were not taking the victory for granted.
“You can never expect them,” Roche said. “We were
hopeful. I still can’t believe I raised this horse. I love this horse and I still can’t believe we raised something this nice.”
This victory marks the bay gelding’s second stakes victory of the season, the first being the Vandys Flash Handicap in June. The $56,700 winner’s share of the purse increases Chicks First Flash’s total bankroll to $331,031 and his record improves to seven firsts, four seconds, and two thirds from 16 starts.
two winners from four starters, including multiple stakes winner Chicks Dashin Bandit.
Irving Lara piloted Ima Sixy Man (Corona Cartel-Jess So Sixy) to second for owner Boardshorts Stables LLC and trainer Juan Aleman. Ima Sixy Man finished second in the 2022 Firecracker Futurity, 2023 Jack Clifford Stakes, and third in the 2023 Sgt Pepper Feature Handicap. Valentin Zamudio owns and trains third-place Turbeau (Favorite Cartel-Babe On The Fly). Ruben Lozano rode Turbeau.
Completing the field were Pragmatic (Favorite Cartel-Realistically), One Sweet Bar (Five Bar Cartel-One Sweet Runner), One Sweet Duck (One Sweet Jess-Duck Dash N Go), Mornings With Maria (Seperate Interest- Bartiromo), Attacker (Fly Thru The Fire-Attack The Cartel), and Heather Denise (Jess Being Valiant-Six Zeroes). Escalated was scratched.
DYNASTY STAR V
by Michael Cusortelli
Fifth-fastest qualifier Dynasty Star V, a daughter of champion FDD Dynasty racing for Melvin and Susan Neugebauer, won the
October 22, $244,710 La Fiesta Derby at Albuquerque Downs.
Sent to post at odds of 12-1 in the full field of 10 sophomores, Dynasty Star V covered 400 yards in :19.199, and her margin of victory was a neck from second-fastest qualifier FDD Cloud. Francisco Calderon rode the filly for trainer Wes Giles.
Dynasty Star V was extending her win streak
to three races, all at Albuquerque Downs, a streak that includes a nose victory in a 350-yard, $30,000 non- winners-of-two allowance dash on September 1, and
a half-length win in one of four La Fiesta Derby trials
on September 29. The filly was bred in Oklahoma by McColee Land and Livestock LLC, and she was purchased
by the Neugebauers for $100,000 at the 2021 Ruidoso Select Yearling Sale.
Dynasty Star V is out of Cluster Of Stars TB, a daughter of Greeley’s Galaxy who
won the 2012 Gallant Bloom Handicap G2
at Belmont Park and Distaff Handicap-G2
at Aqueduct, and she is a half-sister to stakes winner and 2021 Ruidoso Derby-G1 runner-up Valiant Stars. The filly traces back to her fourth dam, Tahiche, a winning daughter of the Northern Dancer stallion Topsider and
half-sister to stakes winners Prince Daniel and Rosalie’s Charm. An ’81 foal, Tahiche produced Portentum, a five-time Ohio-bred stakes winner from 1989-93.
Raced exclusively in New Mexico, Dynasty Star V has won four of 11 starts and the $122,355 winner’s share of the purse from her first stakes score pushed her earnings to $173,840, of which $152,155 has been banked from six outs
this season. The filly was the fastest qualifier to last year’s $282,499 La Fiesta Futurity at Albuquerque Downs.
Aurelio Juarez’s FDD Cloud (FDD Going Grand-A Noble Jess Elie) pocketed the $48,942 runner-up share of the purse. Alfredo Sigala rode the gelding for trainer Omar Vargas. Sonny Seis (Tres Seis-Sonny D) ran third. Ricky Ramirez rode and James Gonzales III trained the gelding for owners Kim Middleton and Tye Baca.
Ms Flaming Finish (Mr Jess Perry-Flaming Chula) finished fourth and was followed by Fireside Chat (Favorite Cartel-Babe On Fire), Que Bien (KVN Corona-Famous Little Reba), KJ Wicked Wanda (Apollitical Spirit-KJ Hotflash), Lethal Demon (A Revenant-Easily Lethal), Hes Audacious (Whirlaway Red-Shes Western) and KJ Bootscootin Jess (Apollitical Jess-Xquizit).
Arrossa selected First Prize Chicks, the dam Chicks First Flash, out of the 2014 Heritage Place Yearling Sale for Roche’s late husband Matt Telford, who wanted to
buy a racehorse for his wife’s birthday. Arrossa trained the filly and won the 2016 Kip Didericksen Handicap at Los Alamitos with the mare.
of
Five Livestock Company LLC bred Chicks First Flash in Idaho, and Roche later sold a half-interest in him to Wright. First Prize Chicks has produced
RACING NEWS
SPEEDHORSE November 2023 179
PCQHRA Breeders’ Derby-G2
Coady Photography Amber Mendez, Los Alamitos
Los Alamitos
$135,000 • 400 yards :19.791 • SI 90
First To Flash
First Moonflash
Nagano Moon
CHICKS FIRST FLASH, ‘20-g.
Spit Curl Jess
First Prize Chicks
First Prize Chic
La Fiesta Derby
The Downs at Albuquerque
$244,710 • 400 yards :19.199 • SI 103
First Down Dash
FDD Dynasty
Dinastia Toll BRZ
DYNASTY STAR V, ‘20-f.
Greely’s Galaxy
Cluster Of Stars TB
Babyurthegreatest