Page 30 - 8 June 2012

Kindergarten Futurity-G2
BLACKBERRY CZECH
by Tracy Gantz
If RA Noble hadn’t injured her hocks while load- ing into a trailer, Salvador Pimienta wouldn’t have won the May 20 Kindergarten Futurity-G2
at Los Alamitos with Blackberry Czech. Pimienta, who is originally from Mexico,
lives in Marana, Arizona, near Tucson. There he operates a horse transportation company and acts as agent for people who want to buy race- horses from the U.S. to bring them into Mexico. He had purchased RA Noble from Ron and Rosie Alvarado to ship to a client in Mexico.
“The day I was going to send the mare to Mexico, she kicked the trailer and injured her hocks,” said Pimienta. “My client didn’t want the mare because she was no good for racing anymore. So I kept the mare.”
RA Noble, now deceased, produced Blackberry Czech, who gave Pimienta his first stakes winner at Los Alamitos when she won the Kindergarten.
Though the race is open to both sexes, the Kindergarten almost became an all-filly extrav- aganza. Seven of the 10 fastest qualifiers during the May 6 trials are fillies, and Blackberry Czech turned in the fastest time. She made her racing debut in an April 15 maiden race at Los Alamitos, finishing second to Tres Racer.
Tres Racer and Blackberry Czech each won their respective Kindergarten trials. Other trial winners included full sisters The Cartel Straw and Super Long Straw. The Cartel Straw and
Tres Racer were the only undefeated qualifiers, with two victories apiece, and The Cartel Straw went off as the 5-2 favorite in
the final.
Jockey Alex Bautista got Blackberry Czech away from the gate quickly from post nine. The Cartel Straw, to their immediate inside, raced up to challenge. The pair matched strides through-
out the 300 yards, with Blackberry Czech putting her head on the wire first. She raced the distance in :15.355.
“This race looked very
tough,” said trainer Felix Gonzalez. “I didn’t think we
were going to hold on for the win.”
The win meant even more to Gonzalez, who also won the Kindergarten in 2004 with Dash To End, because he has been involved with Blackberry Czech’s family. For the Alvarados, he broke Dashing Noble, the sec- ond dam, and trained RA Noble.
“RA Noble was real hyper,” said Gonzalez. “Blackberry Czech is real mellow, opposite from her mother. The mare was one of the quickest horses I ever had.”
RA Noble won five of 16 starts, including the 1999 Goetta Handicap at Los Alamitos.
Gonzalez began training for Pimienta when he handled Rey Tiburon and A Regal Star, the latter a
half-sister to Blackberry Czech. Rey Tiburon finished second in the 2009 AQR A Turf Paradise Futurity. Gonzalez currently has another 2-year-old, Bingo, in his barn for Pimienta.
The owner, a veterinarian in his native Mexico, keeps two broodmares in Arizona. Pimienta said that in addition to the two racehorses he has in training at Los Alamitos, he owns Emperor Valerian, an allowance winner at Remington Park.
“I travel a lot because of the sales,” said Pimienta. “But when I do, I
never worry about the horses because my wife and my kids are handling it. They are there when the babies are born, and they do the feeding and everything else that goes with tak- ing care of horses.”
Before RA Noble died, Pimienta bred six foals from her, all of whom reached the races. Five of them have won, including Gift For Twins, who captured the 2007 Clasico Easily A Possum in Mexico, and Noble Coyote, who finished third in the 2005 West/Southwest Juvenile Challenge-G3 at Turf Paradise.
Pimienta said that Blackberry Czech will likely head to the John Deere Los Alamitos Juvenile Challenge in August.
Francisco Rubio rode second-place The Cartel Straw (Corona Cartel-The Long Straw). Juan Aleman trains her for the Bonanza Racing Stables, which qualified three into the Kindergarten final.
Mr Ease Cartel (Corona Cartel- Sportiness) closed to finish third under Cruz Mendez. A winner in his racing debut, the colt finished second in his Kindergarten trial to Tres Racer. Jose Flores trains him for Tremor Enterprises LLC.
Completing the field were Mama Mia Bella (Royaltys Choice-Fed X Dash), Revv Me Up (Stel Corona-Revv It Up), Super Long Straw (Corona Cartel-The Long Straw), Tres Racer (Tres Seis-Looselips Sink Ships), Sugarbear Sax Man (Tres Seis- Therestischemistry), To Catch This Wagon (PYC Paint Your Wagon-To Catch A Fly), and Jess Another Czech (Corona Czech-Jess Another Ticket).
Blackberry Czech, #9, broke on the lead and was never headed, crossing the finish line first by a head.
28 SPEEDHORSE, June 8, 2012

First Down Dash
Corona Czech
Corona Chick
BLACKBERRY CZECH, ’10-f.
Blushing Bug
RA Noble
Dashing Noble
RACING NEWS
Los Alamitos