Page 28 - September 2023

SPEEDLINES
Handsome Jack Flash winning the 2013 All American Futurity-G1.
26 SPEEDHORSE September 2023
Debra Laney & Norma Alvarez, who co-own Handsome Jack Flash with Brenda Alvarez.
Handsome Jack Flash Wins The 2013 All American Futurity
First Moonflash, sire of Handsome Jack Flash.
© Don Shugart
By starting with Handsome Jack Flash winning the 2013 All American Futurity-G1, it seems to be a very appropriate
way to add this year to our look back. The trainer for Handsome Jack Flash in the
All American Futurity was Juan Gonzalez, also the trainer of By By JJ who is the winner of the 2003 All American Futurity-G1. Another coincidence is they were both New Mexico- bred winners of the great race. They were the second and third New Mexico-bred horses to win the race behind the great Real Wind.
Handsome Jack Flash (First Moonflash- Shez Jess Nice, Mr Jess Perry) was raced by the partnership of Norma Alvarez, Brenda Alvarez and Debra Laney. Debra Laney was the breeder and Norma Alvarez and her husband Dosi
were the breeders of First Moonflash, the sire
of Handsome Jack Flash. The road to the All American for Norma and Dosi started with a mare they bought named Pukka Up that was the dam of their first racehorse Tilted Moon
by Tilt The Odds. She, in turn, was the dam of Nagano Moon, the dam of 2009 Champion Aged Stallion First Moonflash. Debra and her husband, Stacy, moved to El Paso and the move got them into Quarter Horse racing. Debra traded for the mare Shez Jess Nice, the dam of Handsome Jack Flash, to set the mating of an All American Futurity winner. It has to be noted that an advisor to Debra Laney was Carl and Fredda Draper, who were a part of All American Futurity winners DM Shicago, Heartswideopen and Imperial Eagle, whose All American Futurity win we will cover later. It was Carl and Fredda that introduced Debra to Norma.
With Juan Gonzalez as the trainer, Handsome Jack Flash started his career at Ruidoso getting his maiden win his first start
in May. He came back in July to win his trial for the Zia Futurity, and won the
Zia Futurity-RG1 in a time of :19.287 for 400 yards with a speed index of 104. This set him up for the All American Futurity trials.
It looked like the 2013 All American Futurity would be a wide open race, as the winner of the Ruidoso Futurity-G1 Cartel Quick never started again after his win. Rainbow Futurity-G1 winner Ms First Prize Rose did not start again until November, winning her trial for the Los Alamitos Two Million Futurity-G1 and then finished fifth in the finals of that race. No horse competed in all three All American Triple Crown races.
The All American Futurity trials were
run on August 15 and 16 with the top five times qualifying each day for the finals. The qualifiers that made the finals brought some good credentials to the big race. Handsome Jack Flash was in trial 8 on the first day with
a colt named Hes Relentless, who won and
set the fastest time of the day with a :21.148. He had been second in the Heritage Place Futurity-G1 as the highlight of his career to that point. Handsome Jack Flash, who broke slow, recovered to be second with a time of :21.209, giving him the third fastest time of the day. The second fastest qualifier for the day was Especially Tres, an undefeated runner that won the Sam Houston Futurity-G2. Her time as
the only filly in the field was :21.191. Houdini was the fourth fastest qualifier with a win in
his trial in a time of :21.233. He was second in the Remington Park Oklahoma Bred Futurity. The fifth fastest qualifier was You N How Many More, winning his trial in a time of :21.267.
The second day of trials saw three of the five qualifiers come out of trial #4.
The winner was Wagon Tales in a time
of :21.021. This horse was third behind Hes Relentless in the Heritage Place Futurity-G1 and he was winner of the Remington Park Juvenile. Skuze Pleeze was second in a time of :21.177, and he was
the winner of the Easy Jet Stakes-G3. Fatal Policy was third in a time of :21.412. The next qualifier on the second day was Wagon Full of Gold, winner of his trial with a time of :21.331. Reagal Eagle qualified winning his trial in a time of :21.366, and he won his trial for the Rainbow Futurity and finished fifth in the finals.
The post time favorite for the All American finals was Especially Tres. When the gate opened, it looked like a pretty even race with Handsome Jack Flash breaking sharply with Especially Tres and Wagon Full Of Gold on the inside. As the race went
on, Handsome Jack Flash began his move, leaving Especially Tres with Reagal Eagle
and Wagon Tales coming up on the outside. Handsome Jack Flash finished first by a neck. He was followed by Reagal Eagle in second, Wagon Tales in third and Especially Tres in fourth. The rest of the field finished in the following order Skuze Pleeze (5th), You N
© Linda Earley, Speedhorse
© Susan Bachelor, Speedhorse