Page 168 - August 2019

Speedhorse Derby
TARISH
by John Moorehouse
As a two year old, Tarish ran more on the slender side—to put it mildly.
“He looked more like a greyhound than a Quarter Horse,” owner J. Lloyd Yother said. “He was thin.”
Gaining weight was part of the matura- tion process and those added pounds have made a difference for the gelding as a sopho- more. Case in point: the July 27 running of the Speedhorse Derby at Fair Meadows.
Tarish broke through for his first stakes victory in the $82,200 event, reaching the milestone in his 12th career start.
Tarish brought home a $31,236 payday for the stakes win, pushing the lifetime bankroll of the gelding into six figures at $109,413. It was his fourth overall win.
“He’s a real hard, honest, consistent horse,” Yother said. “I hope I’m not jinxing myself, but he seems to be getting a little bit better each race and he comes back sound as a dollar. He’s the real deal. I just hope he keeps improving.”
The victory also snapped a streak of three straight runner-up finishes for Tarish, part of a six-race stretch without a win.
“I felt like he was overdue for a win,” Yother said. “He’s been knocking on the door
in quite a number of races this year.”
Opportunity knocked in the Speedhorse Derby. Tarish broke fourth
from the seven-hole and got bumped from behind after getting away from the gates.
Yother noted that before, when the gelding was more slender, Tarish probably would have been bumped out of the way.
“With his weight, [being] a little heavier horse ... that bump didnt really bother him,” Yother said. “He just came on and got stron- ger as the race went on.
“He’s carrying a lot more weight now than when he was campaigning as a two- year-old,” the owner said.
Tarish moved into the lead soon therafter, however, running in front by a head at the first call and opening a 1 1/2-length advan- tage by the time he reached the stretch.
Tarish held on to win from there, sporting a 3/4-length separation at the finish line. Yother credited jockey Daniel Torres,
who has ridden the gelding in his last seven
starts, for keeping the gelding steady after the early contact. “Daniel, he’s ridden [Tarish] most of his career and he does a good job,” Yother said. “He was definitely part of the efforts to win.”
Dee Keener trains Tarish, who finished the 350-yard Speedhorse Derby in :17.543, logging a 97 speed index. That clocking
was about a tenth of a second slower than his performance in the trials, which generated the second-best qualifying time. In the trials, Tarish led from the start from the seven-gate, but got caught by the late surge of fastest qualifier Watah Litical.
“In his trials, he got caught right at the wire with a horse on the outside of him,” Yother said. “I thought he had the trial won and he ended up the second fastest quali- fier—just got him by a nose at the wire.
“Dee’s a real consistent trainer as well,” the owner added. “Hard-working and he gets the best out of the horse and gets him ready for a race.”
Fair Meadows $82,200 • 350 yards :17.543 • si 97
Coronas Prospect
Prospect To The Top
Cream To The Top
TARISH, ‘16-g.
Shazoom
Fast Prize Zoom
Fast First Prize
166 SPEEDHORSE, August 2019
Tarish & Daniel Tores score a 3/4-length victory in th $82,200 Speedhorse Derby
RACING NEWS
Coady Photography