Page 10 - December 2008 The Game

10 The Game, December 2008
I convinced myself ‘they’ would never do anything that horri c. There were other more subtle ways of interference. Maybe they would tamper with my girth and it would snap at the half mile pole. Or the bit would suddenly break and I’d have no control.
Canada’s Thoroughbred Racing Newspaper
FAT TONY - Continued from page 9
I had received. I focused on the races I had to ride to keep both my mind and body busy. Time passed quickly and suddenly I realized I was walking out to the saddling paddock for the six furlong sprint. I felt fairly con dent until I saw the frown on Bobby’s face. He had managed to glean some inside information and told me I was the only one of the eight jockeys who wasn’t in on it.
Meanwhile Fat Tony and his unkies were creating new ways to stop the good horses from running. A groom could make a quick $100 by tucking tiny vials of mercury into the leg bandages. Heavy mercury would affect the horse’s balance. Cuillo also had a more re ned method, thanks to one of his crew members. Oscar Friedman, or ‘Dr. Mule’ as he was called, was able to pass on all the latest drugs bootlegged from laboratories. He had experimented with cocaine but found it was more useful on the rider than the horse. One night at a Detroit track, Dr. Mule gave a lly something that would diminish her speed. It did more than slow her down—it killed her.
My calmness evaporated instantly. I wrapped my shaking hands tightly under my armpits. Bobby realized how much the news had unnerved me and attempted to bolster my con dence. “Heckler’s going to be last down the backstretch. All they can do is take you wide on the turn and you’ll be out of their way.”
I was blissfully unaware of Fat Tony’s dealings as I walked to the jocks’ room on that early summer day. I said nothing to the other girls about the shady offer
Little did he know that I was already drenched before we’d even broken into a trot. This was a completely alien situation. I knew how to compete against riders who wanted to win the race. But how would I deal with seven other jockeys who had a scheme to prevent me from winning?
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Wishing our Clients, Staff, Associates & Race Fans
A Merry Christmas and A Wonderful New Year
Thank you for another rewarding season! Season’s Greetings and Best Wishes to all for success in 2009!
Sid & Janice Attard & Family
The Game December 2008.indd 10
11/27/08
2:57:51 AM
The Heckler was led up to us. I checked the saddle, girth, bridle and blinkers. I even peered into his mouth at the bit. All seemed secure. Bobby boosted me into the saddle and we headed off to the track. He patted my leg. “Don’t sweat it.”
Sires Mazel Trick, Regal Intention dead
According to the Thoroughbred Times website, Multiple graded stakes winner Mazel Trick and Canadian champion Regal Intention both died recently at Canmor Farm in Aldergrove, British Columbia.Mazel Trick, who set a track record for seven furlongs at Hollywood Park and never lost a race on dirt, was euthanized on October 31 because of the effects of laminitis.
The 13-year-old Phone Trick horse out of Mazatleca (Mex), by Ramahorn, stood the last two seasons at Canmor Farm in Aldergrove, British Columbia, after previously standing Regal Intention, the 1988 Queen’s Plate winner, was found dead in his paddock from apparent natural causes on October 25. He was 23.
Bred and raced by Sam-Son Farms, Regal Intention registered ten stakes victories and was Canada’s champion three-year-old male of 1988. He scored by 3 1/4 lengths in the Queen’s Plate and nished second by a nose to Regal Classic in the Prince of Wales Stakes for trainer Jim Day.