Page 107 - NM Winter 2023

RUIDOSO DOWNS
Rita Danley Distaff Stakes (R)
Photos by Ruidoso Downs, Bailey Ivey
First Moonflash
First To Flash
Nagano Moon
Stevie Six
Jumpn
Jess Shakem
FIRST FLASHIN
First Flashin, a 6-year-old daughter of First Moonflash racing for Victor Marroquin, outran her 10-1 odds to win the June 24, $45,000 Rita Danley Distaff Stakes (R) for New Mexico-bred Quarter Horse fillies and mares at Ruidoso Downs.
Racing against a reported 12-mph head wind, First Flashin defeated Wine Dont Lie by 1 1/2 lengths while covering 350 yards in :17.729. Emilio Tapia rode the sorrel mare for trainer Carlos Acosta Jr.
First Flashin was bred by Mike Abraham. The mare’s sire, 2009 AQHA champion aged stallion First Moonflash, was a son of 2002 AQHA champion 2-year-old colt First To Flash. Racing from 2007-09, First Moonflash won 14 of 25 starts and earned $969,828, and his 10 graded stakes victories included the 2008 and 2009 Championship at Sunland Park (G1).
First Moonflash has sired the earners
of more than $26.8 million from 11 crops, including AQHA champions Handsome Jack Flash, Foxy Moonflash, Flash And Roll and 2014 All American Derby (G1) winner Too
Flash For You. The stallion died after a battle with laminitis in May 2019.
First Flashin is out of Stevie Six, a winning and stakes-placed California-bred daughter
of the Chicks Beduino stallion Jumpn. The mare’s second dam, Jess Shakem, is a winning daughter of 1994 AQHA champion 2-year-old Mr Jess Perry.
First Flashin traces back to her fourth dam, Shake It To Em, a winning daughter of two-time AQHA world champion Dash For Cash and a finalist in three futurities at Los Alamitos in 1980. Campaigned exclusively in New Mexico, First Flashin has won four of 28 races, and the $27,000 winner’s share of the purse from her first stakes score bumped her bankroll to $130,191. The mare was a finalist in the 2020 New Mexico Classic Derby (RG2) at Zia Park.
Eyes On Mollie finished third, 2 1/4 lengths behind First Flashin, and was followed by 2-1 favorite Touraine, Tina Katarina, Hearts Mystic Rime, Mitey Keymeera, Jess To Reel, La Bella Julia and HS Golden Eagle.
Wine Dont Lie earned the $9,000 runner-up share of the purse for her owners
Haskell E. Rich and Jacque M. Rich. A $24,000 yearling purchase at the 2020 New Mexico-Bred Sale at Ruidoso Downs, the 4-year-old Big Daddy Cartel mare has won three of 15 races and has banked $89,297.
Eyes On Mollie is a 7-year-old daughter
of the Corona Cartel stallion Eye On Corona racing for Jose G. Orquiz, who purchased
the bay mare as a yearling for $4,500 at the 2017 New Mexico-Bred Sale. Eyes On Mollie has won four of 17 outs, and the $4,500 third-place share of the purse increased her earnings to $94,256.
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