By Andrea Branchini
“England expects that every man will do his duty” were the eloquent and terrifying orders of Viscount Horatio Nelson before the Battle of Trafalgar (1805), where the great admiral annihilated the French fleet and destroyed Napoleon's maritime ambitions forever–losing his life to an enemy musket ball in the bargain. The Oct. 2 Churchill Downs winner TRAFALGAR, a courageous come-from-the-next-county closer, has more than done his duty and is thoughtfully named.
7th-Churchill Downs, $122,699, Msw, 10-2, 2yo, 1m, 1:35.61, ft, 2 1/4 lengths. TRAFALGAR (c, 2, Lord Nelson–Southern Drifter, by Dixie Union) O-Columbine Stable LLC.; B-Machmer Hall (KY); T-Albert M. Stall, Jr.
It makes perfect sense to baptize a colt out of a broodmare called Sound the Trumpets with the name MILES D–after Miles Davis, maybe the most famous trumpeter in the history of (jazz and non-jazz) music. Well, I must say, the brilliant author of the TDN race commentary got there before me, as this horse is described in the piece as “content to trail the quintet” ('quintet' was one of the performing formations favored by his musical namesake) and “[having gone] missing for eight months” (Davis went through hiatuses and interruptions in his roller-coaster career)–priceless. May the precious music continue.
4th-Belmont, $89,240, Alw, 10-24, (NW1$X), 3yo/up, 1 1/16m, 1:43.89, ft, head. MILES D (c, 3, Curlin–Sound the Trumpets, by Bernardini), […] a debut fourth in an incredibly productive Belmont maiden last October […] went missing for eight months, returning to graduate going a mile over this track June 12. […] The prohibitive favorite at 35 cents on the dollar, Miles D was content to trail the quintet behind a moderate pace. O-Peter M Brant & Robert V LaPenta; B-River Bend Farm (KY); T-Chad C Brown.
Mmh, a young filly called VERGARA, out of a mare named Figure of Beauty… Could this name be a reference to the Colombian actress made famous by the TV series “Modern Family”? I wonder, I wonder.
7th-Laurel, $59,800, Msw, 10-24, 2yo, f, 1 1/8mT, 1:50.39, fm, 1 1/4 lengths. VERGARA (f, 2, Noble Mission {GB}–Figure of Beauty, by Street Cry {Ire}) O-Gary Broad; B-Neil Jones (KY); T-H. Graham Motion.
The Nineteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1920, states that “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex”. In the wake of promising filly and brilliant Churchill Downs winner AMENDMENT NINETEEN, we expect more amendments invoked in relation to the legacy of successful WinStar stallion Constitution. There are only 27 of them (with one repealed), so hurry up.
9th-Churchill Downs, $91,458, Alw, 11-7, (NW1X), 3yo/up, f/m, 1m, 1:36.09, ft, 2 lengths. AMENDMENT NINETEEN (f, 3, Constitution–Littlebitabling {SW, $117,340}, by Carson City) O-Juddmonte; B-Angie Moore (MD); T-Brad H. Cox.
The name of a 2-year-old Woodbine female winner, trained by Kevin Attard, is a perfect Italian translation for the name of her mother, Bragging. Oh, VANTARSI, you are so vain. All this is about you.
6th-Woodbine, C$78,210, Msw, 10-31, 2yo, f, 6 1/2f (AWT), 1:15.66, ft, 3 1/2 lengths. VANTARSI (f, 2, Speightstown–Bragging {GSW-Eng, $189,775}, by Exchange Rate) O-X-Men Racing, Madaket Stables LLC & SF Racing LLC; B-Juddmonte Farms Inc (KY); T-Kevin Attard.
An Italian native, Andrea Branchini now lives in Lexington, Ky., where he works in the equine transport industry.
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