By Greg Douglas – Dr. Sport
SCENE & HEARD: Welcome to the last of this season’s race cards under the lights. The six regularly scheduled Friday Night Live dates were again a big hit at Hastings and tonight is a special mid-week gathering as a warm-up for what lies ahead Saturday with the 72nd running of the BC Derby, the BC Oaks and four other major stakes.
With purse money of more than $550,000 on the table, Derby/Oaks Day at Hastings is without a doubt the richest and biggest event of the local thoroughbred season.
The Grade 3 Derby itself has a purse of $150,000 with $100,000 in purse money for the BC Oaks, Jack Diamond Futurity and Sadie Diamond Futurity, as well as $50,000 for both the SW Randall Plate and Delta Colleen.
The official draw for Saturday’s exciting lineup was confirmed from Nichelle Milner’s Racing Secretary office earlier today and is now available through the normal channels.
There are many interesting sidebar stories that come with the BC Derby each year and with that thought in mind it seems like an appropriate time to play a little game of Did You Know?
For instance, did you know …
1) that dating back to 1990, retired jockey Sam Krasner holds the record of winning the BC Derby four times with Wandering (1999), Bobbin For Stars (1997), Humpty’s Hoedown (1993) and Ever Steady (1990).
2) that Richard Hamel can tie Krasner’s record with a Derby win Saturday following his victories aboard Second City (2012), Majestically (2010) and Fancy As (2001).
3) that owner Peter Redekop had three Derby wins in succession with Alert Bay (2014), Title Contender (2013) and Second City (2012). Mr. Redekop actually has four to his credit overall, having also made a trip to the winner’s circle on Derby Day with Squire Jones (1994).
4) that owner Glen Todd surprised even himself when Sorryaboutnothing paid $11.70 winning last year’s Derby after Opportunistic, also owned by Todd, was a 9-5 favourite but finished fourth. It was Todd’s first-ever Derby win and came on the eve of Troy Taylor’s 85th birthday, his trainer of 40 years, the same day Mario and Rebecca Gutierrez announced the birth of their first child, 7 lb. 2 0z. Sebastian.