Was just doing some research on Big Gem, a Graham Motion firster who's entered in Gulfstream's 7th race today. It seems that he's worked 3 times in a row with another unraced horse named Brave Monarch, so i started digging around on that one, and i stumbled across these posts from a guy who i guess owns the horse (?). Found them interesting, definitely worth posting i think:

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Brave Monarch worked five furlongs out of the gate in 1.04:00 (16 of 17) on Thursday at Palm Meadows. Graham said, "We accomplished our goal of getting another breeze from the gate with him, and he is ready to run. He was the better or the duo that worked from the gate. I generally give my horses at least one sprinting race before stretching out around two turns, and this may sound unorthodox, but I want to go two turns with him first out. He doesn't have a ton of early speed, and I'm worried we won't get much out of his debut if we go short. He's quite fit, and I think he will benefit from added distance. Maria's Mon progeny tend to to their best running around two turns."

Accordingly, we are pointing for a maiden special weight going 1 1/16 miles on the turf on Friday, February 18th at Tampa Bay Towns. If this race overfills or is not used, we'll use the maiden special weight going 1 mile on the turf on March 4th at Tampa Bay Downs as our backup.


Thursday, February 10, 2011

Brave Monarch worked at Palm Meadows this moring going 5F (Gate) on the dirt in 1:04:00 16 of 17

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Brave Monarch is scheduled to work out of the gate on the dirt within the next few days at Palm Meadows in preparation for his racing debut. Terry, Tom Bellhouse, and Erin saw him train over the weekend. He’s carrying good weight and seems to move well over the dirt at Palm Meadows. Graham said, “This horse has done well for me. I’ve had a few Maria’s Mons over the years that remind me quite a bit of this horse. They trained decently over the dirt, but did their best running on the turf. When the new Tampa Bay Downs condition book comes out, I’d like to take a look at the maiden special weights there. You run for less money than at Gulfstream, but the competition is much easier. I want to give him every opportunity to run well first out. I think we’ll see him in the gate toward the end of this month

Either I'm missing something or I'm blind.
What race is this? I see no MSW's at Tampa today, let alone a 1 1/16 on turf MSW.

I do see Big Gem in the 6th at the Gulf today

He's going in the March 4 race, or so it seems.

Brave Monarch was indeed entered in the March 4 race, but unfortunately, he's the last horse on the AE list. Pretty damn popular race, it would seem.

One Mile. (Turf) (Rail at 12 Feet)

1 Griffin Rock (FL) 3/C T M Hole 120 J Hennessy 20/1
2 Great Britain (KY) 3/G L1 R Feliciano 120 L Delacour 5/1
3 Frolic Now (KY) 3/C L1 W Martinez 120 A L Reinstedler 8/1
4 Hollow Fire (FL) 3/C J L Vargas 120 R Boileau 30/1
5 Fifth District (FL) 3/G L C Montalvo 120 J Scott 2/1
6 Awesome Chestnut (ON) 3/C L R Sealock 120 P Lutchman 20/1
7 Prime Opportunist (KY) 3/C L1 P Morales 120 C Clement 4/1
8 Only Win (KY) 3/G L F De La Cruz 120 M L Passero 9/2
9 Classic Indy (OR) 3/G P L Walker 120 T D Walker 30/1
10 Binks Forest (KY) 3/C L1 F Lenclud 120 W Phipps 5/1
Also Eligibles:
11 Walker's Landing (KY) 3/C L L R Goncalves 120 C C Brown 8/5
12 Sedona Ridge (KY) 3/G L1 L Herkova 120 D Isbell 20/1
13 Adirondack Express (KY) 3/C L L R Goncalves 120 D S Ryan 7/2
14 Brave Monarch (KY) 3/C L1 L Garcia 120 H G Motion 6/1

Here's the latest update on this horse from "Excellent Adventures In The Game"

Thursday, March 3, 2011

The maiden special weight going 1 mile on the turf on Friday at Tampa Bay Downs overfilled, and Brave Monarch is 4th on the also eligible list. The chances are very slim that we draw in. Accordingly, we'll target one of two races:

50k maiden claimer going one mile on the turf on Sunday, March 13th at Tampa Bay Downs.
Maiden special weight going 1 1/16 miles on the turf on Wednesday, March 23rd at Tampa Bay Downs.

The 50k maiden claimer could be a very good option for us. We don't see him as a strong candidate to be claimed. He's worked well over the turf, but most of his workout times are modest, which will not entice potential claimers. This could end up being a move that helps this colt put in a better performance against slightly softer competition. We'll discuss the situation with Graham over the next few days, and extend a vote to the Partners to run for a tag if we decide to pursue that avenue.

Since we are on the also eligible list in this race, the chances of us drawing in next time are very strong.

I just saw Brave Monarch is running in the 5th today at Tampa ML 5-1

Green down the lane and is a playback IMO, had trouble chaning leads. It's hard to win at a route 1st on the weeds. One of my angles I play against all the time.


fb

Ran on okay late for third. No early speed at all, which i guess is why they wanted to run him long first time out. Agree with FB, might be worth a look next time. I think he may want even more distance though.