Amelia's Wild Ride Takes Off-Turf Woodford

Silver Trail Stables' Amelia's Wild Ride, who had raced on grass in his last 10 starts but ran well on dirt in the past, grabbed the early lead and never looked back in the grade III off-the-turf Woodford Stakes Presented by Keeneland Select Oct. 3 at Keeneland.

Ridden by Jose Lezcano for trainer Ramon Preciado, Amelia's Wild Ride, a 4-year-old Florida-bred colt by D'wildcat   out of the Hook and Ladder mare Amelia Island, dueled early with Mongolian Saturday through fractions of :21.95 for the opening quarter-mile and :44.88 for the half-mile on a track rated muddy. The winner, who opened up turning for home, wasn't threatened late and finished the 5 1/2 furlongs in 1:02.97.

Mongolian Saturday held well for second, with Stacked Deck third and Sharp Sensation fourth. Amelia's Wild Ride paid $31.80 to win.

The race was marred when Shore Runner, one of the favorites, broke down in mid-stretch and Speechify tumbled over him. Kendrick Carmouche, who rode Shore Runner, complained of chest pain and was transported to University of Kentucky Medical Center for X-rays. Sean Bridgmohan, who was aboard Speechify, walked away from the incident but took off the rest of his mounts.

Shore Runner, owned by Brad Grady and trained by Joe Sharp, was euthanized, according to Keeneland stewards. The More Than Ready   gelding had won his last three starts in New York and had nine wins overall. Team Valor International's Speechify, trained by Ralph Nicks, left the track with a pony, according to reports.

Amelia's Wild Ride, who is based at Parx Racing in Pennsylvania, was bred by Red Oak Stable. He now has nine wins in 30 starts with earnings of more than $400,000.