Tip of the Week: Change of Scenery
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Photo by Penelope P. Miller/America's Best Racing
It’s not unusual for trainers to test their horses on a different racing surface, such as switching from dirt to turf.
Sometimes, though, you have to wonder why they did it.
Yes That’s Me serves as an excellent example of a horse who has switched surfaces but probably should have stayed put.
On Jan. 11, Yes That’s Me was entered in the third race at Gulfstream Park. It was a $6,250 claimer at six furlongs on dirt and it was especially apparent that he would welcome a return to the main track.
Back on March 30, Yes That’s Me notched his first career victory in the maiden special weight race over Calder’s main track. But when he returned to the races in May at Gulfstream, he ran in a $30,000 claimer on turf and wound up fifth.
It took Yes That’s Me three months to return to the races after that initial try on turf and on Aug. 21 he ran in a $16,000 claimer for non-winners of two races lifetime – on dirt. He won easily by 4 ½ lengths as a 7-5 favorite.
A month later, he ran again, back on dirt, and won a won a $12,500 claimer for non-winners of three lifetime by 3 ¾ lengths as a 3-5 favorite.
What happened next was a surprise. Trainer Kirk Ziadie tried him in another turf race, this one a $12,500 claimer. The results were only marginally different from his first turf race as he finished sixth as a 4-5 favorite.
After the disappointing turf race, Ziadie regrouped and put Yes That’s Me back where he belonged: the main track.
Off another class drop and a return to his preferred surface, Yes That’s Me looked like a major player in the Jan. 11 race who deserved backing, especially since he would not be an odds-on favorite .
Sent off as the 5-2 second-choice, Yes That’s Me resumed his winning ways on the dirt and recorded a half-length victory, returning $7 as a welcome back present to the friendly confines of the main track.
THE LESSON: Dirt to turf moves do not always work out well, so don’t let a poor effort on turf fool you. A switch back to dirt can signal a return to top form.