Handsome Tabby

[LK]

I need some advice. I know that he's doing really well but I need to know what I can do to help him get to G2. I'm considering backing him off of the HOTY races and just going to the basic races. But there haven't been any races for him to fit into other than HOTY ones...help?


Handsome Tabby

[creativecause]

Well let me tell you Lacee, you've done fantastic with him since you've had him and I'm glad to see him doing as well as he has. Sometimes you just have to look around, I found that he seemed to like the 9-10 furlong distance. He's one win away from G2 (I think I'm on my phone, it's sort of a struggle to move from page to page), so maybe if he grades up in an undercard race then he'll perform better in HOTY races. Have you looked around at the wire? There's a race September wk 4 there that seems to fit him just fine, I plan to enter prima Donna in it. I think there are also a few G3 10 furlong races there in October as well. I hope this was somewhat helpful to you

[LK]

Thank you CC I'll try going that route with him. 

[Isabelle]

I agree try for some races at tw, ghf tends more towards open and mixed grades and therefore it is more of a challenge sometimes.

[Kenren]

I guess my advice is just to be patient. Worry more about grading him up at this point rather than putting him in HOTY races. He has a whole year after this one for that. If you can get him to grade two, or maybe even grade one, by the end of the year, it will give him a fantastic chance next year. If you jump the gun, he'll have losing HOTY races on his record (which isn't necessarily a bad thing) but he won't grade up because he won't be winning. When you do put him in HOTY races, especially if you do it this year, look at the competition. Don't put him in a race he's likely to place badly in, because that's defeating the purpose.

But yeah, that's just me I guess, but that strategy has done very well for me. Take your time - he's got a lot of races left.

[S u N f r O s t ~]

I would really follow Kenny's advice on this one Lacee. With the end of the season coming up fast, think about the holes that will open up in certain divisions as the current giants retire. That gives Handsome Tabby a lot of opportunities. Focus on just building him over the next couple of months, then maybe even aim for a debut back in the HOTY races at the Unicorn Horn Series in January Week Four. For me at least, the Unicorn Horn has always functioned as a great coming-out race for future champions. Handsome Tabby should do well there if you build him up this season and keep on working with him. He has a fantastic foundation already!