Two Year Old Filly- GRAND SLAM x DIXIELAND BAND x SEATTLE SLEW
Owner / Trainer: graywolf3

2002 Record: 9/ 5-1-3
Earnings: $863,270

2002 Stakes:

WON: Breeders Bowl Juvenile Filly(G1), Butterfly Futurity(G3), Puerto Rico 1607 Cap
2nd: Storm Kitty Stakes(G3)
3rd: Ldyssecret Thanks Mano! Stakes(G1), Hoserhead Juvenile Fillies(G1), Arizona Shoot-Out Special(G3)

LAND SLAM...A Profile in Courage

By- Nextbonus

The most recent edition of the Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines courage as: "a quality of mind or temperament that enables one to stand fast in the face of opposition, hardship, or danger "

The next edition will have only the photo finish of the 2002 Breeders Bowl Juvenile Filly race. For if any event in the annals of racing history exemplified the word "courage", that was it.

We'll review that landmark race in detail later. But first, let's step back and look at the pedigree of this year's 2 year old filly Eclipse winner, Graywolf3's remarkable LAND SLAM.

Her sire, Grand Slam, is by the fleet Mr. Prospector stallion, Gone West from the fine El Gran Seņor race mare Bright Candles (34-5-6-8 $405,091). Grand Slam won a pair of grade one stakes at age two, the Champagne and Futurity at Belmont Park. He won the grade two Peter Pan at age three but is probably best remembered for his strong second place finish to Reraise in the Breeders' Cup Sprint where he finished ahead of such standouts as Kona Gold, Gold Land, A.P. Assay, and Affirmed Success.

Land Slam's dam's sire is the Northern Dancer stakes winner, Dixieland Band. I asked Graywolf about his choice of stallions.

"I've used Dixieland Band as a dam sire often. He's one of my favorites. As far as Grand Slam goes, I've used him only once. I was looking for an inexpensive but well bred stallion to use with Dixieland Band and Seattle Slew. I thought Grand Slam would fill the bill. The result was Land Slam. What more can I say?", he smiled.

What more indeed! But training Land Slam wasn't all fun and games. Although she learned her early lessons well and worked like a decent sort, she didn't show exceptional talent until she actually reached the races. Graywolf continued, "All her life she has been giving me fits. She has been sharp in only one of her races and that was her last race. She ran a 108 speed rating in a small 5 horse stake winning easily."

I asked Graywolf about his racing operation. "I currently run 16 stables, 14 Graywolfs and 2 that I won in contests. Last year (2001) I had a mediocre crop of 2 and 3 year olds. But this year I have 3 excellent 2 year old fillies, T.V. Star, Wolf Of Queensland and Land Slam. I am shooting for the Bluegrass Derby with Land Slam. She beat the boys first time out by 5 but we will see down the road! "he laughed.

"My best horse prior to Land Slam was A. Smock (Barcelona x A.P. Indy x Hold Your Peace). He has won almost a million dollars and raced in the New Yorker at 3, although he finished far back. He has won several stakes. Most of my stables have a few decent ungraded stake and allowance types."

"As far as breeding goes, I mostly use horses I enjoyed watching on the track. Three that come to mind immediately are Star Trace, Snappy Landing and Thunder Puddles."

Let's examine Land Slam's racing record. As Graywolf mentioned, she debuted against the boys in a 6 furlong MSW dirt event in Hong Kong. As has been her trademark ever since, she started slowly. But a minute and eleven seconds later she was 5 to the good and opening up the lead with every stride. An impressive debut.

Shipped stateside for a Delaware allowance at 5 panels, Land Slam reprised her 78 speed rating with an easy 2 length win under wraps. Next came a visit to the desert for her first stakes race, the 4.5 furlong Arizona Shoot Out Special-G3. The best she could manage was third, although she did come from 11th place to garner that minor award. She showed clear stakes potential and hinted that she wanted more distance.

Her first graded stakes win followed when she exploded in the lane to capture the Butterfly Futurity-G3 in Georgia. She covered the 6 furlongs in a rapid 1:10.3 posting a 94 SR. On to British Columbia for her first grade one try, the 6.5 furlong Hoserhead Juvenile Fillies. Land Slam again dawdled at the start but was flying at the wire to nail down the show dough.

Next stop, The Pastures of Green for her engagement in the Grade 3 Storm Kitty. Same old, same old. Land Slam left the gate with all the enthusiasm of a death row inmate heading for the gallows. But this time, jockey Nick Stelle refused to let Land Slam linger behind for very long. A left handed crack of the whip got the big bay filly rolling sooner than usual and she assumed a stalking position just off the leaders. She continued on gamely to garner second place while posting her best speed rating to date, a 98.

Land Slam remained in Vermont and was turned out for a few weeks between starts at picturesque Green Mountain Farm. She loved rolling around in the early morning dew, running the entire length of the paddock, and lazily grazing on the lush grass all afternoon. Land Slam put on a few pounds and filled out a bit between starts. She looked and felt like a million bucks for The Mano Stakes, a 7.5 furlong grade one test sponsored by Ldyssecret to honor one of racing's true gentlemen.

Alas, once again Land Slam was off to a very poor beginning and lingered in 11th position until the field turned for home. Her furious rally was good only for third place. Yet, the fact that she passed 8 top quality rivals in the stretch encouraged Graywolf enough to send her to Arlington for a crack at the the Breeders Bowl Juvenile Filly.

Graywolf contemplated adding blinkers for the Breeders Bowl. It might help keep her mind on her business. He threw on a pair for a workout 2 weeks before the big race. All Land Slam did is run a half mile in :45.22. "She was a runaway, Boss." said regular exercise rider Tony Greene. "She was scared to death. I could barely pull her up."

Bad idea, thought Graywolf. All of her riders swore Land Slam was the hardest trying filly they'd ever ridden once she got into stride and focused on the task at hand. He didn't want her setting suicidal fractions in such a big race going two turns for the first time. He'd just have to hope that the filly would get settled early and be close enough to have a shot turning for home.

Breeders Bowl morning dawned cold and windy. But for late October in Chicago, not really too bad. As post time approached, Graywolf's butterflies felt more like eagles. A couple of Rolaids put them to rest for the time being. All 14 of the fillies were very well behaved in the paddock.

Jockey Mick Day, decked out in the distinctive Graywolf silks of teal and sea green with a howling wolf, listened attentively as Graywolf gave his last minute pep talk. They had spoken on a number of occasions previously, but like an overprotective mother reminding her child to "drive safely" for the umpteen thousandth time, Graywolf felt compelled to go over the plans again.

"Let her do her thing past the stands the first time. Once she settles, try to keep her within 4 or 5 lengths of the leaders. Keep her out of trouble. Don't worry about saving ground. It's not like you can sell it when the race is over."

"Gotcha, Boss! See you in the winners circle!" What Day lacked in talent, which wasn't much, he more than made up for in confidence. The leading rider at Ascot for the last dozen years, Mick Day was a proven winner. His lifetime winning percentage of 18% with 47% in the money spoke volumes, as did his career earnings of over $20,000,000.00. Although in Chicago primarily to ride in the turf events, when Graywolf called, Mick was thrilled about picking up a mount in the Filly Juvenile.

The gates opened and L P G A Tour was off like a scalded cat. An open lengths leader throughout, she carried the bulky field through fractions of :23, :47.1 and 1:12.2 before heading homeward 5 lengths on top.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I mean...back in the pack...Land Slam and Grausturm were racing in tandem. Never more than a length apart, they launched their moves simultaneously turning for home.

A sixteenth out, Land Slam had collared the dead game but tiring L P G A Tour. She had also edged clear from Grausturm by a half length. The mile time flashed on the board, 1:37.1. This was farther than any of these fillies had gone before. They were all entering uncharted waters in deep stretch.

Only 70 yards to go. The wire was in plain view. But so, now, was a resurgent Grausturm. The impeccably bred daughter of Storm Cat was once again at Land Slam's throatlatch and under severe left handed punishment from local jock Randy Logan.

The huge crowd was on its feet, screaming wildly, as track announcer Tom Durkin gave the deep stretch call, "...Land Slam and Grausturm! Two great fillies in a TITANIC battle! Neck and neck, head and head, nose and nose, side by side! stride for stride!"

Land Slam's lungs felt as if they were on fire and her throat was parched from the dry cold air. Her legs weighed a thousand pounds each, burning from the buildup of lactic acid in the muscle tissue. She felt the sting of Mick's whip on her right flank as his strong hands pushed on her neck, urging her onward with each shortening stride. Only 30 yards to go! I can do this. I can do it! I WILL DO IT!!

"And at he wire it is...CAN'T SPLIT 'EM! Land Slam and/or Grausturm in a race for the ages!"

'Tis said baseball is a game of inches. That tiny margin being the difference between ball or strike, fair or foul, a shoestring catch or a bases clearing triple, glorious victory or agonizing defeat. And so it is with racing. The photo revealing Grausturm to be a flared nostril shy of Land Slam.

Land Slam concluded her 2002 campaign with an easy win in a Puerto Rican stake. The rumors of Graywolf dancing the nights away and drinking rum on the beach were only slightly exaggerated, if at all. But can you really blame him? Not many trainers have an Eclipse award winner in their barn!

 Graywolf Enterprises

Race ID	Trk	RST	S	D	Race	Time	SP#	#	PP	C1	C2	C3	FIN	Jockey	Odds
1607.8515	PR	F-2yo	D	6.5	The Puerto Rico 1607 Cap -Stk	1:15 4/5	108	5	5	4 3/4	2 1	1 hd	1 2-1/2	J Drozd	.30
1558.0708	IL	F-2yo	D	8.5	Breeders Bowl Juvenile Filly -G1	1:44	93	14	5	8 4-1/2	7 7	4 4-3/4	1 ns	M Day	6.20
1530.3709	VT	F-2yo	D	7.5	-G1	1:29 3/5	92	14	1	11 4-1/2	11 6-1/2	6 5-1/4	3 7	C Wolff	4.30
1502.3713	VT	F-2yo	D	6.5	The Storm Kitty Stakes -G3	1:16 2/5	98	10	2	4 1-3/4	4 2-3/4	3 1-1/2	2 2-1/4	N Stelle	2.80
1467.6915	BC	F-2yo	D	6.5	Hoserhead Juvenile Fillies -G1	1:16 4/5	88	8	3	8 3-1/2	8 5	5 3-1/4	3 4-1/2	B Jonas	3.60
1432.3915	GA	F-2yo	D	6	Butterfly Futurity -G3	1:10 3/5	94	14	11	8 2-1/4	8 2-1/2	2 1/2	1 1	C Sundwall	6.70
1383.1509	AZ	F-2yo	D	4.5	Arizona Shoot-Out Special -G3	:52 2/5	74	14	14	11 2-3/4	11 4-1/2	7 4	3 1-3/4	J Clay	6.30
1341.2212	DE	F-2yo	D	5	-Alw	:58 4/5	78	13	3	6 1-3/4	5 2-1/2	2 1	1 2	C Williams	3.50
1313.6012	HK	2yo	D	6	-MSW	1:11 3/5	78	14	1	9 2	7 2-1/2	1 3/4	1 5	P Kelly	4.30