WON: DelPenn Red Tejas Handicap(G1), Filly Grand Prix(G1), Fauster's Juvenile Cup(G1), Escapade Juvenile(G3)

By- Pazjazz

It was a chilly morning three years ago at Super Stables when owner and trainer Super20 was waiting for the arrival of a new foal. The breeding was top notch with a cross between Seeking The Gold and his Mr. Prospector and Buckpasser lineage to Northern Dancer. Sure the mating had cost a fortune but the hopes and dreams of this fine brown filly with the white nose would surely be worth it. Super Gold had arrived.

The hopes and dreams were warranted as the history of the Seeking the Gold and Northern Dancer match were well documented. With 25 total breedings of the pair, six are Stakes winners and three are Graded winners. Unbeknownst to Super20 though is that Super Gold was destined to be the greatest of these.

Way back in February, shortly after Valentine’s Day, Super Gold took her first steps in a live race. She jumped out to the lead and basically has never looked back. She won that first race easily by nearly four lengths with a 63 SPF and went on to win her first five in a row. Those five included the Fausters Juvenile GI where she dispatched Ojai High and the prestigious Filly Grand Prix GI where she easily outlasted Carson’s Touch, Vindictive and Native Species.

The Filly Grand Prix was where she really showed her signs of future greatness. After breaking cleanly from the gate she looked up and was surprised to see a horse in front of her for the very first time in her career. Carson’s Touch had the lead for the first quarter with a blazing split then looked over her shoulder to see Super Gold flying past with a vengeance. It was her first race at a mile and she handled it easily winning by nearly three lengths.

Heading into Breeders Bowl week, Super Gold was an incredible five for five and had left her competition strewn across two continents. She was the Princess of the Turf all week and was the heavy favorite heading into the race. There was talk of Carson’s Touch and Trolley and the once defeated Nob Hill but everyone knew that this was the place for Super Gold to put her stamp on the Juvenile Turf class and possibly an amazing undefeated campaign.

It wasn’t long after she sprang from the gate that both jockey Gossett and trainer Super20 knew that something was wrong. Not only did she start out in second place but she was fading. She hung in gamely but it certainly wasn’t her day. In the end she had nothing left in the stretch and sadly watched as horse after horse passed her by. The best team of Doctors could find nothing major wrong and diagnosed a long rest and relaxation back at Super Stables.

Any questions that Super20 had were answered on DelPenn Days after a seven week layoff. Once again going up against the best in the business, Super Gold easily found her way back to the winners circle and finished the year with six wins in seven races and nearly a million dollars in earnings.

When the Eclipse Horse of the Year balloting came out there was a grass roots campaign to choose Jaca, a worthy horse who won the Breeder’s Bowl. In the end, it was really no contest. Super Gold was the clear winner this year and looks to be successful for years to come. She is the type of horse that when she makes that turn down the stretch everyone in the crowd stops what they are doing and watches in admiration and amazement as she flies home with that patented easy gait of hers.

Congratulations to Super20 Stables for a wonderful year with Super Gold and a most deserved Eclipse Award. I am honored and privileged to write about such a great competitor and a year of outstanding accomplishments.