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Street Sense catches a Grasshopper in Travers

Street Sense out-hopped a Grasshopper to take the Travers (Debra Kral/Horsephotos.com) After a riveting duel down the length of the Saratoga stretch, champion STREET SENSE (Street Cry [Ire]) prevailed by a half-length over Grasshopper (Dixie Union) in Saturday's $1 million Travers S. (G1). In so doing, James Tafel's homebred became only the 10th Kentucky Derby (G1) winner in history to add the "Mid-Summer Derby" to his resume. Street Sense also helped trainer Carl Nafzger to achieve the elusive Travers/Alabama S. (G1) double, following stablemate Lady Joanne's (Orientate) victory last Saturday at the Spa. The last conditioner to saddle the winners of both marquee events in the same year was Hall of Famer Leroy Jolley in 1976, courtesy of Honest Pleasure and Optimistic Gal. In the opening stages, regular rider Calvin Borel made sure that Street Sense settled into a close stalking position on the outside as a tepid pace unfolded. C P West (Came Home) had his head in front through the first quarter in :23 3/5, but Grasshopper was already at his throat-latch and soon took command himself. While clocking fractions of :48 and 1:12 2/5, Grasshopper was striding very comfortably, tracked by C P West and the ominous presence of Street Sense. On the far turn, Street Sense made his move and quickly joined the leader at the top of the stretch. Grasshopper was not about to yield so readily in his stakes debut, however, and he fought back with visible tenacity on the rail to remain on even terms. Street Sense continued to apply relentless pressure on the outside, but Grasshopper would not let him by and was proving to be a stubborn foe. With each forcing the other to give his supreme effort, the two roared eight lengths clear of the field in midstretch. Street Sense, the veteran of so many wars, summoned fractionally more in deep stretch, and that was the difference, as he finally subdued the ultra-game Grasshopper. The Carl Nafzger-trained champion reeled off 1 1/4 miles on the fast track in 2:02 3/5.

"When I hooked (Grasshopper) up, I thought I had him measured pretty good," Borel said. "In the last 40 yards when my colt got by him, he went to messing around. I hit him a couple times left-handed, and then he kind of put it away.

"I know how Street Sense is," he continued. "Once he gets in front, he kind of gives up a little bit. I let him mess around for 40 or 50 yards, and then I hit him left-handed quick and he pulled away by a half-length."

"When he's hooked up eyeball-to-eyeball, he goes on," Nafzger said. "Once he gets a length on the lead, that's when he pricks his ears forward. Grasshopper just said, 'I ain't going to give you any time to prick your ears forward.' Grasshopper ran a great race."

"At every point, I thought I could beat (Street Sense)," said Robby Albarado, who rode Grasshopper. "We had plenty to fight back right away. Street Sense is a good horse. He has been in these battles. Mine hadn't. It was all brand new to him."

"Street Sense is unbelievable," said Grasshopper's trainer, Neil Howard. "We were thrilled. It was a great effort. We got beat by an unbelievable horse."

Grasshopper was himself 10 1/4 lengths ahead of Helsinki (Distorted Humor), who garnered third by a neck from Sightseeing (Pulpit). Another 5 1/2 lengths back came C P West, trailed by Loose Leaf (Notebook) and For You Reppo (El Corredor), who was eased.

Dispatched as the nearly 2-5 favorite, Street Sense returned $2.70, $2.20 and $2.10 while spearheading exotics worth $13 (exacta), $216 (trifecta) and $742 (4-5-1-7 superfecta). Grasshopper gave back $4.60 and $3.80 for his herculean effort at 9-1, and Helsinki furnished $7.80 as the longest shot on the board at odds approaching 50-1.

Street Sense now boasts a sterling 11-6-3-2 record, and his bankroll has swelled to $4,058,200. Last season, the dark bay romped by a record 10 lengths in the the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1) to seal the Eclipse Award as champion two-year-old male. He kicked off his sophomore campaign with a photo-finish victory in the Tampa Bay Derby (G3) in a track-record time of 1:43 for 8 1/2 furlongs. With his 2 1/4-length score in the Run for the Roses, Street Sense shattered the dreaded jinx and became the first Breeders' Cup Juvenile winner to taste Derby glory. His Triple Crown hopes were dashed when he was just caught by Curlin (Smart Strike) at the wire of the Preakness S. (G1). Freshened after Pimlico, he prepped for the Travers with an efficient victory in the Jim Dandy S. (G2). Street Sense's resume also includes three stakes placings -- a runner-up effort in the Blue Grass S. (G1) when he went down by a nose, as well as a pair of thirds in the Breeders' Futurity (G1) and Arlington-Washington Breeders' Cup Futurity (G3).

The Kentucky-bred Street Sense is the first registered foal out of the winning Bedazzle (Dixieland Band), who has since produced an unraced juvenile filly named Elusive Sparkle (Elusive Quality), a yearling filly named Broadway Ticket (Distorted Humor) and an unnamed 2007 filly by Speightstown. This is the family of multiple Grade 3 victor, 1995 Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1) runner-up and successful sire Mr. Greeley.

Street Sense's ultimate objective remains the October 27 Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) at Monmouth Park. Nafzger mentioned four possible avenues to get him there -- the September 22 Massachusetts H., the Hawthorne Gold Cup H. (G2) or Kentucky Cup Classic (G2) on September 29, or the September 30 Jockey Club Gold Cup S. (G1).

"We'll look at all of them, but let's enjoy this one," Nafzger said. "He'll go back to Kentucky and get freshened up and ready for his next out. If he doesn't come out of this right, he could go straight to the Breeders' Cup, like we did with Unbridled (in 1990).

"This horse can do anything. Heck, he's been in my barn 16 months and he's still running."

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