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PEDIGREE HANDICAPPING OCTOBER 28, 2006 Successful Polytrack 'non-turf' pedigrees by Tim Holland As Keeneland's first "Polytrack" meet nears its end, diligent pedigree handicappers are busy trying to figure out which bloodlines have been the most effective over the new surface. While many people have assumed that "turf" pedigrees are superior over this course, this is not necessarily the whole truth. Indeed, intense research reveals that some sires that have little connection to turf have been producing offspring with a liking to the artificial track. Skip Away is one example. By Skip Trial, who is a grandson of Damascus, Skip Away was bred in Florida and was purchased for $30,000 at the Ocala Two-Year-Old in Training sale of 1995. Trained throughout his 38-race career by Hubert "Sonny" Hine, the gray colt finished fourth, hampered by a poor break, in his racetrack debut after which he was ambitiously placed in a stakes race on the turf for his second start. Skip Away did not disappoint his connections when he closed strongly to finish second in what was to be his only race on the grass. In his third start, the promise he had shown was validated when he broke his maiden by 12 lengths for the first of what would be 18 wins. In the spring of 1996, Skip Away was put on the Triple Crown trail after an impressive win in the Blue Grass S. (G2) over Louis Quatorze and Editor's Note. After a poor showing in the Kentucky Derby (G1), Skip Away finished second in the second and third legs of the Triple Crown, interestingly behind Louis Quatorze in the Preakness S. (G1) and Editor's Note in the Belmont S. (G1). However, Skip Away was to prove himself as the best, of an admittedly poor crop, of the three-year-olds that year through wins in the Haskell Invitational H. (G1), Woodbine Million (G1) and against older horses in the Jockey Club Gold Cup (G1) in which he defeated the great Cigar. As a four-year-old, Skip Away proved his consistency by finishing in the money in all of his 11 races. These starts included wins in his last two races of the year, a repeat score in the Jockey Club Gold Cup followed by an easy win in the Breeders' Cup Classic (G1), which earned him the title of champion older horse. In all fairness, it must be noted that Skip Away was somewhat lucky to be facing somewhat sub-par competition and was fortunate when Formal Gold, who had bested him in both the Philip H. Iselin H. (G2) and the Woodward S. (G1), was forced to scratch from the Classic due to injury. The "easy" pickings continued for Skip Away through much of 1998 when he dominated his rivals in seven straight wins, all as the heavy favorite. All of these victories were facilitated by his use of his early speed but in his next to last start, when attempting a third Jockey Club Gold Cup win, he was dueled into submission by Gentlemen (Arg) whom he had beaten in the Woodward three weeks earlier. Whether this race had taken its toll on Skip Away, or if he was simply past his best, was a matter of debate when he ran his worst race since the Kentucky Derby in his final lifetime outing, as the favorite in the Breeders' Cup Classic. It was in itself quite an accomplishment that Skip Away started as the chalk for this race since, with the likes of Awesome Again, Swain (Ire) and Silver Charm in the line-up, it was possibly the strongest Classic field ever. Another notable fact involving Skip Away's poor showing in the Classic was that it was only the fourth time in 38 career starts that he had finished out of the first three. Two of these unplaced efforts had obvious excuses -- one was his debut when he broke tardily, and the other was at Gulfstream when he apparently bled. The other two poor efforts could also be excused since they were both against premier company in the Kentucky Derby and Breeders' Cup Classic. However, these two races also had a common denominator since they were both run at Churchill Downs and it is possible that Skip Away's noticeable high knee-action did not suit the surface. While many of his offspring are tough and sound, Skip Away cannot be classified as a great success as a stallion, reflected in the fact that his stud fee has been reduced from $30,000, when his first runners were in action, to $15,000 in 2006. His leading money earner is Muir Beach, who has bankrolled almost $500,000, while Sister Swank, Skipaslew and Skip Code have all represented their sire with graded wins. However, the introduction of Polytrack may see a reversal in the fortunes of Skip Away, and it has already paid handicappers handsomely who took note of his progeny running on this surface. Indeed, one of the stallion's first starters over the Polytrack was Skipping Bull who ran at Turfway Park in September of last year. Dispatched at nearly 40-1, the chestnut colt outran his odds when he was in contention throughout the race to finish second. Later that month, Skip the Details made a big late run to win at odds of 7.50-1. In December, Skip the Storm paid more than $20 for a victory. Meanwhile in September of this year, Skiptothegoodpart returned more than $30 for his Turfway success. At Keeneland, Skip Away has been represented by 10 starters so far of which four have returned winners. Skiptothegoodpart, Summer's Hideaway and Skip Irish all returned healthy mutuels of more than $12 to their supporters, but Subtle Approach was totally ignored by the public when she made her career debut a winning one on Friday at odds of 39-1. Other sires that do not have obvious turf pedigrees but whose progeny have been doing surprisingly well on the Polytrack include: Wekiva Springs, Sefapiano, Service Stripe, Maria's Mon, Slew City Slew and Richter Scale.
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