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Rocketing to glory at Monmouth REATA'S ROCKET (Cape Canaveral) and CAT ON A CLOUD (Smoke Glacken), a pair of last-out maiden winners, successfully stepped up into stakes company to capture their respective divisions of the Monmouth Park NATC Futurity on Saturday. Both races were restricted to juveniles who had been cataloged in this year's two-year-olds in training sales. In the $209,000 event that drew nine colts, Reata's Rocket pressed leader Trip to the Bank (Trippi) through an opening quarter in :21 4/5 before wresting a narrow lead from that rival through a half-mile in a blistering :44 4/5. The Joe Orseno-trained winner then gamely kept on beneath Chris DeCarlo to post a one-length victory, finishing six furlongs in 1:09 2/5 on the muddy track. As the nearly 5-2 favorite, Reata's Rocket returned $6.80, $3.80 and $3 while spearheading the $32 exacta and $48.80 trifecta (9-4-5) ($1). "He broke sharp," DeCarlo said, "and I got him to settle into a nice rhythm. When he pushed past the one horse (Trip to the Bank), he kind of waited a little bit and tried to put the brakes on, but he heard a horse coming at him, and he just took off again." "He's done everything we've asked of him," Orseno said. "He has gone forward in leaps and bounds. Next year, we'll point him to the Queen's Plate." Ice Man Cometh (Trippi), who had tracked the early pace in third, altered course in the stretch and finished a creditable second, a length in front of Actin Good (Yes It's True). Mint Slewlep (Slew City Slew), De Lucia (Songandaprayer), Trip to the Bank, Tactical Weapon (Tactical Cat), Caymus Capote (Capote) and Wild Eventshuly (Wild Event) rounded out the order under the wire. Reata's Rocket improved his record to 3-2-1-0 while boosting his bankroll to $161,000. Campaigned by Reata's Thoroughbred Racing, the chestnut colt was exiting a five-length maiden win at Monmouth on September 4. Bred in Canada by Anderson Farms (Ontario) and Rod Ferguson, Reata's Rocket was purchased by his current connections for $95,000 at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Two-Year-Olds in Training Sale in May. He is the first registered foal from the winning French Deputy mare Selborne, who is herself a half-sister to Grade 3 victress A La Reine (Alydeed). Selborne's youngest offspring is a 2006 filly by E Dubai. In the $200,000 contest for fillies, Cat on a Cloud remained unbeaten in two starts for trainer Ronny Werner. With Eddie Castro in the irons, the gray stalked on the outside as Angel Island (Forestry) ripped an initial quarter in :21 4/5. Cat on a Cloud then ranged up to engage the leader by the time they'd traveled a half-mile in :45 1/5, and after a tussle, asserted her superiority to cross the wire 4 1/2 lengths in front. The winner stopped the teletimer in 1:09 4/5 on a track that had been upgraded to good, paying $6.40, $3.60 and $3.60 as the 2-1 second choice and keying the $60.60 exacta and $227.10 trifecta (10-3-7) ($1). Angel Island tired in deep stretch but held second by three-quarters of a length. Next came Dinner Break (Tale of the Cat), who clipped heels early and dropped back to last, but still managed to uncork a strong rally while wide to snare third. Cool the Economy (Mazel Trick) checked in fourth, followed by 6-5 favorite Chagall (Successful Appeal), Lia's Luck (Smoke Glacken), Miss Double Take (Double Honor), Snow Way (Snow Ridge) and Tiger's Tea Time (Tiger Ridge). Precious Too (Precise End) was scratched. Cat on a Cloud has now earned $133,045 for her owner, Establa Madoca Corp. She broke her maiden by 4 3/4 lengths in her career debut at Ellis Park on September 1. "She showed us a lot in her first start," Werner's son, Rowdy, said. "We were expecting a lot from her today, to see what she could do in stakes company. We've been very high on her from the start." Bred by Michael Riordan, Aaron Sones and Charles Luke in Kentucky, the winner was sold for $42,000 at the 2005 Keeneland September Yearling Sale, then RNA'ed for $140,000 at this year's OBS February Sale. Cat on a Cloud is out of the multiple stakes-placed Musical Cat (Storm Cat), making her a half-sister to stakes-placed Storm City Blues (Carson City) as well as a 2006 colt by Cape Town. Concluding the stakes action was the $65,000 Omnibus S. for turf distaffers. After launching an aggressive middle move beneath Jose Lezcano, DREAM LADY (Old Trieste) had enough left to grind out a half-length score, completing nine furlongs on the good ground in 1:49 1/5 for trainer Bobby Frankel. With this first stakes win on her resume, the Gary and Mary West colorbearer advanced her mark to 15-4-6-2 with $218,800 in her account.
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