Lane's End fields 112 nominations

The 38th renewal of the Lane's End S. (G2) at Turfway Park has drawn 112 nominations, Racing

Secretary Richard S. Leigh announced. For three-year-olds going 1 1/8 miles, the

Lane's End is scheduled for March 21. The race

traditionally is run six weeks before the first Saturday in May as a prep for

the Kentucky Derby (G1), and its $500,000 purse virtually guarantees the winner

a spot in the Derby field should more than 20 seek to enter.

The winners of both local preps run to date are nominated to the Lane's End.

LOCH DUBH (Friends Lake), trained by Jeff Talley for Texas Toyco, won the

January 3 Turfway Prevue S., and PARADE CLOWN (Distorted Humor), trained by Katherine Ball for Donamire Farm, was

nominated on the strength of his win in the February 7 WEBN S. 

The third local

prep, the John Battaglia Memorial S., will be run Saturday.

Also nominated to the Lane's End is WEST SIDE BERNIE (Bernstein), who won the Kentucky

Cup Juvenile (G3) at Turfway for trainer Kelly Breen and owners Lori and George

Hall before finishing sixth in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1). He was most

recently third in the Holy Bull S. (G3) at Gulfstream Park.

Trainer Todd Pletcher's stable leads the nominations with 13. Pletcher has won the race twice, in 2005 with Flower Alley and in 2001 with

Balto Star. The equally deep stable of Steve Asmussen is

represented by 12 nominees. 

Three nominated horses have connections to Lane's End, the Versailles, Kentucky, farm

that has sponsored the race since 2002. COFFEE BAR (Mineshaft) is owned by Will Farish,

who founded Lane's End, and ACTIVE DUTY (Deputy Commander) and SHAFTED

(Mineshaft) are owned by Woodford

Racing, the nom de course of Farish's son, Bill. All three are trained by

Mark Casse.

Graham Motion, who won last year's Lane's End with Adriano (A.P. Indy), has nominated

SMART BID (Smart Strike) for Augustin Stable. Last year's winning owner, Courtlandt

Farms, is represented by GRESHAM (Seeking the Gold) and STRATOS (Mutakddim), both trained by James Baker.

The Lane's End undercard features the Bourbonette Oaks (G3), a

one-mile race for three-year-old fillies leading to the Kentucky Oaks (G1); the

1 1/16-mile Rushaway S. for three-year-olds, also a prep for the Derby; the

six-furlong Queen S. for older fillies and mares; and the six-furlong Hansel S.

for three-year-olds.  All horses nominated to the Lane's End are also automatically nominated to the John Battaglia

Memorial, the Rushaway, and the Hansel.

Both the Rushaway and the Lane's End will be televised by ESPN2 and broadcast by

Horse Racing Radio Network. 

Gates open at 10 a.m. (ET) on March 21. The

first of the day's 12 races goes off at 1:10 p.m.