Los Alamitos Diary: Ajax team getting ready

 (PHOTO - RPAINTED PISTOL, owned by Burlington's Milena Kwicien and trained by Jason Pascoe, on a recent morning at Los Alamitos racetrack in California, The 2-year-old is representing Ajax Downs in the $150,000 final of the JOhn Deere Challenge on Oct. 29 - Bryanne Langford photo)



 
(PHOTO ABOVE - COUNTRY BOY 123 before his workout  on Oct. 14 at Los Alamitos. Ajax Downs trainer Jason Pascoe is with the gelding for trainer Bryn Robertson and owner Ruth Barbour, who arrived in California on Saturday - Bryanne Langford photo)


Owner Ruth Barbour and her partner Doug Jackson have arrived in Cypress, California as their star 3-year-old Country Boy 123 is getting ready for the $200,000 (US) Adequan Challenge final at Los Alamitos racetrack on Oct. 29.

Barbour shipped Country Boy 123 shortly after another top Ajax Downs runner, the 2-year-old Rpainted Pistol headed south for trainer Jason Pascoe and owner Milena Kwicien. Jascoe’ partner and assistant Bryanne Langford has been looking after both ‘Pistol’ and ‘Country Boy’ who are stabled in the shedrow of California trainer Chris O’Dell.

“He looks great,” said Barbour, who has a veterinary practice in Hillsburgh, ON and has only owned four Quarter Horses since she got involved three years ago. “I held him for the blacksmith today as we did his shoeing and he’ll go out to gallop on Tuesday.”

Country Boy 123 won six of his seven races at Ajax this season including the $108,000 Picov Derby and the Ajax Adequan Challenge. It was the victory in the latter race that earned him a ticket to the final this weekend. Bryn Robertson trains Country Boy 123 in Ontario.

“He had a workout last week under the lights,” said Barbour, who is also a Thoroughbred owner and breeder. “The track seems nice.”

Country Boy 123 worked 300 yards between race son Oct. 15 in :15 3/5 from the gate.

As this is her first trip to a track which is well known for its major Quarter Horse races (and Thoroughbred races), Barbour was taken with the horse community there.

“The Quarter Horses are just so beautiful and big here,” she laughed. “The races go off quickly: while the horses for one race are going around the track the opposite way to the gate to race, the next race is already in the paddock.”

Barbour purchased Country Boy 123 for $7,200 (US) at the 2014 Heritage Place yearling sale in Oklahoma. The big dark bay is a laid-back son of Country Chicks Man from the mare Very Dashin 123 by Dash Thru Traffic. He was bred by Carolyn Bay of Michigan.

Rpainted Pistol, a flashy youngster with a bold, white blaze, won both of his starts for Kwiecien and Pascoe after being purchased privately by Kwiecien. The son of Pyc Paint Your Wagon won the John Deere Ajax Challenge which earned him his ticket to Saturday night’s 4150,000 John Deere Challenge final.

Langford, who has been an integral part of a very successful season for Pascoe,  has kept both Country Boy 123 and RPainted Pistol happy and healthy during their stay at Los Alamitos.

On Oct. 15, RPainted Pistol worked 300 yards in :17 3/5 from the gate.

Recently, Langford caught a glimpse of one of the greatest Thoroughbreds of all time, California Chrome, who is stabled at Los Alamitos. (See photo below). The prospective fields for the races for Country Boy 123 and RPainted Pistol are below the photo.

(PHOTO BELOW - The world's top Thoroughbred, CALIFORNIA CHROMEr the Breeders' Cup Classic. He is stabled at Los Alamitos and Bryanne Langford got some great images.)

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