(November 1, 2003)- A field of five runners took to the John Connally Turf Course for the $35,000 Buffalo Bayou Stakes. Skate Away, a 4-year-old colt, ridden by Ted Gondron, took command at the quarter pole surged to the wire of the 1 1/16 mile stakes in a time of 1:44.70.

Owned and bred by K Mack Robinson, of Atlanta, Georgia and trained by Jeff Trosclair, Skate Away continues to be a solid turf performer. Tonight’s victory was the sixth win of his career and his earnings of $21,000 vaulted over $300,000 in lifetime purses.

"He ran really well and was comfortable most of the way," said Gondron. "It was a pretty easy ride and at the quarter pole I just pointed him in the right direction and the horse did most of the work. The fractions didn’t hurt and the horse I was most concerned about was right in front of me. I watched him most of the way and was able to get through when I needed to."

"I asked Ted to run a tactical race," said Trosclair. "I thought Dash for Daylight would be the speed. I told Ted to just follow him around and see if we could get it done late. Our goal right now will be to come back for the Connally Breeders' Cup Turf in April. Having a start on the course worked out really well for us tonight."

Dash For Daylight, owned by John Franks, ran second under Don Simington. Trained by Shane Wilson, the 6-year-old son of Cherokee Run, led throughout the race and was just caught by the winner.

"My horse ran his race; he ran all he could," said Simington. "He had everything his own way all the way up to the eighth pole. He gave everything he had. This horse never laid down. He was running when that horse ran by him. He beat him two other times. You can't take anything away from the other horse. Jeff's done a great job with him all year. Shane did a perfect job with this horse. He ran a perfect race. We just got outrun tonight."

The Steve Asmussen-trained America’s Storm was seeking his third straight win this evening. Jeremy Beasley had the call and sent the 4-year-old son of Storm Cat at the top of the lane, but could not catch the two leaders.

"I was proud of him," commented Beasley. "I thought when we were going so slow down the backside I had a big chance, but those other two horses were too tough for him tonight. I think he got a lot out of that race and will move forward off that effort."

Skate Away returned $5.20 to win, $2.80 to place and $2.10 to show. The 2-3 exacta paid $9.00.

News and Notes

Skip and Go, a 2-year-old colt owned and bred by Robert McNair’s Stonerside Stable, won tonight’s eighth race, a $14,000 maiden special weight. The son of Skip Away, Skip and Go shipped into Houston from Chicago, where trained Michael Stidham had campaigned him since last June. Rider Jeremy Beasley, who won three races on this evening’s card, was in the irons.