Dave and Becky, the hosts for the cable television show Saratoga Live, waited for the director to signal that the commercial break was over, and then immediately began giving racing fans around the country an update on the results of the afternoon.
“Welcome back, everyone, to our anchor desk right here in front of the paddock at the beautiful Saratoga Racetrack. Today marks the third day of the meet, and everybody is talking about the apprentice jockey riding a rising star in the world of thoroughbred racing.”
“Right you are, Dave—it was rookie rider CJ Jamieson bringing the talented filly Hit the Bid to the finish line in an impressive performance that has established this horse as one of the top in the country. This was Jamieson’s second win in two days. She won the Sanford Stakes yesterday riding a two-year-old named Tackle Tim Tom and then captured the final race run today by winning the American Oaks on Hit the Bid. Let’s review the recording of the race and see how this dynamic female duo electrified the crowd of nearly thirty thousand patrons.”
The TV changed to a replay of The American Oaks. Becky concentrated her commentary on Jamieson and Hit the Bid. “This is the first time Hit the Bid raced against male competitors, but she demonstrated her ability to win regardless of the gender of the horses in the field. For the first half of the race, CJ did a great job of pacing the filly, running back in the pack, five or six lengths from the leader. In virtually all of Hit the Bid’s previous races, she took the lead right out of the gate and challenged the other mares and fillies to catch her. This race was much more tactical than previous races, wasn’t it Dave?”
“Yes, it was, Becky! It seems the jockey kept the horse in contact with the leaders but saved up the energy her mount would need to finish the race. I was really impressed by the way CJ Jamieson took the lead over the last quarter mile. You can see here,” he went on, gesturing to the recording, “as the horses are entering the far turn, that Hit the Bid is boxed in with colts in front, behind, and on either side of her. Jamieson patiently waited for a crease to open between the horse in front and the horse to her right.”
“Exactly, Dave,” Becky interjected excitedly. “When the opportunity came, Hit the Bid accelerated through this small opening, and Jamieson took her to the outside. At the top of the stretch, she was four horses wide of the rail with a clear path to the finish line. CJ applied one slight tap on the rump with her whip and then gave the filly a hand ride down the stretch, distancing herself from the pack by four lengths. Hit the Bid ran the race in a blazing speed of one-forty-six and two-fifths. Quite a performance! This filly is sending a message to the racing industry that she isn’t just a pretty face—this lady can run with any colt in the country!”
“You’re right, Becky, that was an amazing performance. Now, let’s send it down to Mary Tierney, who is standing by in the winner’s circle with the winning jockey and the horse’s trainer, Ritchie Gallo. Take it away, Mary!”
“Thank you, Dave. I’m standing here with CJ Jamieson, who just won the American Oaks aboard Hit the Bid. CJ, you ran a very tactical race. Was that the plan you and Ritchie Gallo had for the horse?”
“Yes.”
The interviewer continued to the next question. “This horse has a reputation for being a speedster—was it difficult to get her to run off the pace?”
“No.”
Again, there was an awkward pause, so Mary Tierney kept it rolling. “I understand that you have also been helping Gallo train the horse by working as the exercise rider. Do you think that helps you to ride her more successfully in a race?”
“Yes.”
Tierney appeared determined to get some useful information from the jockey. “Will you be aboard Hit the Bid in her next race?”
CJ said nothing and looked over at Gallo, who was clearly enjoying the fact that someone other than him could be perplexed by Jamieson’s lack of communication skills. “Mary, I can tell you for sure that CJ is my jockey on Hit the Bid as long as she wants to ride her. She’s done a great job helping me train the horse, and I think they make a great team.”
Mary Tierney was delighted that Gallo’s personable response had bailed her out of a lackluster interview. “Well, Ritchie, you’ve got a female jockey on top of a great female thoroughbred. You guys are really going to get a lot of attention in the world of sports. Back to you, Dave and Becky!”
When the camera operator indicated that they had switched back to the broadcast anchors, Mary turned to Gallo and lowered her voice. “You’re going to get a lot of press interest, Mister Gallo. You’d better get her a speech coach.”
“Yeah, tell me about it.”
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