2009 Woodbine Oaks Post Position: 4

* One year ago, a Milwaukee Brew filly named Ginger Brew blew away her female competition in the Woodbine Oaks and returned to face the boys in the 1 ¼-mile Queen’s Plate. The Stronach Stables homebred came within a head of Not Bourbon in the Guineas. This year, Milwaukee Appeal, also by Milwaukee Brew, may attempt the same feat.   The last filly to win the Queen’s Plate after scoring in the Oaks was Dancethruthedawn in 2001. 

*  Trainer Scott Fairlie isn’t ready to commit to running in the race, days before the draw, but said that she is in good form.  “She’s absolutely outstanding,” Fairlie said.  “She polished off her dinner before I left the barn that night.  She is absolutely awesome right now.  If we run, she’ll just ‘gallop’ into the race.”  

*  Owned by C.E.C. Farms, Milwaukee Appeal enters the Plate with more wins than any other colt or filly in the race and a 5-for-9 record. Each score came at Woodbine, at trips ranging from 5 furlongs to 1 1/8 miles. 

*  Milwaukee Appeal wasn’t an immediate sensation. She kicked off her career with starts against $32,000 and $40,000 maiden claiming company. “Early on, she was very immature mentally,” said Fairlie, “At the time, I felt that’s where she had to run to be competitive. Obviously looking at her form, it wasn’t like she won off by 10 lengths. I also thought she would improve quite a bit. I told the owners that from the start. Things worked out. She was one of the ones that didn’t make a liar out of you.” 

*  The filly’s first synthetic distance test came in the $250,000 Princess Elizabeth. She stalked the fast pace (:47 to the half) from third and seized control around the second turn. The Mark Casse trainee Retraceable pounced on the outside and the pair dueled for command. Near the end of the turn, Milwaukee Appeal drifted several paths to the outside and carried Retraceable out with her. The pair stayed on through the stretch, but Retraceable pulled away late. 

*  The Glorious Song proved to be a rematch of the Princess Elizabeth. The pace dynamics were much different in the $150,000 race for Ontario-foaled fillies. The first half was three full seconds slower and Milwaukee Appeal was in touch with the leaders. The filly made her move on the second turn and got a significant head-start on the rallying Retraceable. 

*  Milwaukee Appeal kicked off her much-anticipated 2009 campaign in the same way she wrapped up 2008: with an impressive stakes victory. In the six-furlong Star Shoot, the bay filly settled in fifth early behind a tepid first quarter in :23 2/5. The filly made a quick middle move on the turn and was in front by the eighth pole, drawing off to a 1 ¾-length score.   

*  “It surprised me that she ran as impressively as she did, because of the distance. She had improved. She was very untrusting as a two-year-old. Any little thing different, she would be on guard. She’s matured mentally very much,” he said, adding that the filly spent the winter at the family farm of Bobby Wingo in Ocala where she learned her early lessons.  “They did a good job with her and they have training facilities there.” 

*  Back at 1 1/16 miles in the La Lorgnette, Milwaukee Appeal was forwardly-placed early, but that became a compromising position when a rank Woodsmoke opened up 9 1/2 lengths and quickened the pace significantly through the second quarter. The development shuffled the Fairlie runner 12 lengths back. Woodsmoke proved to be an easy target for everyone else to reel in, but 4-5 favorite Hooh Why (winner of Grade 1 Ashland) had first jump on the vulnerable front-runner and was better able to capitalize on the situation. In the final five-sixteenths, Milwaukee Appeal had to keep pace with a filly that was in full flight. She stayed on valiantly, but tired late and wound up third, 1 ¾ lengths behind Tasty Temptation.  

*  “She got a perfect trip off the pace. I thought at the top of the lane she was going to win it,” said Fairlie. “She made a move like she was going to win. She seemed to lose interest down the lane. It was really windy that day and I think she kind of got distracted by the wind and the crowd and lost her focus a bit. If you watch the race, you’ll see she’s got her head cocked out. I was very happy, she ran very well.” 

Owner - C.E.C. Farms

C.E.C. Farms is the nom de course of 79-year-old Eugene George, president of GA Masonry, which is headquartered in Breslau. Co-founded by George and his partner Bob Asmussen, GA Masonry has offices in Calgary, Ottawa and the United States. 

Eugene went into business in 1951 after apprenticing as a bricklayer. He still works seven-day weeks and is immersed in masonry industry circles, north and south of the border. He was the first president of both the Canadian and Ontario Masonry Contractors’ associations. Last year, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Grand Valley Construction Association. 

Eugene, who was instrumental in bringing the O.H.L.’s Kitchener Rangers to town, has eight sons that work in various family businesses.  

C.E.C. Farms owes its Oaks winner Milwaukee Appeal to a timely claim on April 13, 2002, when it haltered a young filly named Appealing Forum from Mockingbird Farm for $50,000.  The Open Forum filly had broken her maiden in her first career start and was right back in for a tag and doubled up in style. She only started twice in the C.E.C. Farms colors and was subsequently retired to the breeding shed. Milwaukee Appeal was the third foal out of the mare to start and the first winner. 

On May 24, C.E.C. Farms won a maiden event with Buck the Trend, who is trained by Ralph Biamonte. C.E.C. also won the 2005 Zadracarta with Cricket Wicket for trainer Dave Bell. 

Trainer - Scott Fairlie

Fairlie was born August 23, 1964, in Toronto, Ontario, where he still resides. He worked for such trainers as Thad Ackel and Phil England.  His first “winner” was Bishop Tim, but he was disqualified and placed last.

Fairlie’s first taste of stakes success in 2001, when sprint star Mr. Epperson won the Play The King, Highlander and Nearctic. The six-year-old earned $430,180 and was awarded a Sovereign Award (Fairlie’s first) as the nation’s top sprinter. 

In 2003, Fairlie enjoyed an outstanding season. He won a career-best 66 races and earned over a career-high $2,505,138. He prepared Judiths Wild Rush for a romp in the Display, a victory which helped the grey win a Sovereign Award as top two-year-old.

A 47-win season in 2008 returned Fairlie to the top-five in the standings for the fifth time in the past six seasons. Fairlie racked up over $1.9 million in earnings. At the close of the 2008 season, Fairlie was 86-for-532 on Polytrack, which ranks him fifth in Toronto since 2006.

While Milwaukee Appeal was Fairlie’s Oaks starter, she wasn’t even the best two-year-old filly in his barn last season. Cawaja Beach finished the season with a perfect 4-for-4 record, with eye-catching off-the-pace rallies in three added-money events. The Ontario-bred filly, who was a Sovereign Award finalist, injured herself and only recently returned to action, having worked June 1 in :37 2/5.

“She came in and filled the void,” he said, referring to Milwaukee Appeal’s timely rise to stakes stardom.

Fairlie’s association with C.E.C. Farms is relatively recent. He began training for the George family two years ago. Through June 14, 2009, Fairlie has compiled a 16-for-83 record, which puts him in a three-way tie for lead in Woodbine standings with Nicholas Gonzalez and Mark Casse.

Jockey - Stewart Elliott 

The career of Stewart Elliott can be divided into two phases: ‘Before Smarty’ and ‘After Smarty.’ The Toronto native had the seasoning of a 3,300-win career and several Philadelphia Park riding titles while on the Derby trail with Smarty Jones, but the general public didn’t know much about his career. 

The Elusive Quality colt’s rise to stardom and scores in the Arkansas Derby, Kentucky Derby and Preakness splashed Elliott’s name around the continent. The phenomenon, which along the way earned Smarty Jones a $5 million bonus and a shot at the first Triple Crown in decades, had generated untold publicity for the sport.

The Smarty Jones success vaulted him to a career-best $14.5 million in earnings for the year. Since the Preakness, he’s won over 750 races, including 90 stakes. He compiled 15 graded stakes wins, including Grade 1 contests with Round Pond (Acorn) and Wildcat Heir (DeFrancis), currently a red-hot freshman sire.

Currently riding regularly at Monmouth Park, Elliott is 44-for-318 in 2009. His lone stakes score came in the Lucky Lavender at Aqueduct with Bold Union. Elliott celebrated his 4,000^th victory on January 19.  

Born March 1, 1965, Elliott lived in Toronto until he was seven years old, when, in 1972 he moved with his family to Hong Kong for six years, where his father Dennis rode.  Upon returning to the United States, Elliott, Jr. began to think about a riding career.  He won his first race at Keystone Park (now Philadelphia Park) on January 31, 1981 with Jack’s Ruby.  His career has taken him to several states and even quit the game for awhile in the 1990s. 

In 2002, Elliott again maintained his consistency, winning 250 races (17th overall) and over $3.6 million in purses. In 2003, he placed 11th in North America with 249 wins. His mounts earned $3.5 million. He rode his 3,000th winner at Philly Park on May 16, 2003. 

Before this year’s Oaks, he last rode at Woodbine in 2004, when he won with one of his five mounts on the Queen’s Plate card. Before then he hadn’t ridden at Woodbine since 1987, when he won 22 races from 332 starts.