Ernfold looks to give owners Jim and Susan Hill their first win in the Woodbine Oaks. The Stormy Atlantic filly is a two-time winner that hasn’t missed the board in six career starts, including third-place finishes in the Natalma and Princess Elizabeth Stakes at two.
The Ontario-bred commenced her road to the Oaks in a 1 1/8-mile turf event at Keeneland Racecourse on April 21. Roger Attfield, who assumed training duties in mid-January, said he had planned all along to get the filly a start at Keeneland to start her three-year-old campaign. The Hall of Fame conditioner was pleased with the performance – a six-wide sweep to the front that resulted in a 1 1/2-length victory, going away.
“I was happy with how she was training. I knew I had her fit enough. It was just a question of whether she was good enough. It’s very difficult to win at Keeneland. I was happy,” said Attfield, who goes for his fourth career Oaks score.
Ernfold returned to Woodbine to compete against a top cast of fillies in the $167,000 La Lorgnette Stakes on May 23. The pace was extremely slow early and jockey Jim McAleney had to send Ernfold to the front just inside the three-eighths pole – far earlier than normal. The filly stayed on well through the stretch and came up a length short of last year’s co-champion two-year-old filly Biofuel.
“It was an excellent race,” said Attfield. “She had one start and ran a very good second to a good filly. It was a strangely run race because there was so little pace. We had to be on the lead a little earlier than we wanted. She put up a tremendous showing. He (jockey, Jim McAleney) made the right decision.”
In a June 4 workout, which is available in the video-on-demand section of the WoodbineEntertainment.com website, she went toe-to-toe from the outset with five-year-old, multiple stakes-winner Sand Cove, zipping five furlongs in :59 4/5, which was the fastest of 55 to work at the distance. Clocker Mike Lym caught Ernfold galloping out in 1:13 1/5. “She worked very well,” said Attfield. “I needed to see that to be ready for the Oaks.”
Attfield said Ernfold used to have a tendency to bear out. “She had a bad habit of getting out last year,” he said. “We got over that by changing the equipment and galloping her a little differently. She’s been a pleasure.”
Ernfold’s dam is Wynyard, a two-time sprint winner out of Mr. Greeley. Wynyard is no stranger to producing Oaks runners. She is the dam of last year’s Woodbine Oaks favorite Wynning Ride, who finished fourth in 13-horse field. Wynning Ride is still in search of her first stakes score, but was second in last month’s Grade 2 Milady Handicap at Hollywood Park.
It has come as no surprise to Attfield’s main Oaks competition, undefeated Embur’s Song, has displayed above-average talent. He had a sense that the filly might be talented when she fetched $170,000 as a yearling in 2008. “I have a lot of respect for that mare (Embur’s Sunshine),” said Attfield. “I was interested in (Embur’s Song), but I didn’t have the money to go that high. I bought Ten Flat out of that mare and he had a great deal of speed.”
Owner – Jim and Susan Hill
The Woodbine Oaks is the richest local race Jim and Susan Hill have contested since the 2007 Woodbine Mile, in which they watched Storm Caller finish 13th. The seven-year-old son of Stormy Atlantic is still in training, having finished sixth in a Grade 3 at Calder on April 30.
Recent winners include speedy three-year-old filly Platinum Exchange, who they purchased at the 2008 Keeneland September Sale for $200,000. She is trained by Brian Lynch and is nominated for the Alywow, which is part of the Oaks card. Stakes-placed four-year-old Monty’s Best recently tried turf for the first time, finishing fifth. Two starts ago, he was fourth to Hollywood Hit, less than two lengths behind the talented sprinter.
Fantastic Cousin, who is in the Reade Baker stable, is a promising three-year-old that was a wide third in his debut, which came over the E.P. Taylor Turf Course.
The Hills have won two recent stakes. On May 4, 2008, trainer Reade Baker shipped Northern Netti to Belmont and captured the $109,000 Bouwerie Stakes. On November 28, 2009, the barn won the Grade 2 Demoiselle Stakes at 1 1/8 miles with Virginia-bred Tizahit, a filly trained by George Weaver.
Hill, who used to own horses in a partnership called the Up Hill Stable, is in the oil exploration business.
Trainer – Roger Attfield
One of Canada’s most accomplished horsemen, Roger Attfield has trained a record-tying eight Queen’s Plate winners (Norcliffe, 1976; Market Control, 1987; With Approval, 1989; Izvestia, 1990; Alydeed, 1992; Peteski, 1993; Regal Discovery, 1995; Not Bourbon, 2008). Three of them (With Approval, Izvestia and Peteski) went on to win Triple Crowns. He’s also won the Breeders’ Stakes, third leg in the Canadian Triple Crown, on eight occasions and the Oaks, Canada’s top race for three-year-old Canadian-bred fillies three times (Playlist, 1986; Plenty of Sugar, 1994, Capdiva, 1997).
He has also conditioned six Horse-of-the-Year recipients. In addition to the Triple Crown winners, Norcliffe, Play the King and Alywow were also accorded that honour, among his numerous Sovereign Award winners.
The Nobleton resident has won scores of stakes at Woodbine during his 30+ years as a trainer and is a seven-time (1986, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1993, 2002, 2009) Sovereign Award winner as Canada’s outstanding conditioner. In 1999, he was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
Born November 18, 1939 in Newbury, England, Attfield was an accomplished show-jump rider and amateur steeplechase jockey before immigrating to Canada in 1970.
In 2000, he won 10 stakes, including three with Sovereign Award-winning juvenile filly Poetically, finishing with 42 wins (sixth place) and over $2.9 million in purses (second place). In 2003, Attfield saddled 23 winners, 99 top-three finishers and ranked tied for 15th in the standings, capturing the King Edward Breeders’ Cup Stakes with Perfect Soul for his lone stakes score on the campaign.
In 2005, Attfield saddled six stakes winners at Woodbine, including two with Palladio, who triumphed in the Ontario Derby and Victoria Park. Palladio also took the Ohio Derby and top three-year-old Sovereign honours. In 2006, Pellegrino gave him his 300th career stakes winner, in a year that saw the classy horseman rank 10th at the Toronto oval with 25 wins.
In 2009, Attfield won his seventh Sovereign Award as Canada’s Most Outstanding Trainer. He finished fourth in the Woodbine standings with 52 wins and captured stakes with 12 different horses, including Palladio, Hollinger and Perfect Shower.
Jockey – Jim McAleney
Born August 15, 1969 in Fort St. John, British Columbia, Jim McAleney won his first race in 1986 at Northlands Park in Edmonton. He was the leading rider in Alberta the following year, then came east to capture the Greenwood Fall meet title. Those accomplishments earned him a Sovereign Award as Canada’s top apprentice for 1987 as he won 160 races, ranking fifth in North America.
He successfully defended his title in 1988, winning a second Sovereign as the nation’s top apprentice. In 1989, he was the regular pilot of Mr. Hot Shot, Canada’s champion sprinter.
After relatively modest 1997 and 1998 campaigns, McAleney returned to prominence in 1999, ranking 12th with 59 wins (including four stakes) and $1.9 million in purses. In 2000, he rode 54 winners to $2.6 million in purses, including two stakes. In 2001, he won 56 races, ranking 11th with $2.8 million in purses. Among his stakes wins were the Breeders’ Stakes and Wonder Where aboard filly Sweetest Thing.
The 2002 season was a dream one for ‘Jimmy Mac,’ as he finished fifth overall, posting career-best marks in several categories, including nine stakes wins and $5,747,948 in purse earnings.
In 2003, McAleney won 112 races, earned in excess of $6.6 million and eight stakes races. In 2004, he won 109 races (third overall) and over $5.8 million in purses. He also notched his 1,500th career win aboard Seattle Rosa on August 12th at Woodbine. Gold Strike’s Woodbine Oaks win was his highlight.
In 2006, McAleney posted career-high totals in wins (113) and stakes scores (13). He won five stakes with one of his favourite racemares, Financingavailable. He spent his fifth straight season in the top five.
McAleney missed the entire first half of the 2007 season with a broken leg and didn’t return until August 15. He finished with 37 wins, including six stakes, and over $2.2 million in purses. Last year, he won a career-best 162 races, including eight stakes, while finishing second overall to Patrick Husbands.
In 2009, McAleney won 115 races at Woodbine (fifth overall at Woodbine) and notched the 2,000th victory of his career aboard Whiskeyontherocks on May 3. He won 13 stakes, including three (Wando, Marine Stakes and Victoria Park) with Awesome Rhythm.