Lying Shows Her Talent is True in the Louisville Oaks

Original article written by Marzy Dotes posted 11 years 1 week ago

Somewhere out in the pastures that define the Fox Lair in New York State, Magician is enjoying his life of leisure as a pensioned stallion while the last of his youngsters head to the racetrack this year. One of those, a colt named Whirlpool was sold to Eric Nalbone at auction for $6 million which appeared a steal for the son of Hall of Famer Such Great Heights. This brazen broodmare of course produced both the Triple Crown winner Maelstrom and one of the top all weather sires Yes.

And who of us who embrace plastic racing didn’t do a happy dance when Whirlpool did a speed work over the all weather surface by covering five furlongs in 1:00.38?

But this story isn’t about Whirlpool or the others in the final class of colts and fillies which were sired by the multi-surface champion and sire Magician, it’s about how one of his slightly older fillies with a penchant for dirt won the biggest race of her career.

Lying waltzed into the $1 million Grade I Louisville Oaks the favorite and she ran like one, turning it into a tour de force performance when she took the lead on the far turn and pulled away mightily in the stretch to win by four lengths. The compact and very smooth striding bay filly zipped the 1 1/8 miles on the dirt oval at Louisville Downs in 1:49 flat. In her wake were seven other nice fillies including the runner up finisher Garden.

She warmed up afterward as if she’d jogged the distance and the Susie Rydell homebred pranced in the winner’s circle nearly tossing jockey Finnick Odair into the crowd. The filly was one of two winners for Magician in high stakes competition that day with his veteran campaigner Brakebills capturing the Desert Marathon halfway around the world.

Lying is also the first foal of Truth Be Told, a stakes winning daughter of Baltimore Crown winner Boise who also pensioned not too long ago to great sadness. So far on the racetrack, she’s been absolute perfection never losing a race and most often stalking the pace before she seizes control of the race in the stretch winning her race by varying degrees of daylight. Odair who’s ridden her in all her races told reporters that there’s not much to riding her and he’s never concerned that she’ll fail to put out a dynamite effort in her races.

Once she got her equipment sorted, she showed incredible turn of hoof in the mornings before blowing away the field by five lengths in her first start. She defeated Effusive by 2 ½ lengths in the Inglewood Starlet before capturing two more stakes including the Rivalry Stakes by 4 ¼ lengths having that race well in hand.

She came into the race a strong favorite on the minds of everyone who’d followed her sterling career. Of course, the race wasn’t to be a walkover as other horses traveled to compete in what is one of the premiere race for young routing fillies in horse racing. Often it is shadowed by the more glamorous and lucrative Louisville Derby and this year that race showed brilliance but Lying wasn’t about to have her own moment in the spotlight go unnoticed.

Garden an elegant chestnut filly who showed up at the starting line was bred and is owned by Ali Weasley. She’s a daughter of newer sire Ultra and is the most successful offspring so far for the stud who hails out of the family of Hall of Famer and Broodmare of the Year Tiara. Her dam, the stakes winning Fortress (by Change the Past) comes from the family of another prominent producer, Hall of Famer Temple. Garden won her first two starts including the Trap Stakes putting herself on the canvas early on. She ran a brave race in the Steward’s Cup Juvenile Fillies before being turned back by both Steal My Heart and Cheat at the wire. Still, she cast aside that disappointment when she returned to action this season winning the Fantastic Stakes in preparation for this race.

Jack Heissenbuttel of course brought his homebred Steal My Heart into this race coming off her more recent win in the Lexington Oaks which she captured by 1 ½ lengths showing she hadn’t lost a step since her Steward’s Cup victory. She’s by the already sensational sire Maelstrom and is out of Thunder Stealer a daughter of Tremendous Machine. People watching her prepare for the race thought she looked a formidable racer who might just be the one to snap Lying’s undefeated streak.

Erin Sanderson’s homebred Speak in Riddles had been nearly perfect in her races, her only loss being a second place finish in the Okibi Senshi Stakes. She came into the race on a two race winning streak having put away Ships in the Night in the stretch to win the Las Californias Stakes last time out. One of Just Victory’s successful offspring, Speak in Riddles is out of a daughter of Louisville Derby winner Braveheart named Strong Minded.

Ship in the Night is of course bred and owned by Nalbone. She’s a nicely bred daughter of successful sire War Daddy and As You Sleep (also by Braveheart) who’s of course a daughter of Hall of Famer Wonder. On the racetrack so far, she’s had a more difficult time of it. She captured the Sunset Stakes before finishing second in the Las Californias.

Nalbone had another filly in the race, Picked for Victory who of course is sired by his stud Just Victory. The grey filly is also the daughter of Picky who’s also out of the family of Braveheart. Nalbone purchased his racer for a cool $5.5 million. After winning the Babe Ruth Stakes by a neck last year over Mercurial she finished second in the Lexington Oaks.

Ara Davies bred and owned Cheat a daughter of just pensioned East and stakes mare Chicory a daughter of Looking For Light. This dark bay filly won three out of her four races coming to Louisville Downs thought the highlight of her career so far was her second place finish in the Steward’s Cup Juvenile Fillies behind Steal My Heart.

Rounding out the contentious field was Recipe, a daughter of almost Triple Crown winner Persevere and Kookaburra. The bay filly bred and owned by Karie McBrian had won last time out in the Puerto Rica Ladies Stakes.

The fillies all went to the post very well behaved while everyone crowded the windows to make their wagers. But all their manners were tossed aside when the gates opened. Ships in the Night bolted to the lead by a neck over Recipe who tried to pull away from Lying who likes to be close up to the action early on in her races. Cheat and Garden followed her in close pursuit. As soon as they got into the backstretch, Ships in the Night tugged the reins held by David Faulkner and led by 1 ½ lengths over Cheat who sailed nearly three lengths in front of Lying who just lay in wait.

As soon as they got into the far turn, Lying moved up strongly to take the lead by a neck over Garden who had tried to save ground on that turn but wound up running wide. Ships in the Night slipped back into third as the horses navigated the turn to reach the homestretch.

If Garden thought she could turn the homestretch into a grueling duel to the wire, she found out soon enough that this was all for naught as Lying simply turned on her afterburners in the stretch and breezed away from anyone attempting to chase her. She’s dainty with her steps but there’s no denying the power of her strides when this talented filly decides to turn an exercise into a race.

Garden hustled enough to finish second by 1 ¼ lengths over Steal My Heart who started running late to pull past Ships in the Night in the stretch. The fillies all looked impressive warming down and Lying of course trotted off to the winner’s circle where she did her dance in front of the crowd.

And somewhere on a farm hundreds of miles away, perhaps her daddy did one too.

---

Back to Racing articles