Gallop change question

[Carole Hanson]

So I’m gonna present a specific case. Kokito is a ‘productive’ galloper and has been since he was a yearling. He obviously didn’t improve after his first start but this makes me wonder, is it possible for a horse to improve gallop (say for example it happened for him at the beginning of his 3yo season) but have it show up only after a race? So hypothetically if I raced him now he’d suddenly jump to stakes/freak? Or is it literally only after their very first race that this kind of jump can happen?

I ask about Kokito because how can you be so meh with that pedigree

[Tim Matthews]

My understanding is this: The Steward says that the gallop comment can only change at week 1, week 9, and after the first race. The first race bump can show up either in the first race (like when a "claimer" wins first out with a 95) or in the second race (like when one of Susie's horses finishes 11th first out, and then wins the next race with a 95.) I don't think the improved gallop would be hidden at any time. So, if Kokito had the first race bump, he still may have lost that maiden, but if you galloped him after, his improvement would have been reflected in the comment, and his second race may have also demonstrated that improvement. I hope that makes sense, and someone should correct me if I'm mistaken.

[Nena Olson]

Horses can jump up in level at the beginning of each year or W9 no matter how old they are or how many times they have raced.

[Carole Hanson]

Right so I should just give up on him now then lol!

Thanks for the replies!

[Nena Olson]

Sadly, not all well bred horses improve My Titanic 2yo is still an allowance.

[Cate Lynn]

Hm, this makes me wonder! I’ve never to my knowledge had a horse improve like this, but THINK I have one who did recently?

https://www.simhorseracing.com/horse.ph ... ID=1027686

Was stakes and highest SF was 89. His last race beat some big ones in a G1 with a whopping 94.

I guess what’s throwing me is that if they bump up in week 9, he raced in week 10 and bombed it with a SF in the 70s before his stellar 94 in week 12. So maybe it was just a good run...?

On another note - glad to know horses also change after race one, too. I hadn’t known that part!

[Andrew James]

I was under the impression they could also improve during their second start. And that wouldn't be reflected in the gallop comment until after the second race was done.

[Kaine Saracen]

I ask about Kokito because how can you be so meh with that pedigree

Simple answer... easily.

Reasoning is in the pedigree from what I can see. Queen of Atlantis is definitely not Moon Of Atlantis, most notable point being what appears to be an obvious (from where I sit) bias towards fillies for Queen Of Atlantis. Eight foals, 3 colts. One colt is already gelded, clearly a flop gallop. On the works, I would guess that Good Boi is at best an allowance with Kokito stated as a productive, the top two earning progeny are fillies.
Satono Moon, also a son of Moon of Atlantis is currently displaying a similar trend if earnings are considered, 5 of the top earners are fillies with only the stewbred Shine Bright going against the grain.

The less obvious implication is Lilibet may have been a random slide, the only other 6 figure earner of the 8 so far was a stewbred by Coleman Hell, a sire that seems to need Emily's touch to look good with 7 of his top ten earners being bred by her.

[Carole Hanson]

Yea Good Boi is a productive too. The 2yo jumped up to Stakes so I guess you’re right, she prefers her daughters

[Lily Wilkins]

Right so I should just give up on him now then lol!

Thanks for the replies!

You could sit on him until he's 4... I was given that advice by the Steward regarding a colt recently. I would like to think that she would not suggest it if there was not some sort of improvement that COULD happen at that point with a horse. I mean, he is ridiculously well bred so it's logical to assume he will get better at SOME point, although Itoko babies seem to be pretty precocious, so I feel like he should not need that long to "mature."

Silly random slide!