Noosa Beach and Awesome Gem remain the main contenders for the Longacre Mile Handicap at Emerald Downs
The Doris Harwood trained 5-year-old gelding, Noosa Beach is the 2 to 1 morning line favourite to win the Grade 3 $200,000 Longacres Mile Handicap at Emerald Downs on 21 August, 2011.
Noosa Beach is the defending champion of the Grade 3 Longacres Mile Handicap and he heads a full field of 12 runners at the Emerald Downs, who is at 125 pounds high weight.
Among the 12 horses that fill up the Longacre Mile is the 8-year-old gelding, Awesome Gem, the Grade 1 winner is going to take on the field of 12 and challenge Noosa Beach and other older horses for the Mile.
The 2009 winner of the Longacre Mile Handicap, Assessment is also contesting for this year’s Mile.
The 5-year-old son of Harbor the Gold, out of Julia Rose by Basket Weave, Noosa Beach has owned the Emerald Downs for the past 13 months where he has gone on to win seven stakes races on the trot.
According to trainer Doris Harwood, Noosa Beach is approaching the Longacre Mile just as planned and that he is training fine ahead of the race. Noosa Beach turned in a quick breeze of five furlongs in the time of 1 minute an .02 seconds on 14 August under
his usual rider Gallyn Mitchell.
Doris who trains Noosa Beach for her husband said, that Noosa Beach has shown progress throughout this year with seven wins on the trot, and he most definitely a better horse than last year.
Last year was the time when Noosa Beach won the Longacre Mile and went on to defeat his rival Jersey Town by a considerable margin of 1 ½ lengths. Noosa Beach drew the post number 11 for the Longacre Mile 2011 edition.
The daunting weight assignment proves to be just fine for Noosa Beach, which will make him three pounds heavier than the Grade 1 winner Awesome Gem who has gone on to earn $2.5 million lifetime earnings.
Awesome Gem will draw the outside post. According to trainer Doris Harwood, she was appalled by the weights after the post position draw. She thought that it was unfair, while Awesome Gem who has earned ample amount ofmoney this year and the 8-year-old
gelding posted a 100 Beyer’s which Noosa Beach has never done.
Even after all this, if Noosa Beach goes on to win the Longacre Mile at Emerald Downs, then the 5-year-old most definitely deserves a Breeders’ Cup spot.
Awesome Gem last started in a Grade 1 was the Gold Cup at Hollywood Park where he finished fifth, and now he is way up on the outside at post number 12, a position which has yielded only 3 winners since the inception of the race.
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