Posts by National Steeplechase Association

Call her one tough mare who just keeps getting better with age. Shadowfax Racing’s Down Royal, an eight-year-old with an impeccable resume, added a new accolade to her lofty list of accomplishments, with a come-from-behind win against six tough male foes in the $150,000 A.P. Smithwick Stakes at Saratoga on Wednesday: Grade 1 winner.

Call it a carbon copy of last week’s opener at Colonial Downs. In his patented front-running style, jockey Mark Watts gunned Carrington Holdings’ Hurtgen Forest to the lead of today’s $40,000 maiden special weights hurdle and never looked back.

In the first steeplechase of the National Steeplechase Association summer season, Carrington Holdings’ Ancient Times, a five-year-old New York-bred, went wire-to-wire under Mark Watts to score by 2 ¾ lengths in a $40,000 maiden special weights hurdle at Colonial Downs in New Kent, Va.

The National Steeplechase Spring season came to a close on a sweltering Saturday in Malvern, Pa., with a five-race card dominated by the Leslie Young stable and Leipers Fork Steeplechasers.

“Snap” reasserts his dominance, Andi’amu wins back-to-back stakes; Dalton earns his 100th victory, and Leslie Young bags five on the penultimate weekend of the NSA Spring season.