Titles on the line as Aiken rings out 2024 NSA season
Aiken Fall Races 2023 © Tod Marks
Jump racing returns to where the National Steeplechase Association season began last spring, in horsey Aiken, S.C., with an enhanced seven-race $220,000, featuring the $50,000 Holiday Cup four-year-old hurdle stakes.
Following the final race, the Aiken Steeplechase Association will host the NSA’s Annual Awards gala in which the year’s champions will be acknowledged and honored. While most of the titles have been decided, a few remain up in the air and will be settled by day’s end, notably the race for leading trainer. Leslie Young, who has held the crown for the past two years, is deadlocked with 14-time champion, Hall of Famer Jack Fisher, at 28 wins.
While Graham Watters has secured his third leading rider title in four years – holding an uncatchable 25- to 16-win advantage over his nearest rival, Jamie Bargary – it remains to be seen how high a bar Watters will set for the single-season earnings record he shattered along the way. Dan Nevin and Evan Dwan are knotted at five wins apiece in the race for leading apprentice, with Virginia Korrell one back with four. It was a nailbiter for leading owner, but Bruton Street-US drew clear in the stretch over Leipers Fork Steeplechasers, which held the top spot for much of the season. Other divisional winners include Super Chunk (three-year-old); Carloun (novice); Gold Charm (filly or mare); Mystic Strike (timber); and Snap Decision (Lonesome Glory as the leading earner).
The co-feature on Saturday’s Aiken card, which has a first race post time of 1 p.m., is the $35,000 Alston Cup allowance hurdle, an extra race that was originally scheduled for the Charleston Steeplechase. Charleston was forced to cancel its Nov. 10 meet because of course conditions brought about by the prolonged drought.
Saturday’s program also consists of a $20,000 maiden claiming hurdle;
$25,000 handicap for horses rated at 110 or less; two $30,000 open maiden special weights contests; and a $30,000 handicap for horses rated at 115 or less.
In the Holiday Cup, at 2 ⅛ miles, a field of five is expected, led by Runnymoore Racing’s Clifton Down, who gives Leslie Young a good chance to one-up Jack Fisher. A two-time 2024 stakes winner, the Irish-bred is coming off a 7-length victory in the Harry Harris at Far Hills in which he defeated Del Rio Racing’s Little Trilby, who is making only his third NSA start for trainer Ricky Hendriks after a pair of hurdle victories overseas.
Trainer Fisher counters with Riverdee Stable’s Palio and Bruton Street-US’ St. John’s, an earner of $200,000 on the flat who has competed three times over jumps with a single maiden score. Palio, like St. John’s, also broke his maiden at Colonial this summer.
The unknown quantity in the field is Irv Naylor’s French-bred newcomer Sultan Pierji, who started a dozen times in his native land before shipping stateside for trainer Tom Garner. In his lone U.S. start, in the Harry Harris, Sultan Pierji wasn’t a factor. Though he has only one win, the son of graded stakes winner Ectot finished second or third six times with earnings of $151,000.
Gates open at 8 a.m., and festivities include stick-horse races for children at 11:30 a.m.; carriage parade (12:15 p.m.); hat and crazy pants contest (1:45 p.m.); and corgi races beginning at 2:40 p.m.
You can watch the races via live stream from the link on the NSA homepage, www.nationalsteeplechase.com.