1st Races in the Series '08 Series - Los Alamitos Race Course
Drinkers of the Wind Derby
& Daughters of the Desert Oaks

Results 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, JANUARY 26, 2008 CONTACT LOS ALAMITOS PUBLICITY 714-820-2690
Daughters of the Desert Oaks 2008 Program # Horse Name Sire x Dam /Sire of Dam Owner Breeder Jockey WINNER 1 STARS THE LIMIT NO LIMIT X RW NORWEGIAN STAR by WIKING LOREN NICHOLS/ COAST TO COAST RACING PARTNERS TOWN & COUNTRY FARMS CORP. DIHIGI GLADNEY Second 6 ABRA CAADABRA BURNING SAND X CAARABINE CS by ANETO MARK POWELL FRENCH PERFORMANCE ARABIANS LLC BALTAZAR CONTRERAS Third 4 MD SUGAR AND SPICE LINE DANCER X VALOURS GOLLY G by BY GOLLY MICHAEL OR SANDRA S MACEY MICHAEL MACEY OR SANDRA S MACEY JODY WRIGHT DAUGHTERS WINNER IS A TRUE STAR Two starts after winning the Arabian Cup Juvenile for fillies at Delaware Park, Stars The Limit firmly established herself as the best Arabian filly in the nation after posting a two-length victory in the Grade 1 $75,000 Daughters of the Desert Oaks at Los Alamitos Race Course. Her coast-to-coast domination is appropriate, considering that a 17-person partnership, spreading from California to Florida owns the No Limite filly. photo: Loren Nichols and company after winning the Daughters of the Desert Trained by Maureen Spellman and racing in California for lessee Loren Nichols, Stars The Limit is owned by racing enthusiasts living in places such as Chico, California, Austin, Texas, Raleigh, North California, and southern states such as Florida and Alabama racing under the banner of Coast To Coast. Their zest for Arabian racing brought them together a couple of years ago and Stars The Limit's futurity domination is becoming one of their highlights. "Each of us owns 1/17th of Stars The Limit," said Nichols. "This partnership is made up of CEOs, car dealership owners, veterinarians, loan managers, etc. It's a very diverse group but everybody likes each other. We have a great time and look at how much joy they're getting from this win. We're all thrilled." Ridden by Dihigi Gladney, who picked up the mount after Ramon Guce opted to ride Ange De Gargassan, Stars The Limit ran a tremendous race in stalking style. Racing off the pace until the final turn, Stars The Limit took off at that point and then outdueled several horses down the stretch for her fourth win in seven career starts. Sent off in the Juvenile at Delaware at 30-1 odds, Stars The Limit is now undefeated in her last three starts. She earned $31,500 for the win, easily doubling her previous career earnings to $60,514. "She's been a slow maturing filly," Nichols said. "She's big which makes her not as efficient with her movements during the early part of her races. She was starting to peak in the Juvenile and she's been at the top of her game ever since." And her owners, most of which were involved with 2006 Daughters runner-up Cou De Ta, have loved every second of it. "We've had so much fun and we've been so lucky with our Arabian runners," said North California's Susan Meyer, a partnership member along with her husband Dr. Jim Meyer DVM. "We've had racehorses for the last five years," said Dr. Meyer. "But my wife and I have been together for more than 37 years and we both Arabian horses even before we got married. We showed Arabians but we decided to try something different and we've had a great time." "I'm a trustee of the Pure Bred Arabian Trust," Susan added. "Another trustee, Hamp Johnstone, said that we should get into racing. He introduced us to Loren and we've been in it ever since. We owe it all to Lorens Trs Trackside Farms. He finds, trains and manages our horses." Partnership member John Pleggenkuhle of Florida was all smiles when he noticed that Stars The Limit had avoided a traffic jam going into the backstretch run. "Early in the race I thought that we were in a bad position," he began. "Once she found space I started thinking that we would be okay. When she jumped out to the lead, I knew that we were clear. My sister shows Arabians, so I've been around horses before, but I think that race horses rock. It's a very competitive sport and we enjoy it." Among the partnership members that couldn't make it to Los Alamitos to witness Stars The Limit's performance were Ken and Nancy Blewett. "They couldn't be here because one of their mares was in foal." Nichols, who saddled Sideways to victory in the 1996 Drinkers of the Wind Derby, took the time to credit Spellman, who in two short weeks at Los Alamitos finds herself tied with Charles Treece at the top of the local Arabian training standings with three victories. "She's worked for me six years and she's the best," Nichols said. "She's a straightforward person. There's no fluff. If you want to know something, she tells you the truth. I send her to the races and I give her signed, blank checks. I don't ever worry about her. She's honest and very good person. She's at the track at 3:00 a.m., probably the first or second person at the track every morning. She's great with the horses - she's very, very good. "I recently bought a new trailer - I figured that if we won this race then the trailer would have paid for itself. It was a special order. I wanted it to be like a traveling home. The horses arrived here only four days before the trials, but they arrived in good shape. The way I see it, the trailer doesn't owe me a thing." Mark Powell's Abra Caadabra earned $12,750 for her second place finish in the Daughters of the Desert Oaks. MD Sugar And Spice finished third and was followed by Sey Lady Proof, Storm Surge, Ruby Earrings, Sey Trisori Proof, Ange De Gargassan, and Dixie Dance completed the field.
Drinkers of the Wind Derby 2008 Program # Horse Name Sire x Dam /Sire of Dam Owner Breeder Jockey WINNER 1 WALK THE LINE BURNING SAND X TF DESERT JEWEL by RD FIVE STAR DONALD & VIVIAN DATES JAMES MORRIS OTTO ARRIAGA Second 9 COOL SAND LUKE BURNING SAND X AMELIA CS by ANETO SCOTT POWELL JAMES MORRIS RAMON GUCE Third 3 AURORAS RAINBEAU SUNNY RAINBOW X AURORA RSM by BY GOLLY MANDOLYNN HILL FARM MANDOLYNN HILL FARM MATT GARCIA WALK RUNS GREATEST DRINKERS EVER Donald and Vivienne Date's Walk The Line set a stakes record in Saturday's Grade 1 $75,000 Drinkers of the Wind Derby thanks to an impressive nine length victory over Cool Sand Luke, while becoming the first California-based horse in eight years to win the prestigious race for Arabian colts and geldings at Los Alamitos. photo: New Drinkers stakes record holder Walk The Line Covering the 6-furlong distance in 1:17 4/5 with Otto Arriaga aboard, Walk The Line smashed the previous Drinkers record of 1:18.78 posted by Arabian Triple Crown winner TH Richie in 2005. Walk The Line is also the first California campaigner to defend home court since the Billy Lewis-trained Croixnoire in 2000. Lewis played a role in Walk The Line's triumph, except that this time he had to settle for being the former trainer of the Drinkers winner. The Dates moved the Burning Sand colt and seven other Arabians out of Lewis' barn and into the shedrows of Los Alamitos' all-time leading Thoroughbred trainer Charles Treece only a week before this final. "I have a great deal of respect for Billy and his son, Billy G." Donald Dates said. "I always considered the Lewises good friends and excellent horsemen. The change had nothing to do with them and they know that. It was a very difficult decision. I have a great deal of respect for them and they did a great job training Walk The Line." The Dates opted for Treece's barn for the simple reason that they also own Thoroughbreds. The plan calls for Treece to handle the training on those Thoroughbreds. "The training of Thoroughbreds and Arabians are similar, that's why we went with (Treece)" Dates said. "Plus, Billy always spoke highly of Charles Treece in the past." The celebration was a great way to finish what had otherwise been a difficult day and month for the owners. "Today has been bittersweet," Dates said. "We lost a mare to colic earlier today. She was in foal to our horse Buddy of Mine. It's nice to have something to smile about after such a rough day." Dates, who runs a home interior finishing company, shook hands and conversed with reporters while protecting his casted right arm. "I was changing a tire on my tractor when it slipped and the wheel broke my wrist. I was on the ground thinking which way to turn the lever to raise the tractor up. I knew that if twisted the wrong way I could do severe damage." Dates' painful experience was nothing compared to what he and his wife experience in 2001. The couple was involved in an automobile accident that nearly killed Vivienne. "She's not supposed to be here right now," he said. "The accident crushed my pelvis," Vivienne added. "At the time I had an Arabian horse named Miel, who had belonged to Wayne Newton. I was in the hospital and I was saying my last goodbyes. I remember telling Don to take care of Miel and to tell her that I would miss her." "That's when I stopped her," he said. "I told her to give me a minute and I went outside. When I came back I told her that the doctor had just told me that she would be back riding Miel in three months." "I believe that that gave me the strength to recover," she explained. "They had told me that if she made it through the night it would be miracle," Dates added. "Growing up I was taught not to lie, but the part about her riding in three months, that was a lie at the time. I only said that to give her some hope." "And I do think that it inspired me to get better," Vivienne added. The Dates will always credit Billy Lewis for finding Walk The Line, who they purchased privately during his 3-year-old year. "We wanted a Burning Sand colt but it was nearly impossible to get one," Dates said. "Billy found Walk The Line, but he kept throwing jockeys off of him at Delaware. He went to Texas and he kept throwing jockeys off of him there as well. We picked him up for a lot less than we should have because no one could stay on him. The credit for his development has to go to Billy." The Dates described Walk The Line's victory in the Drinkers as the most phenomenal night in their Arabian racing career. "We were involved with pleasure horses before and we showed Arabians," said the Dates. "But we decided that we didn't want ribbons. We wanted to do something more competitive. That's why we turned to racing three years ago." The Dates, who are residents of Las Vegas, Nevada, took great pleasure in knowing that California was back on top in the Drinkers of the Wind. "I wanted the Drinkers to be won by a California horse. I didn't think that it would be mine," he said. " 'Walk' just ran two seconds faster than ever before at 6 furlongs. We were concerned about beating Cool Sand Luke because of obvious reasons but we had beaten him before. When 'Walk' kept opening up in this race I knew he was gone because all of our other races with 'Cool' had been much closer." "I told Otto to go for the lead, make two left turns and don't look back," Treece added with a smile. His instructions were carried to the letter. Auroras Rainbeau, Our Machine, Frysk Me Now, Stoicc, Tri Pro, Throttle Up, Kryptonite CS, and The Forrce completed the field.
Results of previous Triple Crown Races. 2008 Delaware Bob Magness Memorial Derby & Cre Run Oaks 2008 Texas Texas Six Shooter & Texas Yellow Rose 2008 California - Drinkers of the Wind Derby & Daughters of the Desert Oaks 2008 2007 Delaware Bob Magness Memorial Derby & Cre Run Oaks 2007 Texas Texas Six Shooter & Texas Yellow Rose 2007 California - Drinkers of the Wind Derby & Daughters of the Desert Oaks 2007 2006 Delaware - Bob Magness Memorial Derby & Cre Run Oaks 2006 Texas - Texas Six Shooter & Texas Yellow Rose 2006 California - Drinkers of the Wind Derby & Daughters of the Desert Oaks 2006 2005 Arabian Triple Crown 2005