Team Senior Senator & The Challenge Cup, continued...
not winning.” Senior Senator ran two more times in 2014, finishing second at Genesee Valley Hunt Cup and winning at the Pennsylvania Hunt Cup Races, both in the Maiden Timber. “He was only four that year and no other horse has won that race at that age except for Mountain Dew,” said Skip. Mountain Dew, owned by Janon Fisher, Jr., went on to win the Maryland Hunt Cup three times (1962, 1965 and 1967) however, since Jay Trump had retired the Challenge Cup for owner Mrs. M.C. Stephenson in 1966, only the last of his wins count- ed towards the newest Challenge Cup. Te following year, Senior Sena- tor finished second three times out of three races: Mr. Stewart’s Cheshire Foxhounds Point to Point, My Lady’s Manor Races and the Grand National Steeplechase.
The Right Trainer In 2016, Davies started Senior Sena-
tor’s season much the same, but this time, the six year old was unstoppa- ble. He won at Cheshire, technically crossed the wire first at the Grand National (was disqualified for missing a beacon) and capped off the Maryland steeplechase season with winning his first Maryland Hunt Cup. “Tat was our first time having a horse in the Hunt Cup,” Skip stated. “We went in thinking a fourth or fifth place finish would be great.” Senior Senator had other plans. With Poretz also riding in his first Mary- land Hunt Cup, Senior Senator went to the front early in the course, and he stayed there. He ran so far ahead of the field that the Craw- fords were convinced he’d get tired and passed
by others near the end. “But he didn’t. He just kept going,” Skip remembered. “When he crossed the wire and won, we were shocked!” said Vicki. Senior Senator became only the second six-year-old to win the Maryland Hunt Cup, the other being Jay Trump. Although Senior Senator is described as a
Cup and he fell at the third fence, the largest jump on the course. Although both horse and rider walked off the course that day, Senior Senator ended up at the New Bolton Center where he received treatment for fractures in- volving the fourth and fifth cervical vertebrae. Dr. Dean Richardson of New Bolton per- formed a surgery that involved bone grafts and metal splints and screws. Senior Senator was sent home for three months of stall rest before being reexamined. “Tings were looking good so
we moved on to another three months in a stall but this time he could be hot walked,” Skip said. “He still has some of the metal pieces in his neck ‘cause Dr. Rich- ardson said it was more dangerous to take them out then leave them in!” Te following spring, Senior Senator was back in action. “It means a lot to me that the
Trainers Blythe and Joe Davies saw something great in the some- what unruly young flat track horse and quickly channeled his energy into winning over timber.
workhorse, ready to gallop and jump year- round, Davies elected to not run him that fall. “We are only interested in Maryland timber races. Tat is a decision we made as a family early on in our careers,” explained Davies. Te decision has worked well for the Davies, as both Joe and Blythe have won the Maryland Hunt Cup as jockeys and trainers multiple times.
The Right Vets
Senior Senator continued his winning ways in 2017, until one nearly career-ending fall. It was his second time running in the Maryland Hunt
Nathan the Great
By Private Scandal (Not for Love), out of Missthewire 8 Year Old, 17.3H Thoroughbred Gelding Earned over $75,000 - Retired Sound
Crawfords kept me on as his jockey after that Hunt Cup fall,” Poretz said. “It’s a business, I know that, and they could have
sacked me after that fall and gone with a more experienced jockey, but they didn’t.” Poretz rode Senior Senator to win at Cheshire and then finished second in a tight race at the Elkridge-Harford Hunt Point to Point. “I was standing near the finish of Cheshire just wor- ried sick,” said Vicki. “We just didn’t know if he would still be able to do all of this, but then he surged ahead and won and I shouted, ‘He’s back!’” At that point in the season, the options were to run him at My Lady’s Manor or the Grand National.
continued...
Nathan is 100% sound, clean legged, and ready to begin a new career. He has impeccable ground manners and an in-your-pocket personality. Sweet, smart, and eager to please. Easy to work with. Gorgeous mover, comfortable ride. Train him for your preferred discipline. Suitable for 4-H or Pony Club, as well as an adult. A serious buyer may take him on trial. We bred and have owned & trained him his entire life. We want him to go to a home where he can be a star and excel. Asking $9,000, negotiable to the right situation. Videos available.
301-491-0015 (call or text) •••
acerfarm@aol.com
www.equiery.com | 800-244-9580 JUNE 2019 | THE EQUIERY | 21
Tammie J. Monaco
921923-190619
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