Snow Chief bounces back

Press, 22 May 1986, Page 30

Snow Chief bounces back

NZPA-Reuter Baltimore Snow Chief, considered to be the finest colt in the United States until his mystifying eleventh-place in the Kentucky Derby, redeemed himself with an easy fourlengths win in the 111th running of the Preakness Stakes. Snow Chief, ridden by Alex Solis, tracked a relatively slow early pace but took the lead going into the straight about two-and-a-half furlongs from the finish of the mile and a quarter race and was never challenged. Ferdinand, the Kentucky Derby winner, with Bill Shoemaker up, closed from sixth to finish second at Pimlico Racecourse. Broad Brush, which had been third in the Derby, duplicated that finish by edging the fast-closing Badger Land. Snow Chief ran the distance in 1:54.8, more than 1.4 s off the track record. Hisiiirst place earnings of $411,6d0 in this second leg of

United States horse racing’s coveted Triple Crown, pushed his total earnings to more than $2,130,000. Snow Chiefs victory ended Bill Shoemaker’s hopes of capturing his first Triple Crown aboard Ferdinand. “No excuse. He (Ferdinand) ran a good race but wasn’t good enough to beat the winner. He just couldn’t catch him down the stretch," Shoemaker, aged 54, said. Snow Chief had been the talk of United States racing since last year, when he became the youngest thoroughbred in history to earn more than one million dollars. Going into the Kentucky Derby, he had been undefeated in four starts in 1986. But Snow Chief had a dismal day at Churchill Downs. He chased a fast early pace in the Derby and faded to his nth-place finish. His jockey, alex Solis, was roundly criticised for chasing the speed and using his horse in that race. V