Trainer Geoff Woodruff has lined up all of his big guns to be aimed at the R600,000 Peermont Emperors Palace Charity Mile over 1600m on the Turffontein standside track on Saturday 1 November.
Woodruff has seven runners among the 30 nominations for the Grade 2 race and they are SASCOC Triple Crown winner Louis The King, Rake’s Chestnut, Tellina, Master Sabina, Killua Castle, Lockheed Jetstar and Sabadell.
Louis The King has not raced since finishing unplaced in the Vodacom Durban July but Rakes Chestnut made his seasonal debut in the Grade 2 Joburg Spring Challenge earlier this month and finished unplaced.
Alec Laird has nominated four runners and they include As You Like, who was placed in all three legs of the Triple Crown races behind Louis The King. Laird’s other entries are Bouclette Top, Bezanova and Gitiano.
There are three entries each from Sean Tarry and St John Gray while Mike de Kock has two nominations. Tarry’s entries are The Hangman, Tiger’s Retreat and Mercado while Gray has entered three in-form runners in Glorious Jet, Everest and Norgay.
One entry who is sure to attract a lot of interest is Emerald Cup winner Tommy Gun. It will be interesting to see whether the Corne Spies-trained runner is as effective on turf as he is on the Vaal sand.
Lockheed Jetstar is just one of a powerful Woodruff attack
No Worries from the Gavin van Zyl yard held off the Mike Bass-trained Midnight Run to win the Joburg Spring Challenge and the two could meet again in this event.
The fairer sex are also well represented by four talented entries. Robbie Sage has put in Grade 2 Gold Bracelet champion Jet Belle, who is a six-time winner, Joey Soma has gone with Grade 1 SA Fillies Classic winner Athina, Johan Janse van Vuuren has nominated last year’s Emperors Palace Ready To Run Cup champion Winter Star while De Kock has entered talented Santa Carolina.
The Charity Mile is unique in that each of the 16 runners will be represented by a celebrity and a charity with R550,000 to be shared between them. The charity represented by the winning horse will receive R100,000 but no charity will go home empty-handed as even those represented by the last five home each get R20,000.
Supplementary entries close at 11am on Friday after which the weights will be announced.
Declarations close at 10am on Wednesday 22 October. The final field and draws will be announced at an event later in the day.
Nominations for the R600,000 Peermont Emperors Palace Gr2 CHARITY MILE over 1600m on the Turffontein standside track on Saturday 1 November.
NJAAL (M F De Kock); AS YOU LIKE (A G Laird); ATHINA (J A Soma); BEZANOVA (A G Laird); BOUCLETTE TOP (A G Laird); BROOKS-CLUB (M G Azzie); EVEREST (S J Gray); GITIANO (A G Laird); GLORIOUS JET (S J Gray); JET BELLE (R R Sage); JET JAMBOREE (D Zaki); KILLUA CASTLE (G V Woodruff); KING OF TORTS (D C Howells); LOCKHEED JETSTAR (G V Woodruff); LOUIS THE KING (G V Woodruff); MASTER SABINA (G V Woodruff); MERCADO (S G Tarry); MIDNIGHT RUN (M W Bass); NO WORRIES (G H Van Zyl); NORGAY (S J Gray); RAKE’S CHESTNUT (G V Woodruff); SABADELL (G V Woodruff); SANTA CAROLINA (M F De Kock); SNOWDON (O A Ferraris); SOVEREIGN MINT (R R Sage); TELLINA (G V Woodruff); THE HANGMAN (S G Tarry); TIGER’S RETREAT (S G Tarry); TOMMY GUN (C Spies); WINTER STAR (J A Janse van Vuuren)
