Fastest workouts
 

The three that pop into my head are Candy Ride's two one-mile works before the Pac Classic - Old Trieste's 6f work before the Derby - and Funny Cide's infamous 57.42 before the Belmont.

I'm probably forgetting some very obvious one since it's a subject I don't pay much attention to.

I remember thinking the two by Candy Ride were complete and total BS. He worked a mile in 1:36 1/5 at Del Mar - and a week later worked a mile in 1:35.40. On those same two days - stakes and alw races were going in 1:37 and change. If the track was the same speed in the AM as it was in the PM .. he would have run like Beyers of 107 and 110 with his published work time a week apart.

Tomo brought up the Old Trieste pre-Derby work before - but he worked 6f in 1:09 flat. That afternoon - Personal Risk won a 6f race in 1:09.95 with a 93 Beyer...meaning Old Trieste's time would have registered a 106 Beyer had it come in a race that day.

Anyone have any others?

I believe Surf Cat or some other Headley horse worked 7f in 1:21+ just a couple of years ago.

Sunday Silence worked between races at Del Mar in preparation for the Super Derby in 1:33 1/5, putting Candy Ride to pathetic shame.

It's Rollo, by the way.

Like the Candy?

I wonder how fast the track was playing when SS worked that fast. 1:33 1/5 would have broken Precisionist's track record.

I think Precisionist also blazed a fast mile workout at del mar coming off his huge layoff.

Snow Chief.

He was set to debut going 5 or 5.5 at HP on the day of my high school graduation. He had a 6f work down at Caliente that was something really sick, like 110 flat or faster. This is for a two year old in June!

He won and paid pretty decently actually.

Might have been third choice.

I barely made it back to my high school in time for the graduation ceremony.

I believe Secretariat once broke a long standing 10f track record in a workout, but I might be mistaken.

I think I remember seeing Peace Rules work in :45 and change before the '04 Foster.

Wasn't Surf Cat.

Probably happened during the time when the SA track was insanely fast. I remember Bob Black Jack winning some Jan 3yo stake and running 6fs in a world record 1:06 2/5ths.

Thanks to google - I found out that SS worked the mile in 1:33 2/5ths on a Saturday between races at Del Mar. That's amazing. I'd love to know how fast the track was that day.

The track back then was FAST. Always.
And if I remember correctly, for whatever reason, mile races seemed to be run much faster than other route distances.

Midnight Lute also worked 1:21+ at Del Mar in advance of the 2008 Pat O'Brien. Broke the track record.

Give me a minute to figure out which Headley horse it was.

I believe they would get surpringly fast fractions because the run-up was a lot longer than at other route distances at that track.

Notice in this video how long it takes the field to hit the wire for the first time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dM0hmZ6ONIo

The field is at top speed by the time the timer starts. I believe that was the only distance at Del Mar where the field has that much of a running start to the beam.

The opposite occurs in Gulfstream races at one-mile right now. They break right at the pole - so it's almost like a stand still start to timer beam.

That's why a horse like Quality Road set the pace with a 25.15 first quarter in the Hal's Hope. Obviously, if he had a running start to the beam, he couldn't possibly go that slow even if the Boston Strangler was his jockey.

The 23.83 and 45.55 fractions This One's For Phil set in the '09 Fountain Of Youth are about as vicious as it gets for Derby preps.

Thanks. Midnight Lute's workout time of 1:21.60 that morning - would have translated to a 101 Beyer if it came in that afternoons races.

It doesn't sound like a crazy fast figure .. but it was on synthetic and last years BC Sprint was won with only a 106.

Wow, I didn't know he posted that race from Cee's Tizzy. One of the truly fastest horses I've ever seen. What a shame he got hurt so badly at 3 and then stood stud in California. Had he stood in KY, or even Fla, who knows what he might have gotten.

If only he could scrounge up the maiden victory for him.
By the way, was that video from me?

Oh, and in that race you linked to, CT went the mile in 133.2. I think that was at the same meet that SS worked his 133.2 mile.

He also went 107 and change for his second lifetime win at the same meet.

Does that help give you an idea of what the track was like?

Then again, he was a total monster.

Looking over the PPs for AQU, I see that Bickersons recently worked a 33.4g work.

Not sure that really compares though to some of the others here.

Yes.

The Cee's Tizzy races were from 1990, the following year after Sunday Silence. In his next start Cee's Tizzy was 3rd to Home At Last and Unbridled in the Super Derby. At the time, he set the fastest 1/2 mile fraction in Super Derby history (:45+). He came out of the race with a knee fracture that ended his career.

Now that I looked it up - It actually was a 57.82 work 4 days before the Belmont. There was no racing at Belmont that day ... but the following day a five furlong MSW race went in 58.60 and the winner got an 85 Beyer. Thus, if the track was the same exact speed the previous morning, Funny Cide's 5f work time would translate to a 99 Beyer.

Not exactly what you want four days before a 12 furlong race.

Street Boss?

Not sure, but he's the next logical horse. I was pretty certain it was Surf Cat but maybe it was a slower work, like 1:23 or something. It was definitely when Santa Anita's surface was super fast, but not necessarily during a race meet.

Rachel Alexandra's final workout for the Ky Oaks was smoking fast. A bullet 46.40

They didn't run any races that Monday ... but they ran on Tuesday .. and a horse who won a 6f dirt race in 1:12.11 got a 74 Beyer.

Thus, assuming the track was as fast Monday morning as it was Tuesday afternoon (impossible to know) Rachel Alexandra's "gallop out" time of 1:10.60 in her final Oaks work would have been the equivlant of a 98 Beyer.

That's just sick!!

That workout for SS was as a 3yo though?

I thought that was the following year, in 90.

No, the workout was in preparation for the '89 Super Derby.

I believe Risen Star worked 32.4 before the Belmont.

Some problems with issuing even theoretical beyers for works are
1. horses start with a running start
2. timing can be less than accurate
3. there is usually more moisture in the tracks early in the morning
4. some horses are worked on medication

I understand 1 thru 3 but wonder what meds make a horse run bullets.
Lasix
Bute
ClaritinD ?

They start with a running start during actual races as well. I remember when I was about 8 years old and I first tried to hand time a race ... I couldn't for the life of me figure out why my time kept coming back a few seconds slower every time. It took more than a few go's before I finally figured out races aren't timed from when the gates open.

I agree though ... reason #2 alone is king.

Imagine if you tried to make a sheet figure for a morning workout - you wouldn't know how wide they were on the turn - or if the excersize rider weighed 110lbs or 165lbs.

Honest Lady before the '00 BC Sprint.

:57.3 maybe?

I always thought that Frankel let her go that fast to crank the speed back up after her Atto Mile, but he told me a couple of years ago that it was a mistake and that he was very unhappy she went that fast.

It was 33 3/5ths.

Found this on Google from Steve Crist's NY Times days...

57 4/5 at Hollywood - it was a few weeks before HP's meet re-opened for racing.

Even if Frankel didn't want her to go that fast ... it probably was a good omen because she was a good 2nd at 30/1+ in a race in which I gave her no chance.

Hard Spun's 57 and 2 (57.53) pre derby workout...

It was on a dark day. But the track was very fast the next racing day - would have translated to an 86 Beyer if the track was as fast that morning as it was the following afternoon.

Still, very fast obviously - especially right before a 10f race.

Clembuterol
Tranquilizers

While there is a runup in the afternoon it isnt the same deal. Sometimes you start slower from the pole than you would if the horse broke from the gate. Sometimes the opposite. I have seen horses with workouts listed as 1/2 mile run off long before the "official" timing starts.

As I sit here in the car watching the track here turn from tight to pretty heavy because of rain the conditions at 6:30 are going to be completely different than 8:30

The difference in riders is another that I should have put as well. There is a big difference between a 140 lb ex rider and a jockey.

He put a good string together before the 2008 BC too:

That time was dumbed down.

Doug..

2000 Cup is one of my best days ever at the track, and the Sprint was a big part of it. I loved her in there and used her and Kona Gold with Bet On Sunshine, More Than Ready and Caller One, which ended up the top five finishers. If she gets her nose in front of Kona Gold, I can only imagine what the exotics would have paid with her at 31-1. As it was, the tri was $2k and super $5k.

I've written and talked about this many times, but everything went right for me and Bill Mayberry ('Barbecue Bill') that day, except the late races where I liked Lemon Drop Kid in the Classic and John's Call in the Turf. But Bill was friendly with Northeast Bound's trainer Bill Perry, and we caught the Mile score with him (40-1?) and War Chant. Plus... Bill somehow found Spain (!) in the Distaff opener (55-1) and I noticed Carressing was way overlaid in the Juvy Filly (47-1). Finally, I keyed Point Given up and down in the Juvenile. It was an amazing day, but the Sprint hit was the one I particularly recall because of Honest Lady.

His 56.80 would have translated to an 85 Beyer if he had run that time in a race later on that afternoon.

Yeah .... it's obviously extremely tough to trust stuff. That is for sure.

Workout time is something I never pay attention to at all... but I'm strangly enjoying trying to figure out who's might have been most impressive. I remember swearing Candy Ride's were bogus before the Pac Classic because of how slow the track was that meet.

Nothing went right for me that day.

I've had many glorious BC days betting and that was absolutely not one of them. I bet Point Given in the Juvenile - so I had one tough beat and I wasn't close in any other races besides the Sprint ... where I thought KG was a cinch but couldn't come up with HL to save my life.

I strongly disliked the chances of more than a few horses who won that day as well.

Friesan Fire had about the same pre-Derby workout as Hard Spun last year. I don't remember the exact time.

I think I remember Tale of Ekati going ridiculously fast in his pre-BC juvie workout and Tagg being super-pissed.

Found the times:

Friesan Fire= 57 4/5 for 5f

Tale of Ekati= 45.3 for 4f