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GONE TO THE MOUNTAIN ENDS SNOWBOUND SUPERSTAR'S STREAK

Snowbound Superstar's winning streak is over, but it took a world record holder running at his very best to end it. Ridden by Freddie Martinez for trainer We Giles, Gone To The Mountain blasted out of the starting to an early lead and then held off a modest late rush by the two-time distance champion to win Saturday's 870-yard $125,000 Red Cell Distance Challenge at Los Alamitos. The loss ends Snowbound Superstar's all-time Quarter Horse win streak at 15, while also giving the gray gelding his first ever defeat at 870.

Gone To The Mountain

The night belonged to Clyde Woerner's New Mexico-invader Gone To The Mountain, as he led virtually every step of the way en route to a 1-3/4 length win in a time of :44.435. The son of Panther Mountain has now won five of six starts this season, his only loss being a second place finish to Snowbound Superstar at Remington Park in Oklahoma earlier this year.

"We knew we could beat Snowbound Superstar and tonight I knew we had it won 10 seconds into the race," Woerner said. "I felt we were in a great spot as soon as he opened up a length on Snowbound Superstar."

"By taking the lead right away we prevented Snowbound Superstar from carrying us wide around the turn," Giles added. "The race played out exactly the way we were hoping it would."

By evening out the score with his distance rival, Gone To The Mountain now has to be considered the favorite to win the title of champion distance horse of 2009. In addition to winning this race, which is Quarter Horse racing's richest race at 870 yards, Gone To The Mountain has won three other distance stakes races this year, one of which came in a world record time of :43.029 at Sunland Park in New Mexico. Gone To The Mountain's victory was worth $60,000 to give him career earnings of $393,600. The bay stallion could return to New Mexico or stick around in California to run in the Marathon Handicap in mid-December at Los Alamitos.

Owned by Tom Brinkley and trained by Paul Jones, Snowbound Superstar ran a gallant race, as he finished nearly two lengths ahead of third place finisher Bad Act. Snowbound Superstar was undefeated in 15 starts at 870 yards prior to this race.

"You can't win them all," Brinkley said. "Snowbound Superstar has taken us on a ride of a lifetime. He ran hard tonight and we got beat. I'd love to run for a third time against Gone To The Mountain. We would run against him again next month if possible."

"At his peak, Snowbound Superstar was pretty unbeatable," Jones said. "Snowbound Superstar has lost a step, but it was bound to happen because he is almost seven. He is still a great horse. He's just not as great as he once was."

STYLISH JESS BR BOUNCES BACK WITH A WIN

Brazilian Benny Rosset's Stylish Jess Br is back, healthy, sharp, and winning races once again. Making her first outing since August 21, the daughter of Feature Mr Jess defeated the great mare Terrific Energy by 1-1/4 lengths in the $125,000 Merial Distaff Challenge. Her 400-yard winning time of :19.363 crushed the previous stakes record of :19.571 posted by Blazin Fire at Los Alamitos in 2007.

"This was pretty impressive considering that she was coming back after we had to scratch her from the Mildred Vessels Memorial Handicap because she colicked," said Vince Genco, who is the manager of Rosset's racing stock in the United States. "We were heart broken when she got sick just before the Millie Vessels. It wasn't too serious of a situation but there was no way we could have run her. She's still a little light in weight - you could see the dimples on her rear end - but I think she'll put on the weight and she'll get stronger as the time goes on. She's such a great mare and a tough competitor. Paul did a great job bringing her back to this top level again."

Stylish Jess Br has made six starts this season and won three of them. Her earnings of $57,500 take her lifetime mark to $621,184. Second in last year's Los Alamitos Super Derby, Stylish Jess Br won the Merial California Distaff Challenge while also facing the boys when running sixth in the Vessels Maturity and fourth in the Los Alamitos Winter Championship. Ramon Sanchez rode the California-bred mare. 

Parsons Family Trust's Terrific Energy was looking for a sweep of the major distaff races in the nation. The Mr Jess Perry mare won the Grade 1 Charger Bar in January and the Grade 1 Millie Vessels last month, and victory here would have probably clinched her the title of champion aged mare. Terrific Energy and Stylish Jess Br remain the top two contenders for the aged mare title but nothing is decided yet. Terrific Energy is set to run in the Champion of Champions next, while Stylish Jess Br, who was seventh in last year's Champion of Champions, is also hoping for a return to racing's biggest stage for 3-year-olds and up.

"She's eligible to run in the Z. Wayne Griffin Directors Trials, so that's a consideration," Genco said. "Paul will decide what is next for this filly."

Answer The Dream, Strength In Numbers, Panther Purr, Baby La Jolla, As Takin First, I Opening Sensation, and Starsmith complete the field.

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