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NC Casey Jones wins Fresno Wathba Stud Farm Cup

Photo credit: Bill Vassar

October 10, California ~ NC CASEY JONES ridden by Chris Russell make a steady run at the leaders and pulled away to win by 1 1/2 lengths in the second race at the California Big Fresno Fair Race Meet on October 5.

NC Casey Jones ( Makzan x Shes The Most) ran his first race of the year and won the 6 Furlongs on the dirt track in the time of 1:19:59.  Leisa Belser, winning trainer and owner, also had the third place winning horse, Kador NU (Kador de Blaziet x Gizmoson Fire by Burning Sand). Second in was LA Jest A Flash owned by Cynthia and Wayne Lipe and trained by Diana Skinner.

NC Casey Jones was bred by Edgar Brown and Alan Kirshner and Deb Mihaloff.

Belser had faith in her jockey even though he may have waited too long to go to the front. “Casey usually comes off the pace and closes, but (this time) he was really fighting Chris to go to the front,” said Belser. “When Chris let him go it was almost too late.  I always have faith in Chris when he rides Casey; he seems to get it done when it comes down to it, no matter what Casey might do. Sometimes Casey wants to go wire to wire and sometimes he wants to close. He has won from 4 1/2 F to 1 1/16 miles.

Photo credit: Bill Vassar

“I haven’t been training the past couple of years although I did race at Stockton and Fresno last year.”  Belser knew they needed horses for the Stockton and Fresno races  again so she happily jumped back in. “I keep trying to retire, but I have some good horses and I love to run them. My husband, Gary, and I decided to get back to training.

“Casey hasn’t done anything in the last year but hang out in his pasture and watch the fillies,” continued Leisa. “I wasn’t going to bring him because we hadn’t even been riding him. He is 10 years old now and I have been running him since he was a 3- year- old. He wants to just be a sire now. But, he always comes back if I ask him;  he is my old faithful.”

I do own Kador as well; I purchased him last year from Sam Vazquez. I ran him 2 times last year with 2 seconds. He set all the fractions for a track record at the 2012 Stockton Wathba Stud Farm Cup.  His first start this year was Stockton Wathba where he ran 2nd.  He ran 3rd in this race; the jockey was trying to pace him and that is not his style of running, but the rider was not familiar with him.  He is a very lovely horse and such a pleasure to train. He has many more races to come in his future.”

Wathba Stud Farm Races help

The Belsers live in Mariposa, California, and have a stable presently of 15 horses -  5 racing and  3 coming up. “It is hard times and the Wathba races have been a blessing for us here in California,” Belser continued. “I do think that the Wathba races have helped the Arabian trainers and owners to keep going here.”

Larry Swartzlander, Director of Racing at California State Fairs  remarked that, “This race concluded the Wathba Stud Farm Cup Racing Series on the California Fairs racing circuit for 2013.  The Big Fresno Fair venue is a great place to race and the racing surface is excellent. For the third consecutive day attendance and handle were up and the weather was beautiful.  The Wathba Racing Series will resume at the Alameda County fair in June of next year.”