Weekend Preview by Mike Ahrens: July 3 - 5, 2020

The Rainbow Futurity, Rainbow Derby, and newly-created Rainbow Oaks trials are upon us, and there's no shortage of good horses lining up this weekend to contest 30 total trials for the Futurity on Friday and Saturday, as well as 8 Derby trials and 4 Oaks trials on Sunday. The Oaks trials will go as the first four with the Derby trials to follow, and the last of the Oaks trials features the return to Ruidoso of last year's Ruidoso Futurity winner, Fernweh. To be ridden by Ricky Ramirez, aboard for all four of her lifetime starts to date--all of which were victories--she'll break from post one. Trainer Duke Shults said "She's training really well and I expect her to be enough horse to overcome" the rail draw, which statistically has not performed as well as outside posts through much of this meet. Perhaps drawing more favorably was Shults' Lil Miss Sashay who will break from the 8th and outermost post in the second of the Oaks trials. Fourth in both the Ruidoso Futurity and All American Futurity last year, her seasonal debut came in the Ruidoso Derby trials where "she didn't break well, and had only been here a couple of weeks and wasn't quite ready mentally," not having run since the All American. Shults also sends out Big Chuck in the final Derby trial, race 12, which shapes up to be one of the more important races of the day, featuring as it does this runner as well as Determined One from the barn of Todd Fincher, He's Back for John Stinebaugh, and Ruidoso Derby winner Hotsempting. Big Chuck ran a non-threatening fifth in the trial for the Ruidoso Derby won by Hotsempting, but "he needed that first out to get it on his mind." With several fast horses in this heat, Shults "likes this trial. I like being in the last and I think he can run right up there with those others."

Two horses to watch with interest in the Rainbow Futurity trials come from the barn of Heath Taylor: Shott Gun, winner last out of the Heritage Place Futurity at Remington Park, and Tres Coronas who was highly thought of but put forth a sub-par performance in the Ruidoso Futurity trial. As for the former, Taylor said he arrived at Ruidoso from Oklahoma about June 7th give or take a day, and "with a tight window we're training him up to the race. He schooled at the gate really well the day before yesterday [on June 28th], he's eating really well and has settled in well." Taylor took a similar path in 2008 with Stoli's Winner, who won the Heritage Place Futurity before coming to Ruidoso to take the Rainbow and then the All American Futurities. Shott Gun will break from post six in the first trial of the day Saturday. Tres Coronas will be in the seven-hole in the second trial on Friday and is expected to make an improved effort off a disappointing at 3-10 odds. "He had allergies and mucus and was sick," said Taylor. "Not a fever but he wasn't himself." He has since gained about 100-125 pounds per Taylor and is doing well.