And they're off!.... Ummm... hello?

Three year old filly Scarlet Witch (War Machine x Nova) has some talent.  No doubt about that.  But that gate speed... what?

She has been tracking at around 65... which is slow.  The slowest in my stable, in fact.  I haven't been overly concerned about it because she is a borderline Classic racer and blazing starts are not paramount at those distances.  However, her performance in the GR2 Rampart Handicap certainly got my attention.

She came out of the gates like a three-legged tortoise and was 20+ lengths behind in the first 2F.  She ran fine for the rest of the race and made up some ground, finishing 8th out of 12 but it's obvious that there must be improvement at the gun or her career is in jeopardy, at least here at Otsego Farms.

Post race inspection revealed a gate speed of 60!  That is incredibly low; perhaps the lowest I've ever had in my stable.  It's a shame too, because in all other respects, this horse has real potential.

Her next race will be critical.  I either see some improvement in her gate speed, or I'm tossing her back in the pond.