When Larry Greatest plucked a grey yearling filly by Frosted out of the 2019 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Choose, he mentioned the “bodily matched the promise” of his new costly buy. It took $850,000 to get her, the best quantity paid for any offspring of the freshman sire, however the attractive filly with the hefty price ticket already is paying dividends.
As Travel Column roared down the Churchill Downs stretch on Saturday, it was tough to see the sweetness that Greatest had fallen for 15 months earlier. She was lined from head to toe in grime. Her journey within the Grade 2 Golden Rod had been something however straightforward.
Breaking a half-step gradual, as she had executed in her stakes debut when ending third within the Alcibiades (G1) at Keeneland, the second alternative within the area of 9 was squeezed again to final early within the 1 1/16-mile take a look at.
Journey Column stayed in the back of the pack and on the rail for a lot of the early a part of the race, wanting like something however a budding star. Ridden patiently by Florent Geroux, although, the pair started to maneuver ahead whereas in between horses on the backstretch.
On the flip, it appeared that the Brad Cox-trained filly was stuffed with run, however with a pack of fillies bunched forward of her, Journey Column had nowhere to go.
Simply off the rail and in between horses, Geroux seemed for a gap a number of instances towards the within, however the wall of fillies was unrelenting.
Lastly, the France native, having a powerful sense of what he had below him, snatched up his mount and steered her shortly a number of paths to the skin. In the end, the grey filly had room to run.
On the sixteenth pole, one other promising younger filly named Clairiere had put away the remainder and seemed like an ideal guess to gather her first stakes victory. Journey Column had different concepts.
It took her a couple of strides to get rolling after her proper flip in mid-stretch, however when she did, the consequence was electrifying. Flying by the final filly standing in her manner, Journey Column scored an inconceivable victory. On the wire, she was a size forward, profitable going away.
#5 Journey Column overcomes a squeezed begin and visitors hassle to run down #6 Clairiere within the Golden Rod (G2) at @ChurchillDowns.
The 2yo filly by @DarleyAmerica’s #Frosted will get her first stakes win with @flothejock up for @bradcoxracing. pic.twitter.com/aqa0hVXoTf
— TwinSpires ?? (@TwinSpires) November 28, 2020
Out of the a number of stakes-winning Victory Gallop mare Swingit, Journey Column is a half-sister to Neolithic. The son of Harlan’s Vacation earned greater than $2 million whereas ending third in a trio of Grade 1 races (Pegasus World Cup, Dubai World Cup and Woodward) three seasons in the past. That, coupled together with her seems, made Journey Column a really engaging commodity at Saratoga in the summertime of 2019.
Entrusted to one of many prime younger trainers within the enterprise, Cox obtained her to the races for the primary time in early September. Additionally below the dual spires of Churchill Downs, she was despatched off at 9-2 odds in a full area of 12 maiden fillies going six furlongs.
Third within the early phases of that debut, she waited off very quick early fractions earlier than dashing as much as contend into the flip. Becoming a member of the lead on the prime of the stretch, Journey Column burst clear and sailed house a first-out winner by 4 1/2 lengths in racehorse time of 1:10 flat.
Positioned on the deep finish of the pool simply 4 weeks later, she was a bit flat after a gradual begin in her stakes and route debut and completed a non-menacing third within the Alcibiades. Defeating her that day was Merely Ravishing, who was made the race favourite in Saturday’s Golden Rod.
Displaying critical enchancment in her second begin round two turns, Journey Column turned the tables on that one emphatically and now has a report of two victories from three begins and earnings of $209,184 for Larry Greatest’s OXO Equine.
In fact, these numbers imply little or no compared with the potential of this Frosted filly.
Her victory within the Golden Rod displayed the whole lot you may wish to see from a younger horse.
Journey Column overcame heaps of hassle to beat a high quality area of younger fillies, and he or she did it in a time that was greater than half a second quicker than the males would run two races later when Keepmeinmind received the Kentucky Jockey Membership (G2).
For my cash, this was one of the spectacular races run by any juvenile in 2020.
Journey Column actually seems to have a vivid future. The win within the Golden Rod earned her 10 factors on the Highway to the Kentucky Oaks. That race is a good distance away, however that is one filly who seems to be on the quick monitor to the primary Friday in Could.
