Lava Man
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| Lava Man | ||
| Image:Lava Man-2006 Pacific Classic.jpg Lava Man at the 2006 Pacific Classic</td></tr> | ||
| Sire: | Slew City Slew | |
| Dam: | L'il Ms. Leonard | |
| Damsire: | Nostalgia's Star | |
| Sex: | Gelding | |
| Foaled: | 2001 | |
| Country: | USA | |
| Colour: | Dark Bay | |
| Breeder: | Lonnie Arterburn, Eve Kuhlmann, Kim Kuhlmann | |
| Owner: | STD Racing Stable/Jason Wood | |
| Trainer: | Lonnie Arterburn Doug O'Neill | |
| Record: | 35:14-7-3 (to date) | |
| Earnings: | $3,804,706 (to date) | |
| Major Racing Wins & Honours & Awards | ||
| Major Racing Wins | ||
| Californian Stakes (2005) Hollywood Gold Cup (2005, 2006) Sunshine Millions Classic (2006) Santa Anita Handicap (2006) Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap (2006) Pacific Classic Stakes (2006) Goodwood Breeders' Cup Handicap (2006) | ||
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Infobox last updated on: 4 November 2006. | ||
Lava Man (foaled on March 20, 2001) is a dark bay gelded thoroughbred race horse by Slew City Clew (Seattle Slew) out of L'il Ms. Leonard (Nostalgia's Star) who rose from the lowest levels of claiming races to become regarded by many racing fans, especially by fans in California, as a legend in his own time. Born at Popular Meadows Farm near Sanger, California, he is now trained by Doug O'Neill, who bought him as a claimer for the STD Racing Stable (the Kenly family) and their partner, Jason Wood. He was bred by Lonnie Arterburn, Eve Kuhlmann, and Kim Kuhlmann in California. A jockey who regularly rides Lava Man, Corey Nakatani, has said of him, "This horse has gears, so many gears. What a horse. He's just about unbelievable."
Eve Kuhlmann, who competes in triathlons, named the horse Lava Man for a triathlon on the Big Island in Hawaii.
Contents |
[edit] Just a Claimer
Lava Man first raced as a 2-year-old in a $12,500 maiden claiming race at the San Joaquin County Fair in June of 2003. The Fair Circuit is the lowest level of thoroughbred competition in California thoroughbred racing. His then breeder/trainer, former jockey Lonnie Arterburn (who had claimed Lava Man's dam, L'il Ms. Leonard), said he was a big, long-striding horse that never got tired. "But he was so laid back he could be a pony. He didn't show anything in the mornings. I took him out to Stockton, California to get him a race, make him eligible for starter allowances and not get him claimed away." He lost that race, finishing fourth. He lost his next two races. Then Arterburn tried him on the grass. The result was dramatic. He began to show what he was made of, winning or placing in allowance races at Golden Gate Fields. And then Artherburn entered him into a $62,500 claiming race at Del Mar because, as he said, "We had no other place to run him so we took him south. It was the usual Northern California problem." He came in a poor sixth, so in his next race, Arterburn dropped him down a notch. It was then he was claimed by Doug O'Neill, looking for a useful California-bred. It was a blow for Arterburn, but at least he retains some of his horse. California-breds winning open races in the state generate breeders' rewards worth approximately 15 percent of the purse.
[edit] Moving Up
In August of 2004, STD Racing Stable and Jason Wood got lucky at Del Mar when they urged their trainer, O'Neill to claim Lava Man for $50,000. At the age of three, Lava Man won the Derby Trial Stakes at Fairplex and came in second behind Rock Hard Ten in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes. Doing so well against the very good Rock Hard Ten in a Grade 1 made O'Neill dream of doing more.
In 2005, Lava Man lost his first three starts. O'Neill decided to make an equipment change and fitted Lava Man with blinkers. He responded by winning a May allowance race. Then he took the Grade 2 Californian Stakes in June for his first graded stakes victory. In his next race, in July 2005, the $750,000 Grade 1 Hollywood Gold Cup, Lava Man turned in his breakthrough performance, winning by a track record margin victory of over 8 lengths and earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 120 while carrying the highweight in the race. In August, he was a game third in the Pacific Classic Stakes, coming out of race so exhausted he had to be vanned off. "He gave us such a scare," said O'Neill, "We thought he broke down. You wanted to hug the horse even more. He gave everything he had. People don't do that and horses don't do that."
But then he began to run badly in his next two races. He was sent east for the Jockey Club Gold Cup but only managed seventh. In late November, he went all the way to Japan for the Japan Cup Dirt. There, he finished eleventh, and was found to have an abscess in his left front foot. He would not lose again for nearly a year.
[edit] From Claiming to Reigning
Lava Man came back from his foot injury in 2006 and has blossomed into a superstar. His first 2006 race, the $1,000,000 Sunshine Millions Classic restricted to California and Florida-bred horses was an easy score. Critics doubted that, once matched against all-comers, he could be competitive. In his next race, the $1,000,000 Santa Anita Handicap, Lava Man faced the favorite, High Limit, 2005 Kentucky Derby Winner, Giacomo, and the 2004 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Champion, Wilko, and he scored a 3/4 length victory over the overlooked, high-quality horse, Magnum, who was carrying 7 pounds less than Lava Man. Lava Man earned a Beyer Speed Figure of 113 for his effort. Because of Lava Man's turf ability and pedigree, O'Neill, next, entered Lava Man in the restricted Khaled Stakes at Hollywood Park. Lava Man won easily and set a new track record for 1 1/8 miles while earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 106. Keeping Lava Man on the turf, O'Neill followed up the Khaled victory by entering Lava Man in the Grade 1 Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap (formerly Turf Invitational Handicap) at Hollywood Park. Lava Man rolled to a comfortable victory in the 1 1/4 mile Whittingham earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 107. Lava Man's win in the Whittingham made him the first horse since Eclipse Award winner Vanlandingham in 1985 to win a Grade 1 Turf and Dirt race in the same year.
Next up for Lava Man was an attempt to repeat in the Hollywood Gold Cup. Only the legendary California-bred and Hall of Famer Native Diver had ever repeated in the Gold Cup in 1965-66-67. Lava Man stumbled badly at the start of the race and had to ride more off the pace than he generally wishes. Nevertheless he took the lead in mid-stretch and held off by a short nose the gallant run of longshot Ace Blue, who was carrying 10 pounds less than Lava Man, to achieve his Gold Cup repeat. Lava Man earned a 109 Beyer Speed Figure for his win. Lava Man has also earned the remarkable distinction of winning the Gold Cup by the largest and shortest margins.
Lava Man became the first horse since Triple Crown Winner Affirmed in 1979 to win the Santa Anita Handicap and Hollywood Gold Cup in the same year. He, also, became the first horse to win the Whittingham and the Gold Cup in the same year since the great Exceller in 1978. Finally, he was named "Horse of the Meet" for the second consecutive year at Hollywood Park - the first horse to repeat the coveted title since the great Native Diver.
In August 2006, Lava Man prevailed in the Grade 1 Pacific Classic Stakes over a strong field of equal-weighted thoroughbreds including Giacomo, Perfect Drift, Good Reward, Super Frolic, and Magnum, while earning a Beyer Speed Figure of 109. By virtue of this win, he became the first horse ever to take the Grade 1 Santa Anita Handicap, the Grade 1 Hollywood Gold Cup, and the Grade 1 Pacific Classic Stakes in the same calendar year. In September, he was named "Horse of the Meet" for the 2006 Del Mar racing season. In October 2006, Lava Man prevailed in the Grade 2 Goodwood Breeders' Cup Handicap at the Oak Tree Racing Association's Santa Anita Park meet while carrying 126 lbs., 10 more lbs. than runner-up Brother Derek, and he earned a 109 Beyer Speed Figure. He was later named the Oak Tree Racing Association's "Horse of the Meet."
Winning seven of his 2006 starts, Lava Man has now earned over $3.8 million, placing him third in the list of leading Cal-bred earners, right behind Best Pal ($5,668,245) and Tiznow ($6,427,830). He is also now the all-time leading earner among claimers, and arguably the greatest claim in history. Finally, in all of his handicap races in 2006, Lava Man has been either the highweight (Hollywood Gold Cup and Goodwood Breeders' Cup Handicap) or co-highweight (Santa Anita Handicap and Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap).
In 2005, he was named California-Bred Champion Older Horse and Horse of the Year by the California Thoroughbred Breeders' Association (CTBA). He was touted by many racing observers as a possible 2006 Horse of the Year candidate if he could beat favored Bernardini in the Breeders' Cup Classic at Churchill Downs on November 4. However, as seems to be his nature when racing away from California, he did not show up with his best race and was never a factor in the Classic, finishing seventh, well behind Bernardini (placing by a length) and the winner from Argentina by way of Uruguay—Invasor. It's also been stated by Blood-Horse magazine that Lava Man bled in the race.
