Focus on Summering in Surfer Girl

ARCADIA, Calif. – Going from a maiden race win in her July debut to a stakes win in September, Summering left jockey Drayden Van Dyke impressed with her rapid development at the Del Mar summer meeting.

This fall, Summering will reveal how far she has progressed. On Monday at Santa Anita, Summering will be favored to win the $100,000 Surfer Girl Stakes at a mile on turf for 2-year-old fillies. A win would lead to a start in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Churchill Downs on Nov. 2, an achievable assignment from Van Dyke’s perspective.

“She’s very straightforward,” Van Dyke said between races Friday. “She’s a smart horse and very classy.

“I hope she can improve. I don’t see any reason she won’t be able to.”

Owned by Glen Hill Farm and trained by Tom Proctor, Summering won the Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf on Sept. 3, finishing 1 1/4 lengths in front of Lady Prancealot. Those two are the only fillies in the Surfer Girl with stakes experience. In a field of seven, three runners are maidens.

KEY CONTENDERS

Summering, by War Front Beyers: 74-74

◗ Summering led throughout a maiden special weight race at a mile on turf July 29, winning by five lengths.

◗ In the Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf, Summering stalked the pace for the opening quarter-mile before challenging for the lead. She took control of the race on the final turn.

◗ Van Dyke said Summering can be comfortable without an early lead, although she is likely to be in front in the Surfer Girl.

“The second race was a pretty slow pace and she was able to settle,” Van Dyke said. “I sat second and wasn’t covered up, either. When she broke her maiden, she set a decent pace.”

Lady Prancealot, by Sir Prancealot Beyer: 72

◗ The rapidly closing Lady Prancealot caught the eye in the final furlong of the Del Mar Juvenile Fillies Turf, her American debut. Lady Prancealot closed from last in a field of 11 in her first start at a mile.

“She ran fast at the end,” trainer Richard Baltas said.

◗ Lady Prancealot beat maidens in a five-furlong race on the all-weather surface at Chelmsford City Racecourse in England in April and was raced at that distance three more times before she was shipped to California.

◗ Baltas said Lady Prancealot must run an exceptional race to justify a trip to the Breeders’ Cup.

“There’s a lot to the Breeders’ Cup, especially out of state,” he said. “A place like that gets a lot of rain. I think that’s an issue for horses that ship there.”

Miss Bigly, by Gemologist Beyer: 71

◗ Miss Bigly was third in her debut in a maiden special weight race at a mile on turf at Del Mar on Sept. 3, closing from sixth to finish 3 3/4 lengths behind the well-regarded Rayana, who was recently sidelined with illness.

◗ Miss Bigly is trained by Keith Desormeaux, who won the 2016 Surfer Girl with Miss Southern Miss.