Flaming Lake wins Whoop Up Downs Fall Paint Stakes
FORT WORTH, Texas—Flaming Lake came from behind to win the Whoop Up Downs Fall Paint
Stakes at the Lethbridge Race Course in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. Two top
Canadian stakes running horses were ahead of Flaming Lake for most of the race,
but Flaming Lake turned on the speed at the end, beating them by a half-length.
The $9,235 stakes race for horses aged three and up is contested over a 400-yard
distance. Flaming Lake crossed the finish line with a time of 20.58 seconds.
Flaming Lake is a 4-year-old bay solid Paint-bred gelding sired by Granite Lake
AQHA and out of Flaming Gamble, by Raise The Gamble AQHA. He is owned by Lorne
and Joann Winther of Huxley, Alberta, Canada. The gelding was bred by A. D.
Burris of Keota, Oklahoma. Les Webb trained the gelding for the race, and
Valentino McBean rode him to the victory. The horse earned $4,895 for the win
making his lifetime earnings for seven starts $18,215.
Second across the wire was Cristole, who was named an APHA Racing Champion in
2008 as a 3-Year-Old Gelding and in 2009 as an Aged Horse and Aged Gelding.
Cristole is owned by Alex Kirkpatrick of Whitecourt, Alberta, Canada. Cristole
is a 5-year-old bay tobiano gelding sired by Texas Hero and out of Miss Murray,
by Treasured. He crossed the wire with a time of 20.65 seconds earning $2,401.
The gelding was ridden by Dwight Lewis and trained by Stan Webb.
Finishing third was Pemberton, who won this race last year. Pemberton is owned
by Shae Burlock of Donalda, Alberta, Canada. Pemberton is a 5-year-old chestnut
solid Paint-bred gelding sired by Real Easy Cash and out of Miss Super Dee, by
Super De Kas AQHA. He crossed the wire with a time of 20.68 seconds earning
$1,108. The gelding was ridden by Teagan Oulton and trained by Calvin
Strandquist.
Other horses completing the race, along with times, include Judys Real Easy
(20.79 seconds), Daw Gone It (21.01 seconds) and Cashaticket (21.11 seconds).
More about Paint Horse racing
Horse racing has long been one of America’s favorite spectator sports. With the
recent growth of the Paint Horse breed, it’s no wonder that Paints have become
one of the hottest tickets in the horse racing industry.
Since 1966, when APHA officially recognized the sport, Paint racing has made
major strides forward. In that inaugural year, 17 starters ran for $1,290 in
just two states—Texas and Oklahoma. In 2009, more than 540 starters competed in
more than 530 APHA-recognized races for record purses totaling more than $4.7
million.
A total of 17 states now feature Paint racing, including Arizona, California,
Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota,
Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. Paint
Horses also race in Canada.
"With a wealth of top performing Paint racehorses, dedicated owners and
talented trainers and jockeys, Paint Racing continues to remain a strong program
in the horse industry," said APHA Executive Director Lex Smurthwaite. "Paint
Racing enthusiasts recognized the amount of purse money available and have
jumped in to take advantage of the lucrative payouts."
For more information on Paint Horse racing, contact APHA’s racing department at
(817) 222-6444, email racing@apha.com, or
visit paintracing.com.