Private Terms

Nellie Mae Cox 's Plantation remained undefeated, edging Reckless Runner and five other 3-year-olds to win the $70,000 Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park on Saturday. Travis Dunkelberger rode Plantation, the second choice at post time, to his fourth victory in four races. Plantation won by a half-length and finished the one-mile race in 1 minute, 37.18 seconds. Reckless Runner relinquished his lead late in the race, and Regal Warrior finished third. "We just sat off the pace and hoped they'd run out there a little bit so we didn't get in a speed duel," Dunkelberger said of Plantation, who paid $5.40 and topped a $54.60 exacta and $179 trifecta.

Laurel Park Mr Palmer wins Private Terms Stakes Mr Palmer had all the worst of it and still won the $150,000 Private Terms Stakes going away Saturday at Laurel Park. After hopping at the start and breaking last, Mr Palmer settled behind eight other 3-year-olds under Junior Alvarado and stayed there through the first turn. Alvarado began to urge his mount entering the backstretch and got to work on the son of Pulpit approaching the far turn, taking him eight wide into the stretch before reaching Where's Dominic and Battier just past the eighth pole.

Ten 3-year-old colts and geldings will race in tomorrow's $100,000 Private Terms Stakes on the main track at Laurel Park. Laurel oddsmaker Frank Carulli settled on Not For Money as his 5-2 favorite in the mile race. The Richard Dutrow-trained Not For Love colt has started twice, with a maiden victory and a second at Aqueduct. Dutrow will send Rudy Rodriguez from New York to ride Not For Money. Richard Small will counter with Etude (3-1), a grey-roan son of Include who has finished first or second in all five starts.

Laurel Park Servis' Tap Star favored in today's $75K Private Terms Stakes Todd Pletcher , John Servis and Tony Dutrow will each send runners to Laurel Park to contest today's $75,000 Private Terms Stakes for 3-year-olds. The program favorite is Servis' runner Tap Star (2-1). The son of Tapit left the maiden ranks with a 31/2-length victory in December, finished a game fifth in the Count Fleet Stakes at Aqueduct and sped to victory in 1 minute, 9.6 seconds for six panels most recently at Parx Racing, beating Harbor Kid by a neck.

The real Malibu Moonshine showed up yesterday at Laurel Park, driving to a narrow victory in the $50,000 Private Terms Stakes. The chestnut son of Malibu Moon had created a flurry of interest when he won Laurel Park's Miracle Wood in February, but raised doubt when he ran fourth in the Battaglia Memorial March 5 at Kentucky's Turfway Park. Yesterday, the newest star of trainer King Leatherbury's stable reinforced his credentials as one of the leading 3-year-olds in Maryland as he won by a neck in completing the race in 1 minute, 40.04 seconds for a mile.

Despite favorable weather, Laurel Park has shown more than a 9 percent decline in overall handle for the 25-day Pimlico-at-Laurel meeting, which will end with a simulcast day tomorrow."

The first time Larry Murray attempted to show Pickupspeed how to break from the starting gate, the then-2-year-old horse took two steps out, turned around and started walking back. A trainer of horses at Laurel Park, Murray knew he was in trouble. "They're like elephants," Murray said. "They don't forget anything. I thought, `This is not good.' " Yesterday, Murray stood in the winner's circle at Laurel, celebrating Pickupspeed's victory in the $75,000 Private Term Stakes. Now a 3-year-old gelding nominated to the Triple Crown races, Pickupspeed broke eighth -- at least he beat one horse from the gate -- and then weaved his way through the field for a three-length victory.

LAUREL -- Owners Nick and Elaine Bassford won the $55,500 Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Race Course.But they also finished last.The couple from Davidsonville ran two horses, each handled by different trainers.Ameri Valay, from the King Leatherbury barn, loved the mud and won by a comfortable 3-length margin over a rallying Exit West.Festive Feathers, trained by Ricky Sillaman, disliked the wet track and quickly dropped out of contention."Of course, we were hoping for a dead heat," Nick Bassford said.

Sky Soldier couldn't have laid down a better bridge for the crossing from Laurel Park to Pimlico. The undefeated colt from Pennsylvania captured the $60,000 Private Terms Stakes yesterday at Laurel Park. The Private Terms was the final stakes at Laurel; Pimlico will open Wednesday. And where might we see Sky Soldier next? At Pimlico on May 17 in the Preakness Stakes. The chestnut colt still learning how to run devoured a five-horse field with a four-length win, skipping through the mud over 1 1/16 miles in 1 minute, 45.37 seconds.

The Kentucky Derby trail sweeps through Maryland today as Millions, a budding star at 2, makes his long-awaited debut as a 3-year-old in the $50,000 Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park.His trainer, the East Baltimore native Leon Blusiewicz, will know in about 1 minute, 50 seconds -- the time it takes Millions to run 1 1/8 miles -- whether his strategy of the past four months was correct. Millions hasn't raced since Nov. 28 when he finished second in the Remsen Stakes at Aqueduct.Instead of shipping the son of Dehere to Florida for the traditional winter East Coast preps, Blusiewicz sent Millions to a training center in South Carolina.

Nellie Mae Cox 's Plantation remained undefeated, edging Reckless Runner and five other 3-year-olds to win the $70,000 Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park on Saturday. Travis Dunkelberger rode Plantation, the second choice at post time, to his fourth victory in four races. Plantation won by a half-length and finished the one-mile race in 1 minute, 37.18 seconds. Reckless Runner relinquished his lead late in the race, and Regal Warrior finished third. "We just sat off the pace and hoped they'd run out there a little bit so we didn't get in a speed duel," Dunkelberger said of Plantation, who paid $5.40 and topped a $54.60 exacta and $179 trifecta.

Ten 3-year-old colts and geldings will race in tomorrow's $100,000 Private Terms Stakes on the main track at Laurel Park. Laurel oddsmaker Frank Carulli settled on Not For Money as his 5-2 favorite in the mile race. The Richard Dutrow-trained Not For Love colt has started twice, with a maiden victory and a second at Aqueduct. Dutrow will send Rudy Rodriguez from New York to ride Not For Money. Richard Small will counter with Etude (3-1), a grey-roan son of Include who has finished first or second in all five starts.

Our Peak, a 73-1 long shot with Rosie Napravnik up, charged down the middle of the racetrack to nip Ah Day in the shadow of the finish line and win the $85,000 Private Terms Stakes yesterday at Laurel Park. Napravnik, an 18-year-old apprentice, won her first stakes race last weekend aboard Reckless Ways. Her star continues to ascend as she brought the son of Peaks And Valleys home in 1 minute, 38.66 seconds in the one-mile Private Terms. Katy Voss trains Our Peak, a winner of just a maiden race and an allowance start, both at nearby Charles Town.

The real Malibu Moonshine showed up yesterday at Laurel Park, driving to a narrow victory in the $50,000 Private Terms Stakes. The chestnut son of Malibu Moon had created a flurry of interest when he won Laurel Park's Miracle Wood in February, but raised doubt when he ran fourth in the Battaglia Memorial March 5 at Kentucky's Turfway Park. Yesterday, the newest star of trainer King Leatherbury's stable reinforced his credentials as one of the leading 3-year-olds in Maryland as he won by a neck in completing the race in 1 minute, 40.04 seconds for a mile.

Water Cannon put visions of the Preakness squarely in the minds of those who watched the Maryland-bred gelding trounce a field of six 3-year-olds yesterday in the $60,000 Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park. Sent to the post as the 4-5 favorite, Water Cannon trumped his impressive victory in the Miracle Wood Stakes here last month when he stayed with a tepid pace, made a move at the pacesetter and then shot past Mahican to take command. He finished under wraps in 1 minute, 45.42 seconds for the nine-furlong race, which is only 1/16th of a mile shy of the Preakness distance.

Sky Soldier couldn't have laid down a better bridge for the crossing from Laurel Park to Pimlico. The undefeated colt from Pennsylvania captured the $60,000 Private Terms Stakes yesterday at Laurel Park. The Private Terms was the final stakes at Laurel; Pimlico will open Wednesday. And where might we see Sky Soldier next? At Pimlico on May 17 in the Preakness Stakes. The chestnut colt still learning how to run devoured a five-horse field with a four-length win, skipping through the mud over 1 1/16 miles in 1 minute, 45.37 seconds.

Water Cannon put visions of the Preakness squarely in the minds of those who watched the Maryland-bred gelding trounce a field of six 3-year-olds yesterday in the $60,000 Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park. Sent to the post as the 4-5 favorite, Water Cannon trumped his impressive victory in the Miracle Wood Stakes here last month when he stayed with a tepid pace, made a move at the pacesetter and then shot past Mahican to take command. He finished under wraps in 1 minute, 45.42 seconds for the nine-furlong race, which is only 1/16th of a mile shy of the Preakness distance.

After rising to the top of his class as a 2-year-old, Millions flunked his first test at 3 yesterday at Laurel Park, finishing seventh as the 1-5 favorite in the $50,000 Private Terms Stakes.Harry's Halo, a 24-1 long shot trained by Grover G. "Bud" Delp, edged the 9-1 Seven Pipers by a head. Millions was nowhere near the photo finish, galloping home 13 1/2 lengths behind the winner.Leon Blusiewicz, the East Baltimore native who trains Millions, said the colt might have bled from the lungs.

Chances of the Laurel-based Toccet representing Maryland in the Kentucky Derby, already slim, diminished further yesterday with the confirmation of a bruise on the colt's right front foot. Toccet's owner, Dan Borislow, flew to Maryland early yesterday from his home in Florida and brought noted veterinarian Steve Allday with him. Allday examined Toccet in his stall at Laurel. Borislow said later that the bruise has forced Toccet out of training for a few days. "Making the Derby's going to be tough," Borislow said.