The seventh race on Friday’s card at Pimlico is the Lady Legends for the Cure Race II, an allowance optional claiming race that drew a field of eight with a couple of also-eligibles.lady-legends-presentation_s.jpg

You won’t see Ramon Dominguez, John Velazquez, or Robby Albarado get a leg up because the race features eight retired female jockeys, who return to help raise money for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the world’s largest breast cancer organization.

The race is still a betting race, and is right in a Pick 4 sequence and a couple of Pick 3 bets, so it might be a good idea to refresh your memory on who these ladies are.

Mary Russ-Tortora rides #1 Call Me Dude and was the first female jockey to win a Grade I race when she won the Widener Handicap at Hialeah on Feb. 27, 1982 aboard Lord Darnley. She is 57 years old.

Jennifer Rowland-Small rides #2 Nightscape. She rode in Maryland in the 1970’s, winning 192 races. An injury ended her riding career in 1977. She is 58 years old.

Andrea Seefeldt-Knight   was a regular on the Maryland circuit in the early ‘90s and rode in the Preakness in 1994 and also had a mount in the Kentucky Derby in 1991. She finished second in this race last year. She is 48 years old.

Abigail Fuller will be aboard #4 Stone in Love, who  will be one of the betting favorites in the race. Her best year was 1985 when she won 145 races including winning the NYRA’s Filly Triple Crown aboard Mom’s Command. She is 52 years old.

#5 Mass Destruction will be ridden by another jockey that will be familiar to Maryland horseplayers. Trainer Donald Barr will give a leg up to Mary Wiley-Wagner, a breast cancer survivor who made a brief comeback in 2010, winning a race last November at Laurel Park. She is 47.

Patti “PJ” Cooksey will ride #6 Rock n’ Bid, and is also a breast cancer survivor. She ranks third all-time among female riders with 2,137 wins, and had a mount in the Kentucky Derby in 1984. She is 53 years old.

#7 Ladino’s C E O will be ridden by Cheryl White, the first African-American female rider, won five races at the Fresno Fair on Oct. 19, 1983. She was later a steward. She is 57 years old.

Barbara Jo Rubin rides #8 Anunothat for trainer Charles Frock. Rubin was the first woman to win a pari-mutuel race in the U.S. when she won aboard Cohesion  at Charles Town on Feb. 22, 1969. Rubin retired in January 1970 with 22 wins from 89 mounts. She is 61 years old.

Here is a look at the race:

 

PIM Race 7 OClm $10,000N1X (3:05 ET)

#4 Stone in Love   5/2

#8 Anjunothat   5/1

#6 Rock n’ Bid   9/2

#10 Norjac   4/5

Analysis: This race is the Lady Legends for the Cure race with retired female jockeys, so proceed with caution. #4 Stone in Love dueled for the early lead and weakened to finish third against straight $16K claimers. There is not much early zip in here and if Fuller can get this guy out of the gate alertly she should be right in the mix early. It has been a year since this guy has seen the winners circle, but this is not a very tough spot and he has run okay over wet tracks.

#8 Anjunothat is coming off a fourth place finish at Chuck Town after getting off to a poor start. The gelding makes his second start off a 5 1/2 month layoff. The gelding will be ridden by Barbara Jo Rubin who was the first woman to win a pari-mutuel race in the U.S. in 1969.

Wagering

WIN: #4 to win at 5/2 or better.

EX: 4,8 / 4,6,8,10

TRI: 4,8 / 4,6,8,10 / 4,5,6,8,10