Stakes Advance - Rainbow & Rainbow Miss Stakes
Compiled by Robert Yates
HOT SPRINGS, AR - Trainer Lindsay Schultz bids for her first career Oaklawn stakes victory in Saturday’s $150,000 Rainbow Miss for 3-year-old Arkansas-bred fillies.
The Rainbow Miss and $150,000 Rainbow Stakes for 3-year-old Arkansas-breds highlight an 11-card card that begins at 12:38 p.m. (Central).
Probable post time for the Rainbow Miss, the eighth race, is 4:27 p.m. Probable post time for the Rainbow, the 10th race, is 5:40 p.m. Both races are six furlongs.
Schultz, a former assistant under Hall of Fame trainer Shug McGaughey, has the even-money program favorite for the Rainbow Miss in lightly raced Haulin Ice, who has won two of three career starts (all against state-breds this year at Oaklawn). A gray daughter of millionaire Oaklawn stakes winner Coal Front, Haulin Ice finished second against males in her Jan. 26 debut, then scored a front-running six-length maiden victory Feb. 24 and a front-running 1 ¼-length entry-level allowance victory March 16. All three races were six furlongs.
“She’s very fast,” Schultz said. “She trains as good as she runs, and she’s always shown that she was fast. She did have to run harder in her last start than in the start before and is running back in three weeks, but she’s doing good. I’m excited.”
Schultz recorded her first career victory Jan. 8, 2022, at Oaklawn and her first of five career stakes victories to date July 15, 2023, at Colonial Downs in the $125,000 Edward P. Evans with Alex Joon. Alex Joon was a 2022 Oaklawn winner for Schultz.
Haulin Ice is the first horse Schultz said she’s trained for Arkansas breeder/owner Eugenia Thompson-Benight, who captured the $200,000 Arkansas Breeders’ Championship Stakes – another state-bred event – in 2022 at Oaklawn with the John Henry Prather-trained Souixper Charger. Schultz said Haulin Ice arrived at her Oaklawn barn in December. Thompson-Benight has another Rainbow Miss entrant in Q’s Your Mama, who is trained by Dan Peitz.
“They have most of theirs with Danny Peitz,” Schultz said. “He had a couple of Arkie-bred fillies and wanted to split them up because we know how hard it is to run Arkie-breds here. He called me this summer and asked if I’d take the horse.”
Haulin Ice is scheduled to break from post 6 under new rider Francisco Arrieta and carry equal top weight of 122 pounds. The projected eight-horse field also features Hush It Honey (6-5) for co-owner/trainer Randy Morse. Hush It Honey, who has faced open company throughout her six-race career, exits a front-running 4 ¾-length starter/optional claiming victory March 21 at Oaklawn.
The Rainbow drew 11 entrants, including 5-2 program favorite Twenty to Park for trainer Matt Shirer and Staton Flurry of Hot Springs, Oaklawn’s leading owner this season.
After a nine-length romp sprinting against state-breds Jan. 12 at Oaklawn, Twenty to Park has been beaten as the favorite in his last two local starts at 8 ½-furlongs and six furlongs, respectively. Both losses were against Arkansas-breds.
“Those were just against olders,” Shirer said. “So, I’m just hoping it was the competition.”
Arrieta also has the mount on Twenty to Park, who will be racing in blinkers for the first time. The gelding is scheduled to break from post 4.
The Rainbow also drew Strike Ridge (3-1) for 2015 Oaklawn training champion Chris Hartman and Landlord (7-2) for trainer Ron Moquett of Hot Springs. Both horses exit maiden victories at the meeting.
