Santa Anita Notes: Gomez shoots for title.. Chantal back..

Kasept · #1 12-22-2009, 07:03 PM

Ron Anderson is optimistic that Garrett Gomez can overtake leader Julien Leparoux in the year’s final days and capture his fourth consecutive national purse earnings title. Through Monday, Gomez was $227,864 behind Leparoux, thanks in large part to Gomez’s victory aboard Lookin At Lucky in the $750,000 CashCall Futurity at Hollywood Park last Saturday. “I think we have a pretty good chance,” Anderson said, “but it’s going to be close.” . . .

World traveler Chantal Sutherland, a popular member of Santa Anita’s riding colony last season, is back. “She rode 11 horses closing day at Woodbine, left there to ride in the Jockey Challenge competition in Hong Kong, and arrived here late last Tuesday and has been working horses ever since,” agent Tommy Ball said. “I never thought I would do this well,” Sutherland said of her previous season at Santa Anita. “I came here to better myself as an athlete . . . It’s been like a dream.” . . .

Simon Callaghan is among the new faces at Santa Anita. The 26-year-old from Newmarket, England, has been training for two years and has 14 horses on hand for the 83-day meet, some for owner Anthony Ramston. “I discussed coming here with Mr. Ramston and a few of my other owners back home, including Michael Tabor, and they said they’d support the move,” Callaghan said. “All my horses here have European form. Some are lightly raced, but I feel they definitely have stakes potential.” . . .

Agent Craig O’Bryan will represent jockey Ahmed Ajtebi (pronounced ASH-tebi) at Santa Anita through Jan. 20. The 27-year-old rider won two $5 million races back-to-back in his native Dubai on World Cup day last March . . .

Luis Medina, who rode Twin Sparks to victory in world-record time of 1:06.49 for six furlongs in the Caballo del Sol Stakes at Turf Paradise on Nov. 21, makes his Santa Anita debut this meet. The 23-year-old native of Puerto Rico tacks 107 pounds and has ridden at Belmont Park and Aqueduct. Vic Lipton has his book . . .

Agent Roger Olguin now represents jockey Felipe Valdez, who won three races at Hollywood Park last Thursday . . .

ReRun, the nonprofit Thoroughbred adoption program, is offering two Moneighs created by Zenyatta on its online ebay store Saturday. The sale will also feature two Moneighs by Zenyatta’s stablemate, Life is Sweet, winner of the Breeders’ Cup Ladies Classic. The horses create the paintings by using their muzzles, whiskers, a hoof, and tail. “Moneigh Mary Simons,” who heads ReRun’s Moneigh fundraising program, said “the Zenyatta Moneighs commemorate her brilliance and exit from the racing stage. She and Life is Sweet are raising needed funds to help less famous Thoroughbreds get good homes.” The ebay store is on ReRun’s website, www.rerun.org, which is also the site of ReRun’s annual fund-raising campaign . . .

Northern California owner Keith Pronske has been appointed to the board of directors of the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC) to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of Tom Bachman. Pronske, a native of San Francisco, has been in the Thoroughbred business since 1997. . .

Octogenarian Ivan Puhich, still with a spring in his step, is looking forward to a successful meet with veteran Julio Garcia, one of three jockeys with that surname riding at Santa Anita this meet. The others are Martin and Matt. The three are not related.