Brotherly love keeps latest Hastings’ apprentice on the straight and narrow

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With a $2 million purse up for grabs in Maryland this weekend, the horse racing world turns its attention to Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore for the 150th running of the Preakness Stakes — the second jewel in sports’ original “Triple Crown”.

In a sport where family trees traditionally take on huge importance, this year’s favourite, Journalism, will be bidding to follow in the hoof prints of his father, Curlin, who won the Preakness back in 2007 before eventually becoming a successful stallion.

A future in the breeding paddocks of Kentucky is the ultimate return on investment for owners and breeders. Winners of the very best races are assured a place at stud and connections can earn millions in fees over the length of a successful stallion’s career.

For instance, Seize the Grey, last year’s Preakness winner and now a stallion, currently demands $30,000 for a “date” with a pre-approved broodmare, while a brief assignation with Justify, the most recent winner of all three legs of the Triple Crown, will cost a cool $250,000.

However, the bloodlines are not restricted only to the horses. Saturday’s Preakness lineup sees jockey brothers Irad and Jose Ortiz both on fancied mounts. The Puerto Rican siblings, with more than 7,300 wins between them, are racing’s winningest jockey brothers and their success has not gone unnoticed at Hastings, where Trinidadian brothers Ridge (28) and Richard Balgobin (18) can be found following in the footsteps of their jockey father, Ralph. Richard, a first-year apprentice, or “Bug Boy”, at the east Vancouver track, rode his first winner in Canada last weekend aboard Bluegrass Lent and is catching plenty of attention with eight of his 12 mounts finishing in the first three.

Richard said: “My father, Ralph, was the first Balgobin to be a jockey, so it was him who inspired me to become a professional rider. Seeing my brother and cousin (Keishan Balgobin, who rode 16 winners in Alberta last season) coming to Canada and riding successfully here, made me want to come and see Canada too.”

Balgobin junior is thankful to his brother for helping him make the move and is equally appreciative to his other fellow riders for welcoming him to the Hastings’ jockey colony.

“I watch all the big riders to see their style and tactics and I’m very thankful that experienced jockeys like Amadeo Perez (reigning champion rider at Hastings) have been so helpful with advice.”

Elder brother Ridge has yet to get off the mark this season, but his 14 wins last year moved him on to 66 career wins and, with a decade more experience than his sibling, the 28-year-old makes sure he is available to steer his young brother clear of the pitfalls that lie in wait.

Ridge, named after a character in the long-running soap opera, The Bold and the Beautiful, is keen to help keep his younger brother on the straight and narrow. He said: “I remind him to keep focus on his goals. When you have a few winners, more people come around and want you to do things, so I remind him to keep his head wise and know who is around.”

The Balgobin brothers will be in action at Hastings this weekend where racing gets underway at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. Live action will pause at 4 p.m. to see how the Ortiz brothers get on in the 150th running of the Preakness Stakes.

Hastings race selections: First race Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Preakness Stakes: RIVER THAMES dodged the Kentucky Derby after finishing a close-up third in an important preparatory race in April. He looks value and can give jockey Irad Ortiz his first Preakness victory. Hastings Race 4: BOLD ARCH takes on a talented field in the day’s feature event but, over this distance, may be too rapid for his rivals at this stage of the season.