A daughter of British Columbia sire Rosberg out of the winning Distorted Humor mare Enter Laughing, Lady Rosberg has a record of 4-1-1 from nine starts and has earned $54,097. Her third dam, stakes-placed and stakes- producer Asocial, is out of a half-sister to champion three-year-old, Belmont Stakes winner and prominent sire Stage Door Johnny.

  Lady Rosberg had won a six-furlong allowance race by nearly four lengths at Turf Paradise in early November.

  On December 2, Krieg's multiple stakes-placed homebred mare Love Makor won an allowance/$20,000 optional claiming race by 2 3/4 lengths. Also trained by Lund and ridden by Rocco Bowen, the six-year-old Washington-bred full sister to Washington horse of the year Makors Finale and half-sister to two-time state champion Absolutely Cool, improved her record to 7-8-4 from 33 starts and has earned $118,470. A daughter of Washington champion Makors Mark, Love Makor is out of Washington broodmare of the year Coup de Foudre, a stakes-placed 2002 daughter of Basket Weave.

   The Jim Stable's remarkable Ben's Cat, an eight-year-old gelding sired by Gibson Thoroughbred Farm's four-time leading Washington sire Parker's Storm Cat, scored his third consecutive win in the $200,000 Fabulous Strike Handicap and 22nd stakes win overall - which includes four Grade 3 tallies - in the six-furlong sprint run at Penn National, on November 29. The 2012-13 Maryland-bred horse of the year took the race by 3 1/4 lengths for his owner-breeder-trainer King Leatherbury and improved his race record to 28-6-4 in 45 starts. He has earned $2,320,990, of which $458,350 has been added in his eight starts in 2014.

  On December 2, Ann Juarez's homebred filly Bella Fabiela, a three-year-old Washington-bred runner by Parker's Storm Cat out of Jenny's Love, by Williamstown, went gate-to-wire to win her debut, a 5 1/2-furlong maiden special weight race at Portland Meadows.

  As of December 8, Parker's Storm Cat leads the Washington sire ranks with $825,790. Among his 27 winners from 59 starters in 2014 are four additional stakes-placed runners.

   2014 Emerald Downs horse of the meet and Longacres Mile (G3) winner Stryker Phd made his second 2014 start outside of Washington  for owners Mona and Jim Hour and trainer Larry Ross in the November 30 $100,000 Berkeley Handicap at Golden Gate Fields.

  The 122-pound race highweight, Stryker Phd, again with Leslie Mawing in the saddle, finished third in the Grade 3 race, beaten 2 1/4 lengths by Pepper Crown and Jerry Hollendorfer and Dr. George Todaro's G. G. Ryder, by Chhaya Dance, in the 1 1/16-mile race.

  Bred by Char Clark Thoroughbreds and Todd Havens, both of Spokane, he had been purchased by the Hours at the 2009 WTBOA Sale. Stryker Phd, a five-year-old gelded son of Bertrando-Striking Scholar, by Smart Strike, improved his record to 5-5-5 in 18 starts, which is highlighted by his 3-1-1 from five 2014 outings, and has now earned $320,621.

   2014 Queen's Plate winner Lexie Lou finished second to double 2014 classic winner California Chrome in the nine-furlong Hollywood Derby (G1) run over Del Mar's turf course on November 28. The daughter of Sligo Bay (Ire)-Oneexcessivenite, by In Excess (Ire), is a granddaughter of two-time Washington champion, Grade 2 stakes winner and WTBOA sales horse Favored One (a daughter of Son of Briartic bred by 2014 Washington Racing Hall of Fame inductees Bill and Barbara Nelson), who races for Gary Barber and has earned $1,429,714.

  Three-year-old Saint Lemone, ridden by Russell Baze, improved her record to 2-3-2 from a dozen starts after the California-bred daughter of Lemon Drop Kid-Saintly Slumber, by Saint Ballado, won a $6,250 claiming race at Golden Gate on November 28. Bred by Al and Sandee Kirkwood, the filly was claimed by Oregon's Jerry Weaver and Gary B. Singley out of her one-length victory.

  Peaceful Nation became the 13th winner from 13 starters and 14 foals of racing age for her 2011 Washington broodmare of the year Peaceful Wings, a 22-year-old daughter of Halo, when she took an $8,000 maiden claiming race by 6 1/2 lengths on November 28 at Turf Paradise. Racing for Charles C. Hilton and trained by Jeff Metz, she became the sixth juvenile winner in 2014 for her second year sire Nationhood, who stands at her breeders Rick and Debbie Pabst's Blue Ribbon Farm.

  Four-year-old Pebble Beach Baby finished third, only a neck behind second place Don'tcallmecharley, in the $110,000g Glass Slipper Stakes, a mile race run at Gulfstream Park on December 6. Bred by Jill Heerensperger in Kentucky, the filly improved her record to 5-6-4 and has earned $152,948. The daughter of Rock Hard Ten is the fifth stakes-placed runner out of the Son of Briartic mare Sarna, who was also a WTBOA sales graduate.  Pebble Beach Baby had been claimed for $32,000 out of a second place finish in a 1 1/16-mile race at Del Mar on August 8. She next won a mile and 70 yard starter allowance at Parx Racing on September 13 and now races for Pompeii Enterprises LLC.

  Three-year-old Articulate won a mile $20,000 maiden claiming race at Golden Gate on December 7. Owned by Dr. Rodney Orr, the new winner is a Kentucky-bred daughter of Dunkirk-Mia Gatto, by Cat Thief.

  Nominations have been released for one of the biggest days of the season at Portland Meadows, Oregon Championship Day for state-breds December 14.  

  Two-year-olds will compete in the $13,000 Wineberg Stakes (open for statebred juvenile colts and geldings and fillies), which drew 16 nominations for the six-furlong event. Half of the entries are fillies who are cross-entered in the $13,000 Janet Wineberg Stakes, which drew nine nominees. 
  Forty Grinder ships in to Portland Meadows from Churchill Downs, where he broke his maiden two starts back under the care of trainer D. Wayne Lukas. Rody Barrett will take over the training duties for the Wineberg Stakes.

 Trainer Jonathan Nance has nominated fillies Kozzy's Kitkat and Mydaddysacowboy to both races. They had battled down the lane against each other as maidens on October 29, with Kozzy's Kitkat prevailing. Mydaddysacowboy graduated to the winner's circle on November 16 after her four-length tally.
  Three-year-olds will compete in the $11,000 Oregon His Stakes for colts and geldings and the $11,000 Oregon Hers Stakes for fillies. Fourteen were nominated for the Oregon His, including Maddie's Gold and Stoney River.

  Maddie's Gold won the Bill Wineberg Stakes last year and was most recently third in the $21,000 Oregon Stallion Stakes. Stoney River was second in the Stallion Stakes and figures to run well in the His Stakes.   
  2013 Lethal Grande Sprint Championship winner Midda's Gold Touch is nominated to the $11,000 event this year. Among the six other nominees is Jack the Pirate, who won the Oregon His last year by 18 lengths.
  The race card begins at noon. To view all the nominations visit www.portlandmeadows.com/horse-racing/stakes-schedule.

  On November 30, Portland Meadows ran their second series of $9,000 "Lake" stakes, all at six furlongs.

  The first, the Foster Lake Handicap for two-year-olds, was won by David Gregory's Kentucky-bred Oh Derek, a son of Brother Derek trained by Sylvea Gregory and ridden by Leonel Camacho-Flores. He defeated Luke Lindsey's Iwannbeadivatoo, a Washington-bred filly by Pulse Ranches' Preachinatthebar out Fast Rio, by Boca Rio, by a half-length. Finishing third in the field of six was Karen Kirshner's Cash N Dash, a Washington-bred gelding by Parker's Storm Cat out of Bon Jour Paris, by Eltish.

  A field of eight three-year-old and up fillies and mares started in the Paulina Lake Handicap, which was won by 3 1/2 lengths by Lawrence R. O'Brine and breeder Marvin Pietila's four-year-old Washington-bred filly Society Girl. The four-year-old daughter of Soft Gold (Brz) is one of three stakes horses among the seven winners produced out of Portland stakes winner Crimson Date, a 1993 daughter of Encino. The now two-time stakes winner is trained by Jim Fergason and was ridden by Jorge Rosales. Running second was Rancho Viejo's six-year-old Seventyprcentcocoa, a Washington-bred daughter of Private Gold. Another 2 3/4 lengths behind her in third was Roddina Barrett and Wayne Williams' Ms. Sutherland, a five-year-old Kentucky-bred mare by Sir Shackleton.

  The Detroit Lake Handicap featured seven runners three and up. Sam Stephenson's Sport of Salt, by  Salt Lake, who is trained by Dru Hall and was ridden by Jose Zunino, took the win in a dead-heat with Rancho Viejo and Pam Tumminello's Memphis Mobster, a seven-year-old California-bred gelding by Memo (Chi), who is trained by Rigoberto Velasquez and was partnered by Leonel Camacho-Flores. Finishing 2 1/2 lengths behind them in third place was Rancho Viejo and Lisa Baze's Chu and I, a five-year-old Washington-bred gelding by You and I who is also trained by Velasquez.

   Idaho author Heather Smith Thomas's latest book, Horse Tales: True Stories from an Idaho Ranch, launched in December 2014. The book, published by the Coloradomedia venture The Frontier Project Inc., is a collection of 22 non-fiction stories about the horses that helped define Thomas's life in the ranch country outside Salmon, Idaho.

  "This book is about the horses in my life," Thomas writes in the preface to Horse Tales. "They all had very different personalities and each one taught me a lot - not just about horses and riding, but about life and responsibility, patience, respect and trust, consistency and perseverance."

  Thomas is the author of 20 books and countless articles on horsemanship, stockmanship and animal health care, including some which have appeared in the Washington Thoroughbred. Each story in Horse Tales centers on the author's experiences with a specific animal, and is infused with lessons on life, family and stockmanship. Together, the stories comprise a beautiful memoir about a remarkable life with horses and offer a unique glimpse into ranch life in rural Idaho.

  The 282-page book, priced at $24.95, will be available at Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com, Powells.com and other online retailers.

  The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) announced on December 5, 2014, that the NTRA Advantage program has surpassed the $700-million mark in sales of goods and services since the inception of the NTRA's group purchasing arm in 2002. As a result, total savings to the horse industry from NTRA Advantage has climbed to more than $120-million.

  NTRA members that have realized savings through NTRA Advantage include racetracks, training centers, owners, breeders and trainers. Organizations that have utilized the discount program also extend well beyond the realm of Thoroughbred racing. These include the American Quarter Horse Association, the U S Equestrian Federation, the U S Trotting Association, Harness Tracks of America and the U S Polo Association. WTBOA members also benefit from the NTRA program.

  "We have done more than $100-million in sales of goods and services, resulting in more than $20-million in savings, in less than two years," said Bryan Pettigrew, senior vice president of NTRA Advantage. "The success of this program extends well beyond the immediate savings to members because a portion of sales proceeds goes to support NTRA programs and charities, as well as state breed and owner associations. The entire sport benefits when our members save."

  "For almost 15 years, NTRA Advantage and its participating vendors have made a positive impact on the bottom lines of mom-and-pop farms and major racing associations alike," said Alex Waldrop, president and CEO of the NTRA. "The strength of the Advantage program comes from the fact that it attracts major national sponsors for horse racing, name brands like John Deere and Nationwide Insurance, using the purchasing power of our extensive member and affiliate member network."

   NTRA Advantage delivers substantial cost savings-through local dealers-on products and services relevant to their business. The roster of nationally known participating vendors includes John Deere, Nationwide Insurance, Valvoline, UPS, Sherwin-Williams, OfficeMax, SimplexGrinnell and Hagyard Pharmacy.

  The Turf Publicists of America (TPA) elected Jim Mulvihill of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) to serve as president of the organization for 2015 and 2016. The appointment was by outgoing TPA President Mandy Minger at the TPA's Mark Kaufman Workshop at the University of Arizona Symposium on Racing and Gaming. Mulvihill served as a vice president for 2013-14.  

 At the same time it was announced Sophia McKee of Emerald Downs and Joe Bacigalupo of the NTRA were elected as 2015-16 vice presidents.  This will be a second term for McKee and first for Bacigalupo.

The above trio will join current vice presidents Jennifer Hoyt of Oaklawn Park, Rhonda Norby of Equibase Company and longtime publicist Lynne Snierson, and secretary-treasurer Dave Zenner of Arlington International Racecourse, each of whom were elected last year to serve a two-year term in 2014-15.  

  The 2015 Keeneland January sale, which will be held January 12-15, will feature 605 broodmares, 135 racing or broodmare prospects, 563 just turned yearlings, 282 horses of racing age and 25 stallion prospects.

  The catalog is now available online at the Keeneland website and will be mailed out December 18.

  On November 29, Mark Dedomenico LLC, Jerry Durant and Michael House's first-time starter Rattataptap, a juvenile Kentucky-bred daughter of 2014 leading North American sire Tapit, won her debut in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden special weight race at Del Mar.

  Peter Redekop BC Ltd's 2014 British Columbia Derby (Can-G3) winner Alert Bay, a three-year-old California-bred multiple stakes-winning son of City Zip, took the $215,000 Zia Park Derby by three lengths on November26. The Blaine Wright trainee has a 6-4-1 record in his dozen starts and has earned $497,207.

   Maiden winners with Washington connections won two races on December 1. Four-year-old Fiesty Trevor, a four-year-old Colorado-bred filly by Allaire Farms' Trickey Trevor, won a $12,500 maiden claimer at Zia Park by one length. At Turf Paradise Ed Zenker and Terra Firma Farm's first-time starter Eddie' Camaro, a three-year-old Washington-bred gelding by Polish Miner-Eddie's Favorite, by Jambalaya Jazz, won a maiden claimer by 4 1/4 lengths for trainer Joe Toye.

  On November 30, the final day of the 2014 Del Mar fall meet, juvenile sons of Stormy Atlantic finished one-two in the $150,750 Cecil B. DeMille Stakes (G3). Conquest Typhoon took the race by a half-length over Stormy Liberal, a full brother to El Dorado Farms LLC's stallion Coast Guard, whose first foals reach the races in 2015. A $100,000 Ocala June two-year-old, Stormy Liberal - who has a record of 1-1-0 from three starts and $63,850 in earnings - is the fourth stakes horse out of the Royal Academy mare Vassar.

  Battled, a four-year-old gelding by Master Command out of 2004 Washington champion three-year-old filly Grinch, added win number four (from nine lifetime starts) in a $25,000-$20,000 optional claiming race at Laurel on December 6, upping his earnings to $130,720. He is one of two winners - the other being $177,380 earner Whosville - out of Grinch, a multiple stakes-placed daughter of Salt Lake who was bred by Tod C. Manley.

  Bryan W. Smith's homebred Tattypoo, a four-year-old Washington-bred daughter of Devine Cozzene-Mira's Magic, by Katowice, scored a nearly two-length win in a five-furlong allowance at Portland Meadows on December 7 to record her second win. The filly is trained by Gary Lonclot and was ridden by Jennifer Whitaker.