by James Platz

Last season, Rawtn Tale failed to reach the winner’s circle in nine freshman attempts. A new year has yielded better results for the homebred. Now a sophomore, the Tellitlikeitis—Raw Diamond gelding is two-for-three. He captured the $20,000 Jerry Landess Series final in his latest effort, a narrow 1:51.1 score Friday evening (April 25) at Harrah’s Hoosier Park Racing & Casino, taking a new mark over a surface rated sloppy due to rain.

“I just always thought he had some guts,” said trainer Michael Johnson. “He’s not 100 per cent sound this year, but he’s better.”

At 2, Rawtn Tale battled soundness issues which kept him out of the winner’s circle. Hugh and Susan Lacey, owners and breeders of the sophomore, were aggressive in pointing him to Indiana Sires Stakes action last season. The gelding competed in five legs, earning a check twice. He qualified for the $50,000 consolation but never saw the starting gate, scratching out to end the campaign.

“The owners just wanted to race him in the sire stakes,” Johnson said. “If I could have raced him and in the sire stakes eligible, I think I could have got a record on him. He probably could have won a race or two, but we thought he was good enough to just try the big boys and he had some soundness issues.”

Foaled in Joplin, MO, Rawtn Tale’s family has ties to the Hoosier State. His grandam, Lake Hills Lisa A, was bred and owned by Indiana resident Kenneth Spurlock. The Sportsmaster mare raced for nine seasons, making 263 starts and accumulating at least one victory each season, finishing with 45 wins. Later acquired by the Laceys, Lake Hills Lisa A produced eight foals. Of that octet, five were winners.

Always A Virgin filly Raw Diamond was the mare’s last foal. On the racetrack, she claimed three victories and took a 1:54.2 sophomore mark. As a broodmare, she has four foals of her own of racing age, all winners. Ray Hanna is the longtime conditioner for the Lacey family, but Johnson has taken over racing duties in recent years.

“I’ve been racing at Hoosier for them for four or five years now,” Johnson said. “Ray is getting old. He was tired of running up and down the road. I don’t live too far from him, so I just got lucky. He gets them ready, and then I just race.”

Johnson has campaigned each of Raw Diamond’s offspring, and he says that Rawtn Tale is far and away the best that the mare has produced. Late Odds, an Odds On Equuleus gelding, was the first foal and most successful of the group with four wins and a mark of 1:51.3. Lisa Rocks and Raw Sugar, both Rockin Image mares, each reached the winner’s circle.

“This is the best colt we’ve had,” he said of the owner’s breeding program. “He’s had some okay racehorses, but nothing quite this nice.”

Hanna dropped the gelding in a qualifier at Springfield in late March that Rawtn Tale won handily in 1:54.4. Tabbed the favorite in his opening round division of the Landess Series, the pacer and driver Mike Oosting led the field to the quarter and remained in front all the way to the wire, keeping a nose ahead of Handsome Character in a time of 1:53.3. Rawtn Tale dashed home in :26.2 to break his maiden. In the second leg, he finished third, this time with a :27.1 last quarter.

“He won his first start on the front end and then in the second leg he had the rail and a two hole trip and finished third,” said Johnson. “I just thought he finished a little flat. He scoped okay, so I was kind of concerned that maybe he wasn’t quite as good as we thought, but he sure showed up [in the final].”

Drawing post seven in the nine-horse field, Oosting forwardly placed the 3-year-old, settling in third after the quarter. That’s where the pair, sent off at 15-1 odds, would remain until the stretch. In the lane, Rawtn Tale kicked home in :26.1 and held off the late challenge of Book The Flight by a neck. He returned $32.20-$14.60-$5.80.

“The first couple starts he’s still been on the right line a little,” said Johnson. “That kind of hinders him finishing. Tonight, Mike said he was a little better. He was pretty straight.”

The winning time shaved more than two seconds off Rawtn Tale’s seasonal and lifetime mark. It also proved to the connections that the pacer has yet to reach the bottom, especially while still battling some lingering soundness issues.

“I wasn’t sure what to expect after last week,” Johnson said. “They pushed the pace a little more tonight. They got down to the [:55] half a little more on the sloppy track. I think that gets the others tired. It worked out. He had some racing luck.”

Rawtn Tale is once again being pointed toward Indiana Sires Stakes, with the opening round kicking off next month. Johnson believes the homebred can be competitive.

“That’s the game plan,” he said. “He may not be the best, but he’ll be there.”