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Hit the Road and Florent Geroux come up the inside to win the Kilroe Mile
In a thrilling head and head battle to the wire, trainer Dan Blacker s Hit the Road prevailed by a neck over 5-2 favorite Smooth Like Strait, in Saturday s $400,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile at Santa Anita, providing Blacker, 38, with his first Grade 1 triumph. Ridden for the first time by eastern-based Florent Geroux, Hit the Road, 4-year-old colt by More Than Ready, out of the U S Ranger mare Highway Mary, got the mile on grass in 1:34.48.
With longshot Flying Scotsman hustled from his outside post, Smooth Like Strait fell into a stalking trip second, while Hit the Road was at joint third at the rail with Casa Creed to his outside and about three lengths off the lead heading into the far turn.
Hit The Road Gives Blacker First Graded Stakes Win In Thunder Road Sponsored by:
Hit the Road and Umberto Rispoli winning the Thunder Road
Idle since winning a restricted stakes at Del Mar July 10, Hit the Road hit the comeback trail running Saturday at Santa Anita in Arcadia, Calif., as he strode home to a brilliant 3 ¾-length win in the Grade 3, $100,000 Thunder Road Stakes, providing trainer Dan Blacker with his first-ever graded stakes win. Ridden to his third consecutive win by Umberto Rispoli, Hit the Road got one mile on turf in a scintillating 1:33.35, eclipsing Om s 2018 Thunder Road record time of 1:33.54.