[OLD HEAD]

Tale Of Ekati


Trainer: Barclay Tagg

Tagg, a former assistant to Hall of Fame trainer Frank Whiteley, graduated from Penn State University in 1961 with a degree in animal sciences and first got involved with horses while managing a farm in Pennsylvania in 1963. He started riding jumpers in 1966 and began his training career in earnest in 1971, winning his first race at Liberty Bell in 1972. He won the 2003 Kentucky Derby with Funny Cide, who went on to capture the Preakness Stakes before falling short in the Belmont Stakes. He also saddled Showing Up to a sixth place finish in the 2006 Kentucky Derby.

Jockey: Edgar Prado

Edgar Prado is a native of Lima, Peru and hails from a racing family - his father is a trainer and two of his eight brothers are jockeys. He dominated the Maryland racing scene for years with multiple riding titles at both Laurel and Pimlico, but in the summer of 1999 decided to shift his tack to New York. He won 1,000 races over a two-year span in 1997-1998, to join Chris McCarron and Kent Desormeaux as the only riders to accomplish that feat and led the nation in wins with 536 in '97, 474 in '98, and 402 in '99. He was second nationally in earnings in 2005, when his mounts won over $18 million for the second consecutive year. He also won 299 race in 2005, finishing in seventh nationally while winning at a 20% clip. Prado won the Kentucky Oaks in 2003 on Bird Town and the Belmont twice: Birdstone (2004) and Sarava (2002). He has ridden in the past eight Derbies, with a win aboard Barbaro in 2006.

Owner: Charles Fipke

Charles Fipke is a former prospector who discovered the existence of diamonds around Lac de Gras in Canada's Northwest Territories. Fipke was born in Edmonton, Alberta. In 1970, he graduated from University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) degree in Geology. A joint venture between Fipke's Dia Met Minerals and BHP-Utah in the 1980s and 1990s culminated in the establishment of Canada's first diamond mine, Ekati Diamond Mine, in 1998. Tale Of Ekati was subsequently named after this mine. Fipke’s association with horse racing as an owner dates back to 1981 when he bought Boldest Spirit at a sale in Vancouver. Fipke raced and eventually bred her. One of her foals, Traveling Spirit, was the champion 2-year-old in British Columbia in 1991 and is now a riding horse for Fipke. Fipke also was voted British Columbia’s leading breeder in 1991 Currently owns 20 race horses in training with Roger Attfield in Canada, Barclay Tagg in the Eastern United States, Bob Baffert in the West and John Oxx in Ireland.

Breeder: Charles Fipke

Charles Fipke is a former prospector who discovered the existence of diamonds around Lac de Gras in Canada's Northwest Territories. Fipke was born in Edmonton, Alberta. In 1970, he graduated from University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) degree in Geology. A joint venture between Fipke's Dia Met Minerals and BHP-Utah in the 1980s and 1990s culminated in the establishment of Canada's first diamond mine, Ekati Diamond Mine, in 1998. Tale Of Ekati was subsequently named after this mine. Fipke’s association with horse racing as an owner dates back to 1981 when he bought Boldest Spirit at a sale in Vancouver. Fipke raced and eventually bred her. One of her foals, Traveling Spirit, was the champion 2-year-old in British Columbia in 1991 and is now a riding horse for Fipke. Fipke also was voted British Columbia’s leading breeder in 1991 Currently owns 20 race horses in training with Roger Attfield in Canada, Barclay Tagg in the Eastern United States, Bob Baffert in the West and John Oxx in Ireland.

Finish.... Date.... Race

1st 04.5.2008 Wood Memorial (GI) - Aqueduct
Grinding effort to get up

6th 03.8.2008 Louisiana Derby (GII) - Fair Grounds
Showed no speed, never a factor

4th 10.27.2007 Breeders' Cup Juvenile (GI) - Monmouth Park
Raced wide throughout, well beaten

1st 09.15.2007 Futurity (GII) - Belmont Park
Sat off pace early, angled in late, got up for the win

2nd 07.26.2007 Sanford (GII) - Saratoga
Bumped at the start, improved position late

1st 07.7.2007 Maiden Special Weight - Belmont Park
Pressed pace, drew away when asked