Take Charge Lady Drills Five Furlongs In :59 3/5
April 26, 2002
By, Jill Byrne

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (April 26, 2002) - It was a very quiet morning on the track for workouts for Kentucky Derby (GI) and Kentucky Oaks (GI) contenders. The only worker of note was potential Oaks favorite, Take Charge Lady.

Undefeated this season for trainer Ken McPeek and the Select Stable, the daughter of Dehere was out shortly after the track renovation break with jockey Tony D'Amico up. She broke off quickly from the five-furlong pole and continued on well around the turn. At the eighth-pole, D'Amico asked Take Charge Lady to finish strongly and I felt she did not respond well. Her head came up slightly and her action in front became higher, as if she was tired. She did not proceed to gallop out well either. The final time of :59 3/5 was excellent, but I was not as excited about the way she came home the last part of the move.

Jill Byrne serves as an analyst for TVG's award-winning "The Works" program, which focuses on the morning workout activity of horses preparing for the Kentucky Derby (GI) and Breeders' Cup. Additionally, she is a handicapper for the Churchill Downs Simulcast Network (CDSN) and is a knowledgeable, hands-on horsewoman who assisted her husband, trainer Patrick Byrne, in the development of Eclipse champions Favorite Trick and Countess Diana. She is the daughter of noted show horse rider and Thoroughbred trainer Peter Howe and first started riding show horses in her native Virginia at age three; she got on her first Thoroughbred when she was 11. She went to the University of Virginia where she studied political science and has worked directly with Dosage guru Steven Roman identifying top quality horses through a race analysis system he developed. Jill and Patrick have a daughter, Devon, and reside in Louisville.

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