He may be 12 now and no longer mixing it up with the big boys, but Pulse, who still has an affinity for the winner's circle, continues to do his thing
at Cal-Expo.
The brown horse proved it once again last weekend, as he pushed his bank account past $490,000 in the process.
Pulse, a son of Life Sign who is best remembered for beginning his career with 10 straight wins while in the Rick Plano barn, now goes about his business for owner/trainer Gretchen Smith while recently joining forces with pilot James Kennedy.
“He’s a neat horse to drive, and I want to thank Gretchen for giving me the chance with him,” Kennedy related. “He’s built strong, and he’s one of those horses who knows exactly what to do out there.”
While James doesn’t claim to be a horse whisperer, he admits this is one pacer who does have some communication skills.
“When the gate starts rolling, he kind of talks to you, and by that I means he lets you know if he wants to be aggressive away from there or take a spot.”
Two weeks ago, Pulse and Kennedy had the dreaded nine hole and had to settle for a minor award, but last week they drew a much better post and parlayed a second-over trip into a snapshot and a $17 return to the faithful.
“Gretchen told me they had done some work on him and he would be better, and it couldn’t have been a smoother trip. To be honest, I’d have been very disappointed if he didn’t kick home and win the way things set up. When we were coming back, I kept telling him “Good job old man, good job,’ and I think he understood.”
(Cal-Expo)