Jazz great John Coltrane had an album (and song) called “Giant Steps,” which, despite being a studio recording, seems an acceptable reference when the subject is Chuck Sylvester’s trotter Live Jazz. That’s because giant steps are what Sylvester believes his colt has taken
from age two to three.
Last year, Live Jazz won three of eight races and earned $65,123. One of his triumphs came in a $36,000 division of the Standardbred Stakes by 8-1/2 lengths in 1:56.4 at the Delaware County Fairgrounds in Ohio, setting the world record for a two-year-old male trotter on a half-mile oval. He was rated No. 7 in the Experimental Championship Ratings for three-year-old trotters.
“Live Jazz is training good,” said Sylvester recently. “We’ve only been in [2]:15 or [2]:16, but he hasn’t had a bad workout this year and his attitude is good. If nothing happens to him, we’re high on him right now.
“He had his problems last year early. He was just content to follow [other horses] and didn’t care if he passed anybody. Later in the year he kind of woke up. To me, that was the only thing holding him back as a two-year-old. He was like a young kid that didn’t know what he was doing. This year he is altogether different. This year he’s more mature and more racy. He really feels like a horse now.”
Live Jazz was winless in his first three starts, then was second-placed-first in a division of the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes at The Meadows for his first victory. He followed up by beating three-year-olds in an overnight at Harrah’s Chester and setting the world record at Delaware.
He was fourth in his Breeders Crown elimination at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, failing to reach the final off a first over trip, and he went off stride in a division of the Bluegrass Stakes at Lexington’s Red Mile.
Following the Bluegrass, he was discovered to have bone chips in both front ankles and shut down for the season.
“John said he [won at Delaware] very easy,” said Sylvester. “We’ve never gotten him tired yet. He had a couple OCDs in both front ankles that we had to take out at the end of the year. I’m wondering now how much those were bothering him last year because he acts so much different this year.”
Live Jazz, owned by Sylvester, Ottawa's Melvin Hartman, Neal Goldman and Juniper II, is a son of Andover Hall out of the mare Limitless Sky. His mother was a multiple stakes winner and full sister to stakes winners Hard Rock N Roll and Jailhouse Jesse, plus half sister to 2004 Matron Stakes champ Jailhouse Joey.
“That’s a good solid family,” said Sylvester. “He’s a big handsome horse. I buy horses on their conformation and Neal picks out a lot of the horses on their breeding. He fit the bill for both.”
Sylvester hopes to bring back Live Jazz for the Pennsylvania Sire Stakes at Chester on May 30.
“If he doesn’t have any problems between now and then we should have a couple qualifiers before then,” said Sylvester. “That’s what we’re aiming for. He’s eligible to everything. Right now it just depends on him. If he stays good and sound and his attitude stays good I think he’ll be a contender.”
Of course, the Hambletonian is the big target on the schedule. Sylvester could be poised for another memorable summer, like the ones he enjoyed the past two years with multiple Dan Patch Award-winner Lucky Chucky.
“I hope so,” said Sylvester. “He sure acts like he’s going to be OK. We have to see how much the competition improved. There are a lot of horses that had much better seasons last year and are picked to be better horses than him, which is OK. We have our own schedule. We’ll try to have him ready and good and tight by the time the Hambo starts.”
This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.