Undefeated Moonlit Notion Takes the $75,000 Coin Collector Stakes at Charles Town

On the weekend between the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, Charles Town sought to fill the void by hosting the $75,000 Coin Collector Stakes for West Virginia-bred sophomores seeking their first added-money success of the spring.

Although the compact field of five included multiple stakes winner Im The Director, the full-brother to the talented filly Direct the Cat, attention was clearly focused on the undefeated Moonlit Notion, who was made the overwhelming 1-9 favorite in his stakes debut.

A sophomore son of Great Notion out of the talented state-bred Fiber Sonde mare Moonlit Song, Moonlit Notion also proved attractive to bridge jumpers as he accounted for nearly $200,000 of the almost $215,000 in the show pool.

When the gates opened, Moonlit Notion wasted little time gaining the early advantage under regular pilot Larry Reynolds, taking command between horses leaving the chute.

With several foes bumping one another in behind him, Moonlit Notion maintained a modest lead through the turn and edged clear late to win by 2 ¾ lengths. Running time for the 4 1/2 furlongs over a fast track was 52.32 seconds.

“When he broke sharply like he did I knew he was going to be in good shape,” said trainer Tim Grams. “Turning for home it looked like Larry had plenty of horse left. That was the first thing I asked him when he came back, and he said he had felt like he had plenty of horse.”

Longshot Ray of Sunshine outfought Im The Director for the place spot, but the Im the Director, a Cynthia McKee trainee, was demoted to fifth for impeding a foe down the backside. Multiple stakes winner Annapolis Road was a late scratch.

Moonlit Notion paid $2.20 to win, but the exacta, with 33-1 Ray of Sunshine underneath, returned $18.80 for a one-dollar wager.

Moonlit Notion’s family has been good to Grams and his wife Judy. After campaigning the Parker’s Storm Cat mare Malibu Kitten, they bred her to Fiber Sonde, with the resultant foal being Moonlit Song, who counted the 2017 WVBC Cavada among her 14 wins and earnings of over $400,000.

Moonlit Notion is now 6-for-6 with earnings of $132,344. His full sister, Moonlit Kiss, won her season-opening allowance contest April 19, and while she hasn’t tried stakes company yet, she owns seven wins and nearly $133,000 in earnings from 12 career starts.

Three races prior to the Coin Collector, Humorous (Abnel Bocachica) graduated in his fifth seasonal try and sixth start overall in a one-turn maiden special weight dash for McKee, while one race earlier Grams trainees Judgement Day and Prospective Love finished one-turn in a two-turn allowance for state-breds. Reynolds rode the winner.

The Coin Collector Stakes is named in honor of the two-time West Virginia Breeders Classic champion for late owner-breeder John A. Casey.