Maddy Olver all smiles aboard Super Chow after winning the Toboggan (Janet Napolitano)
NYRA Press Office
OZONE PARK, N.Y.— Lea Farms’ Super Chow provided 24-year-old apprentice jockey Madison Olver with her first career stakes win with a powerful frontrunning performance in Saturday’s Grade 3 Toboggan, a seven-furlong sprint for older horses, at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Trained by Jorge Delgado, the 4-year-old Lord Nelson colt exited post 5 and dictated terms through splits of 23.69 seconds and 47.66 over the muddy and sealed track. Super Chow opened up by three lengths at the stretch call and despite drifting out late, easily secured the 4 1/4-length score over graded stakes-winner Manny Wah in a final time of 1:25.10.
“He hasn’t been able to get the lead for a while, so with a seven-furlong race it was pretty clear we were going to get the lead and I wanted to make sure he knew that’s what we were going for,” Olver said. “We weren’t trying to rate or sit back, so I asked him out of there and he took the lead.
“He likes being out there,” added Olver. “At the three-eighths, he took a beautiful deep breath for me and was ready to reengage. I gave him a little more to keep a length between me and the followers. At the quarter-pole, I gave him a little kiss and a little tap on the shoulder and he went on.”
Olver, who recently received an extension to continue to ride as an apprentice through March 8, said she was thrilled to earn her status as a graded stakes-winning jockey.
“My phone is still blowing up, actually. The support and the kind words mean a lot to me,” Olver said.
Super Chow previously finished third in the 2022 Grade 2 Saratoga Special and second in last year’s Grade 3 Swale at Gulfstream Park. He was a four-time stakes winner prior to making the grade, capturing the Bowman Mill at Keeneland and Inaugural at Tampa Bay Downs in 2022 along with last year’s Limehouse and Hutcheson at Gulfstream.
Olver had piloted Super Chow to a trio of on-the-board efforts in stakes company last year in the My Frenchman [2nd] and Jersey Shore [2nd] at Monmouth Park and in the Carle Place [3rd] at Belmont at the Big A.
Olver said the past experience with Super Chow helped immensely in Saturday’s score.
“The first time I rode him I only knew who the horse was, so I watched all the replays and he ran great for me that day,” Olver said. “It was my first stakes ride ever and we were second and he tried his heart out.
“The second time I was more confident because I knew the horse and knew what he liked and didn’t like,” continued Over. “And the third time was even better. He’s been in New York since Monday, so I was getting on him in the mornings, too, which really helped me reorientate myself with him.”
Olver grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado, where she enjoyed riding and breaking mustangs and honing her horsemanship skills. When she turned 18, she reached out to trainer Gina Rarick to begin her racing journey in France where she spent two years learning the ropes before moving back to the U.S. to continue her education working horses for trainer Christophe Clement.
She launched her career in November 2022 here and earned her first victory in her 16th attempt on December 9, 2022, aboard Curbstone for trainer Tom Morley in a $40,000 claiming route.
Olver said she’s very appreciative of how far she’s come as a rider in a short period of time.
“One thing that hasn’t changed is how much I love it. I’m very grateful for that,” Olver said. “Now [with more experience], I can see what’s happening around me and know which horses are going really good in a race and I’m aware of what’s around me and how my horse is doing and how to react if a horse doesn’t respond to something I’m doing in that moment.
“I’ve learned how to manage my business and how to ask for opportunities,” added Olver, who represents herself. “I’m learning every day and my approach is more finely tuned. There’s still things I need to work on but it’s amazing to see yourself learn and progress.”
Olver said she enjoyed a celebratory visit with Super Chow this morning.
“I went over and loved on that horse and thanked him for what he gave me,” Olver said. “He’s a really sweet horse. He was great this morning and seemed very proud of himself. I’ll never be able to repay that and I’m immensely thankful to him and to all the other horses that have gotten me to this point.”
Potential upcoming sprint targets for Super Chow at the Big A are the six-furlong Grade 3, $175,000 Tom Fool Handicap on March 2 or the seven-furlong Grade 2, $250,000 Carter Handicap presented by NYRA Bets on April 6.
Bred in Kentucky by Spendthrift Farm, Super Chow was a $75,000 purchase at the 2022 OBS Spring Sale of 2-Year-Olds in Training. A full brother to stakes winner Princess Indy, Super Chow is out of the Warrior’s Reward mare Bonita Mia.
