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By Betsy Parker
Rappahannock News Staff Writer
Irish-born pro Robbie Walsh spent the afternoon of May 4 feeling bruised, battered and more than a little sorry for himself
Injured in a nasty point-topoint spill near his Pennsylvania home on April 22, Walsh missed his chance to win the Virginia Gold Cup that day. Catch rider Chip Miller steered Salmo to victory in the nation’s first $100,000 timber stakes while Walsh lay uncomfortably on his living room sofa, face throbbing from the pressure of steel plates inserted to repair multiple fractures, collarbone points grating together as the bones slowly began to knit.
He wondered when he heard the news of Salmo — a horse Walsh had ridden in his two previous timber victories — winning the nation’s biggest prize with another jockey, whether he’d ever get back to the races.
Five months later; Walsh has an answer.
Yes.
In Saturday’s International Gold Cup, Walsh steered local favorite Seeyouattheevent to victory in the headline feature, winning the $50,000 timber stake and shattering the course mark for the 3 1/2 miles. The winning time was 7:01 4/5: almost exactly two-minute miles the entire route.
Officials estimate 38,000 were on hand to see the record foil Saturday. Firm footing due to continuing drought was eased somewhat by a halfinch of rain Friday, plus Great Meadow’s modem irrigation system ensured a good turf cover.
But the going, Walsh noted, was still exceptionally fast.
“I was thinking, at every step of the way, that the pace was foster than anything” said the Kilkenny native, 31. “1 couldn’t go any foster. I just had to wait for the pace to come back to me.”
Owned by publisher Nick Arundel of The Plains, Seeyouattheevent knows The Flams course: the 6-year-old was fourth in the Virginia Gold Cup, behind Salmo in May, and was second in last October’s International, closing a 19length deficit from the water jump — the 15th — to miss by less than a length at the line.
Saturday’s race set up similarly.
Blazing fast Allimac, with three runaway timber wins to his name but 18 months away from the races, notched the early fractions.
Jockey James Fahey let Allimac roll on the lead, with *05 International winner Fields of Omagh (Carl Rafter up) closest in tow. Walsh lay off the pace in fourth.
After three of 3 1/2 miles, Walsh, and Jeff Murphy aboard Woodmont, who was alongside, at last saw the relentless gallop of Allimac, inevitably, slacken as his time off began to show.
“We saw die leader ‘come back’ to us headed to the water; 15 of 20, Walsh explained. ‘Me and Jeff decided to just pop
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