HH CJ Shake wins Harley Greene Derby

SHELBYVILLE, Ind. (Nov. 12, 2020) – It was a perfect distance for HH CJ Shake, and he didn’t waste any time putting his best skills to the task, winning the sixth running of the $90,100 Harley Greene Derby Thursday, Nov. 12. The race is named in honor of former farm inspector Harley Greene for the Indiana Horse Racing Commission and marks the final Quarter Horse stakes race of 2020 at Indiana Grand.

The first horse to load into the gate for the 10-horse sprint, HH CJ Shake and Juan Marquez waited calmly and patiently for the remainder of the field to join them. Once the gates sprung, HH CJ Shake was in full racehorse mode, scooting out of the gate on top from post two. The three-year-old Escondido Beach gelding soared down the track, holding onto his position all the way to the wire for the win by a nose over a fast closing Jess A Flyin Beach and German Rodriguez on the outside. Thunder Beach and Rodney Prescott finished third to make it an Escondido Beach stallion trifecta. The time of the 350-yard dash was :17.680.

“I’m super excited for this win,” said Trainer Paul Martin. “It’s been an extremely rough year personally and the man upstairs looked down on me tonight and gave me something special.”

Owned by Larry Carter, John Myers, Gary Brandon Bell and Rusty Hawkins, HH CJ Shake earned his seventh career win and his second in seven starts for 2020. The sorrel sophomore has not finished worse than third all season, and Martin noted he is stronger at the 350-yard distance over 400.

“His strong suit is 350, but he can run 400 too,” said Martin. “He turned in some really nice races going 400 this year and got beat by a really nice horse (Louisiana Lover). You can’t ever leave him out because he’s always right there. He has a big heart and everything he does is with a lot of heart.”

A winner in five of seven outings last year at two, HH CJ Shake was the state’s Two-Year-Old of the Year. The homebred gelding, bred by Carter and Myers, topped the $300,000 earnings mark with the win in the Greene Derby. It was his third career stakes victory at Indiana Grand.

Joining the connections of HH CJ Shake in the winner’s circle was Harley Greene, who was a big proponent of Quarter Horse racing decades ago prior to the implementation of pari-mutuel racing in 1997 in the state. He still attends the races regularly at Indiana Grand and was trackside to present the trophy.

Photos by Coady Photography