For Immediate Release – Oklahoma City, OK, July 15 2024 – They say the early bird gets the worm. Whether or not the early trainer gets the winner’s circle photos has yet to be determined, but Austin Gustafson hopes there is some validity to that second axiom.
Gustafson was the first through the gates as they officially opened Monday morning in the Remington Park barn area. He had a trailer of nine horses in the first load he sent in at 1:47a.m. Central time. That bunch included Remington Park stakes winner Dark Afternoon, who was victorious here last year in the $50,000 Remington Park Turf Sprint Stakes. Jockey Jermaine Bridgmohan was aboardfor Gustafson’s only stakes win at Remington Park last fall. James Rogers of Black Hawk Stable in Elk City, Okla., owns Dark Afternoon, now a 4-year-old gelded son of Black Bear (Midnight Lute), out of the Came Home mare Afternoon Liaison. He is an Oklahoma-bred that Rogers and Gustafson have high hopes for coming into this meet that begins Friday, Aug. 16.
“I couldn’t wait to get on the backside here,” said Gustafson. “In fact, I asked (the racing office) what was the earliest someone could get here and they said just past midnight (last night). I had been staying in a motel while training at Lone Star and we are building a house in Jones, Okla., so we were more than ready to get here. That was the plan. Dark Afternoon was on that trailer we brought in this morning.”
Dark Afternoon won the Remington Park Turf Sprint Stakes by three-quarters of a length by running down front-running Twentyone N Change in a time of :56.74 for five furlongs.
Among others the 32-year-old Gustafson said he is bringing in or already has are Madamoussepousse and Angel Kiss, who have flourished under his tutelage. Gustafson finished seventh in the trainer standings last year at Remington Park and was in the top 10 most recently at the Sam Houston Race Park and Lone Star Park meets in Texas.
Madamoussepousse ran second twice and third another time, all in allowance company at Remington Park last fall. Since leaving here, she has won twice, in allowance races at Sam Houston Race Park and Lone Star Park.
Gustafson said seeing the Oklahoma City highway signs as he pulled back in to the Sooner state was like a breath of fresh air.
“When you’ve been on the road in Texas for the past few months, living in a motel out of a suitcase at Lone Star, I couldn’t wait to be first,” Gustafson said. “At least in Houston, I stayed in a nice Airbnb and had roommates (trainers Matt Hebert and Carlos Padilla). That was nice.
All in all, however, Dorothy was right, “there’s no place like home.” Gustafson returns home to Jones to re-join his wife Meagan, and their four children – daughters Kynzleigh (10 years old), Kambree (9) and the couple’s sons River (4) and Ridge (2).
Austin and Meagan were accidentally married on Kentucky Derby Day in 2020. One might think that horse people would have done that on purpose, but that wasn’t the case in the Covid year. The race was run on Sept. 5, 2020, not in May and the Gustafsons had planned the wedding a year in advance prior to any announcement that it also would be the day for roses in Louisville, Ky., at Churchill Downs as well. Both had attended Jones schools growing up, but didn’t know each other because Meagan is a bit younger than Austin.
“We met at a cowboy dance hall in Oklahoma City in 2017 and hit it off right away,” said Austin. “We’re coming up on our fourth anniversary during this meet.”
He is excited about racing Angel Kiss again at Remington Park this fall. As a 2-year-old last fall, she finished second in a maiden race to a filly named Miss Code West, losing by 1-1/4 lengths. No one knew at the time just how good being runner-up to Miss Code West actually was. Miss Code West went on to become the only horse to win three stakes races at last fall’s meet and was named the Horse of the Meeting. She won the Oklahoma Classics Lassie, Slide Show Stakes and the Trapeze, which has been renamed the Toby Keith Stakes starting this season.
“When we finally got away from her the next time out, Angel Kiss ran a very impressive race (breaking her maiden by 8-1/2 lengths),” said Gustafson. “We have a lot of the same horses here we had last year and we are very proud of our finish (in seventh overall). Really hoping we can do as well this fall.”
Gustafson said he will use the services of jockey David Cabrera first call, but we will also see Freddy Manrrique on a lot of his horses, too.
“Freddy works for us on salary and gallops our horses,” he said.
Manrrique was in the saddle for Angel Kiss and her efforts last fall and should be back in the irons again for the filly this year.
Gustafson has been allotted 40 stalls for the meet and expects to just about have them filled by Tuesday. He said he brought in 18 Monday and will do the same on Tuesday.
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Remington Park has provided more than $354 Million to the State of Oklahoma general education fund since the opening of the casino in 2005. Located at the junction of Interstates 35 & 44, in the heart of the Oklahoma City Adventure District, Remington Park presents simulcast racing daily and non-stop casino gaming. The 2024 Thoroughbred Season will begin on August 16. Must be 18 or older to wager on horse racing or enter the casino gaming floor. Visit remingtonpark.com for more information.
