RACING NOTES: BLACK RUBY'S BURNS KNOWS OPPONENT TAZ WELL FOR SATURDAY'S MATCH RACE AT
POMONA, Friday, Sept. 13--James Burns, who rides Black Ruby against arch-rival Taz in Saturday's first-ever match race in the 64-year history of Fairplex Park, knows his opponent well. He should. He used to ride Taz, until a falling-out between him and Taz's owners. But all's well that ends well. Burns and the owners are best of friends now, and he rides the world champion mule, Black Ruby. "I used to ride Taz in his 3 and 4-year-old years and won probably eight or 10 races on him, and I used to ride for the Burdicks (Ed, trainer of Taz, and his wife, Ruth)," said Burns. "We're still the best of friends. We ski together in the winter and they've helped me through hard times. But we did have a little disagreement between their barn and me a while back. Sonny and Mary (McPherson, owners of Black Ruby) had asked me two other times to ride Ruby and I couldn't because I was riding Taz. "When our disagreement (with the Burdicks) wasn't resolved, the McPhersons asked me again to ride Ruby and I said, 'Heck, yes. Bring her on!' And I've been riding her ever since then. It will be four years this August that I first rode her at Sacramento." Black Ruby defeated Taz in a non-wagering match race last Sunday at Del Mar, leading from the break in a 400-yard event. Saturday's match is at 350 yards, but Burns feels the distance won't matter. The start, however, will. "The start is critical," said the native of Livermore in the Bay Area. "Being right beside each other (at Del Mar) in the five and six hole was great. Ruby went in the gate and she was excellent. She goes in with a halter and a shank and once she went in, the assistant starter slipped that off and they loaded Taz. We weren't in the gate very long and the starter waited until they were both ready and when they broke, Ruby just got away excellent. She got her momentum going and got her footing underneath her." Burns, who turns 44 next month, said Black Ruby never was seriously challenged after the start. "Taz got within a long neck, maybe a half-length of me and that was it," he said. "He never got up even with me at all. When I broke, I outbroke him a half-length and he tried to come to her a couple time but she just drew away." Burns has been riding for 25 years, and he hasn't limited his efforts to mules. "I've been riding in California since 1983," he said, "and I've ridden all breeds--thoroughbreds, quarters, everything. I've been coming to Fairplex since 1983. Riding Ruby has been a blast. I think I've won about 43-44 races on her and the farthest I've ever got beat on her was a head. She's won by farther than the two lengths I won on her at Del Mar. She's won by seven or eight going 870 (yards)." Will shortening up from 400 yards to 350 make a difference? "It doesn't matter," Burns said. "If she gets away from the gate, and doesn't have so much lead weight on her. That's what really hurts her. She's
