For Florida-breds, it was indeed a memorable Memorial Day holiday weekend of racing. From Saturday (May 25) through Monday (May 27), Florida-breds won 12 stakes races, including five graded stakes, at nine different racetracks from coast to coast.

	Swept Overboard won the Grade 1 Met Mile at Belmont.

Leading the way with grade-one victories were Swept Overboard and Ladies Din, who won the Met Mile (G1) at Belmont Park and the Shoemaker Breeders' Cup Mile (G1) at Hollywood Park, respectively. Also notching graded stakes wins were Captain Squire (Lazaro Barrera Memorial Stakes-G2 at Hollywood Park), Emergency Status (Jersey Derby-G3 at Monmouth Park), and Best of the Rest (Memorial Day Handicap-G3 at Calder Race Course).

Other Florida-breds winning stakes races over the holiday weekend included: Regiment (Diamond "A" USA Stakes at Lone Star Park), Maliziosa (Summertime Promise BC Stakes at Hawthorne), Jennasietta (Calder BC Handicap at Calder), Crowned Dancer (Willard L. Proctor Memorial Stakes at Hollywood Park), Guess (Miss Indy Anna Stakes at Suffolk Downs), Magical Madness (Memorial Day Handicap at Mountaineer Park), and Lindsay Jean (Palo Alto Handicap at Bay Meadows).

Swept Overboard's dominating victory by nearly five lengths in the Met Mile (G1) made him the fourth consecutive Florida-bred to win the Met Mile. He follows fellow Florida-breds Sir Bear (1999), Yankee Victor (2000) and Exciting Story (2001) as winners if the prestigious event. The win also made Swept Overboard the 78th Florida-bred to attain millionaire status with a career earnings total of $1,125,205.

The winning time of 1:33.34 was the fourth-fastest clocking of the Met Mile, behind only Honour and Glory, Langfuhr and Conquistador Cielo.

Bred in Ocala by Harry T. Mangurian Jr., Swept Overboard also has the Ancient Title Breeders' Cup Handicap (G1), Hollywood Turf Express Handicap (G3), and San Miguel Stakes (G3) to his list of career graded stakes wins. Now five, Swept Overboard was sold by his breeder for $525,000 at the 1999 Ocala Breeders' Sales Company's February juvenile sale at Calder. He was later sold for $700,000 in the 505 Farms dispersal in July, 2000. Swept Overboard is owned by John Paul Reddam and trained by Craig Dollase.

At seven years of age, Florida-bred turf runner Ladies Din shows little signs of slowing down. The Memorial Day win in the Shoemaker Breeders' Cup Mile (G1) was the hard-knocking gelding's second grade-one victory in his remarkable career. The other came in the 2000 Eddie Read Handicap (G1). In addition, he has graded stakes wins in the Del Mar Derby (G2), San Francisco Breeders' Cup Mile (G2), Oak Tree Derby (G2) and La Jolla Handicap (G3).

Bred by Meadowbrook Farms, Ladies Din has a career record of 12 wins, six seconds and six thirds in 35 starts for career earnings of $1,955,504. He is owned by J. Terrance Lanni and Bernard C. Schiappa.

Ladies Din has twice been named the Florida-bred champion turf horse in 1998 and 2000.

For the Florida-bred trio of Captain Squire, Emergency Status and Best of the Rest, the Memorial Day weekend marked the first graded-stakes win for each.

Captain Squire, bred by Jim and Shelia DiMare's J D Farm, captured the Lazaro Barrera Memorial Stakes (G2) at Hollywood Park by a neck over fellow Florida-Bred Fonz's. Captain Squire had previously won the Turf Paradise Derby in early February and now has career earnings of $224,300. Sold for $13,500 at the 2000 OBS August yearling sale, Captain Squire is owned by Robert Bone and Jeff Diener. He is trained by Jeff Mullins.

Back on the East Coast, Emergency Status romped to a three-length tally in the Jersey Derby (G3) at Monmouth Park. Bred by Ray Ivory and Joe Senkovich, the colt was sold first for $2,000 as a weanling at the 1999 OBS October fall mixed sale and then brought $30,000 at the 2001 OBS June juvenile sale. Owned by Henick Stable, Emergency Status has now earned $159,210.

Another veteran campaigner at seven, Best of the Rest took the Memorial Day Handicap (G3) at Calder for breeder/owner Bea Oxenberg. Best of the Rest had just won the Phantom on Tour Handicap on May 4 at Calder. Nearing the half-million dollar mark, the son of Skip Trial boasts career earnings of $494,296.