by K.T. Donovan

Every year, California-based trainer Julio Canani looks for a way to come to Dubai, a spring ritual which he has enjoyed since 2000, when he first came with Ladies Din. For this trip, Canani's hopes rest on R.D. Hubbard's Dubai Sheema Classic (UAE-G1) contender Spring House.

In his nine previous attempts, with horses from Val Royal (Fr) to Island Fashion to Dixie Meister, Canani had his best finish when Tsigane (Fr) finished third in the 2005 Godolphin Mile (G2).

“He should have finished second, but he had a bad trip,” Canani said with his typical enthusiasm.

He feels the same way about some of the races run by Spring House, who Canani calls a “baby” both mentally and physically.

Despite 30 previous races with six wins and 22 on-the-board finishes, Spring House has only started running at 1 1/2 miles in about the past ten months.

“This is a true mile-and-a-half horse,” Canani said.

The Dubai Sheema Classic is run at 2,400 meters (11.93 furlongs).

Once Spring House started racing beyond 1 1/16 miles, Canani started to think about Dubai, but he acknowledged that the six-year-old Chester House gelding still had some growing up to do.

In August in the Del Mar Handicap (G2), Spring House was banged around in the stretch and finished third, less than one length behind After Market. He came back to win the Carleton F. Burke Handicap (G3), then ran up against Sunriver and Champs Elysees (GB) in the Hollywood Turf Cup (G1), traveling wide the whole way and again finishing third.

Spring House finally put it all together in the San Luis Obispo Handicap (G2), his previous start, and has jockey Garrett Gomez traveling to the Middle East for a return ride.

After two works at home, Spring House had a half-mile work at Nad al Sheba under Iggy Puglisi on Tuesday as his last major move. Canani now can look forward to the arrival of old friend Hubbard, for whom he is thrilled to be training Spring House.

“I trained for him when he owned Hollywood Park, twenty years ago,” Canani said. “There was never a falling out, but for a while he didn’t have horses. Last year, he called me with Spring House, and I told him, ‘Why did you wait so long?’ It’s like a high school reunion. He’s so much fun, such a good owner. It’s been too long not training for him.”

With Spring House sound and healthy, Canani is hoping his tenth Dubai World Cup meeting is his best yet.

K.T. Donovan is a Thoroughbred Times contributing writer