by Ed DeRosa

At noon on October 16, Carol Sinclair's palms began to sweat. At 3:45 p.m., her homebred Lac Ouimet gelding, Treasure Lac, began to shake. There is no way to know for sure who was more nervous, but at least Sinclair can assure you that the whole experience--sweaty palms and all--was fun.

The reason for the nerves: At 4 p.m. that day, Treasure Lac would attempt to move from claiming winner to allowance winner. Sinclair's hopes, desires, and nerves are shared by many small-scale owners as they attempt to climb the rungs of the racing ladder.

Raised on a Saddlebred farm in New Jersey, Sinclair, 56, is now senior director of application development for Burlington Coat Factory. As she advanced in the company, she knew what she wanted to do with her discretionary income.

"As I progressed in my profession and made more money, I wanted a Thoroughbred," she said. "I always wanted a Thoroughbred because they're noble and regal."

Sinclair's 13-year involvement in Thoroughbred racing has been dotted with small, progressive victories. She joined West Point Thoroughbreds in 1993 and purchased a piece of Miss Pocket Court. The Court Trial filly raced twice for the then-fledgling stable, finishing fourth and third and earning $4,050 before being claimed for $35,000, but that was enough to hook Sinclair.

"Of course I went to Belmont [Park] both times to watch her run," Sinclair said. "She didn't win, and she was claimed after just two starts by her previous owner, but I had the bug. I knew there was no going back."

Her next adventure came in 1994 when she joined Pewter Stable to claim the Thirty Eight Pieces filly To the Treasure. Kate Demasi was the trainer, and she still trains Sinclair's horses.

"After more than ten years, we understand each other," Sinclair said. "You have to train your trainer sometimes, but I learn from her. She always says the most dangerous thing is an owner with a condition book. Sometimes I'll pick out a spot, and she'll just roll her eyes, and then I know we may need an easier spot. When you keep losing and having to write checks for bills, you learn quick about picking the right spots."

To the Treasure won for Pewter Stable and earned Sinclair her first trip to the winner's circle. To the Treasure became Sinclair's foundation mare, eventually yielding two homebred winners: Turkotreasure and Treasure Lac.

"It's a tremendous feeling to have this animal you brought into the world carry your colors into the winner's circle," Sinclair said. "They'll do anything for you. They'll follow me around like dogs sometimes."

Treasure Lac finished fifth in his October 16 allowance race, 4 1/4 lengths away from giving his breeder her first homebred allowance winner. Sinclair's best runner to date remains Explosive Rhythm, a Fred Astaire filly she bought for $7,200 at the 1994 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic yearling sale who won six of 39 starts, including two allowance races, and earned $85,007.

"I learned many years ago that if I'm lucky enough to ever have a stakes horse then that's butter on the bread, but I can eat my bread plain," Sinclair said. "I'm not in it for the money; I often say I don't know who owns who.

"People don't realize what a huge jump in class each condition is and what it takes to have a maiden special weight winner or an allowance horse. I remember when Kate told me we had a maiden special weight horse with Explosive Rhythm, and it's very exciting."

Treasure Lac's fifth-place finish disappointed Sinclair, but the six-year-old has earned $18,926 this year, and Sinclair plans to put whatever money is left over after paying bills toward the purchase of a horse at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic mixed sale in December in Timonium, Maryland.

Ed DeRosa is deputy news editor of Thoroughbred Times.