At 82 years old, Clifford DeLima vowed to cut back on the number of horses in his care. The trainer has been busy with racehorses at the track, horses on his ranch in Livermore, and eight great-grandchildren to spoil.
“I said I was going to cut down,” DeLima affirmed again, “but then Roy Guinnane and I went to a sale and came home with eight horses. We can’t go to sales anymore.”
If DeLima and Guinnane are a little eager at the moment, no one can blame them. Their 5-year-old gelding Marino’s Wild Cat is now 5-for-9 lifetime after winning the $100,250 Harris Farms Stakes Oct. 5. The 5 3⁄4-length victory was so impressive that it has DeLima and Guinnane dreaming of future stakes success, maybe even in Southern California.
DeLima has trained some classy horses before, but his is far from a household name. He was born and raised in Hawaii, and when he turned 15, a visiting colonel from the United States Army befriended DeLima’s father. When it was time for the colonel to return to the U.S. (this being before Hawaii became a state), the younger DeLima found himself on a ship heading east with him.
“The colonel bought a couple of Thoroughbreds in Hawaii and needed to get them back to the mainland,” DeLima said. “I was getting into all kinds of trouble, so they put me on a boat with two horses. I landed at the San Francisco pier.”
DeLima found himself at the Pleasanton racetrack, caring for the horses for eight months.
“He got rid of those horses, and we moved to Staten Island in New York,” DeLima recalled. “I got to know a guy who was going to college in Miami, so I got a ride down to Florida. It was there that I got hooked up with racing people again.”
His second attempt at a life in the racing industry was derailed when DeLima entered the armed services via the 82nd Airborne Division.
Finally, DeLima returned to California and found a job with trainer L.W. Kidd.
“He was one of the best there ever was about taking care of a horse’s legs,” DeLima said. “He showed me a lot, taught me everything. From there I started rolling, training my own horses. I got married. We bought a ranch.”
The 80-acre Greenville Farm is home not only to equines but to DeLima’s daughter, granddaughter, and some great-grandchildren, including a month-old baby girl.
“I’ve been married for 52 years, and I just love family,” DeLima said. “I love to spoil the kids. I have a great-grandson who is sharp as a tack; he knows everything. I am so grateful for all of this. When it comes down to it, the horses have been good to us.”
The first good horse in DeLima’s life was Kay Cee, a California-bred by Khorassan II who dominated the Northern California fairs from 1965 through 1967. Among his wins were the Sacramento Stakes, Governor’s Handicap, and Alamedan Handicap.
DeLima trained Maui Lyphear J. for a Japanese ownership group. Bred in Japan, the daughter of Lypheor (GB) won stakes races in 1986 and 1987, earning $169,225.
DeLima ended up keeping the mare in California to breed when her career was over. From that arrangement, he got the best horse he’s ever trained.
El Dorado Shooter, Maui Lyphear J.’s chestnut son by Man From Eldorado, was wickedly fast and earned $558,242 in his career. Among his 12 victories were the $142,500 Bay Meadows Breeders’ Cup Sprint Handicap (gr. III) and the Ken Maddy Sprint Handicap twice. El Dorado Shooter finished in the top three 19 times in 33 starts.
The problem with both Maui Lyphear J. and El Dorado Shooter was their nerves.
“She was so nervous that if you shipped her, it would take three weeks to quiet her down,” DeLima said. “Her son was the same way. They were so good, but they could have been really, really good!”
DeLima has experience with hot horses, but prefers the quiet ones. “You can get a lot out of a quiet horse, but if you have a radical one, you go nuts just trying to keep them happy.”
With Perfect Meeting and Marino’s Wild Cat, DeLima has one of each.
DeLima calls Perfect Meeting “a little firebug. She’s hot blooded and always on the go.” Guinnane owns the 5-year-old Cal-bred mare by Marino Marini—Lacey Meeting, by Lacey Evitan. The anxious mare won her third race of 2014 at the Fresno Fair Oct. 10, boosting her record to three wins in eight starts.
Marino’s Wild Cat, also by Marino Marini, is quiet as a mouse.
“We bred him and raised him, started him of right,” DeLima said. “He looked like he would be okay, but when he first won, we had to stop on him because he got a little sore.”
Marino’s Wild Cat broke his maiden Nov. 3, 2012, and then was turned out for a long time. DeLima credits owner Guinnane for letting him “do what I want with the horses.” Marino’s Wild Cat did not return to the races until May 17, 2014, when he rewarded his connections with another win.
Since then, the son of the Dayjur mare Faxene has boosted his record to five wins in nine starts for earnings of $157,410. After three straight wins under Silvio Amador, Marino’s Wild Cat finished fourth twice under different riders.
“Taking Amador off was a dumb thing to do,” DeLima said. “It didn’t work at all.”
Reunited with Amador, Marino’s Wild Cat destroyed the field, including veteran stakes horses Ain’t No Other and Ourwestcoastghost in the Harris Farms Stakes. DeLima credits the gelding’s temperament.
“Nothing bothers this horse,” he said. “It’s too early to say how good he is, but after the race all he wanted to do was get on the van, eat, and sleep. I can take him anywhere.”
Guinnane and DeLima have a yearling half-sister to Marino’s Wild Cat by Square Eddie.
“She’s really nice; I hope she turns out all right,” DeLima said.
With eight new sales purchases to worry about, yearlings on the farm, and subsequent starts to plan for
Marino’s Wild Cat and Perfect Meeting, the trainer has a lot on his plate.
“And now Roy is talking about going down south to buy some weanlings,” DeLima confessed.
So much for cutting back.