Sky’s the limit for Skie’s Music
Collins homebred in the money in eight straight
Ted Black
March 4, 2026
Although it may have taken her a little time to finally find her best stride, Skie’s Music has given every indication to owner-breeder-trainer Timothy Collins she is poised for a solid campaign.
In fact, the four-year-old Hoppertunity filly could perhaps garner the first stakes victory of both her and her trainer’s career down the road a bit.
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Skie’s Music may have needed six attempts to earn her diploma last summer against West Virginia-bred maiden special weight foes, but she is making up for lost time. Skie’s Music has been in the money in eight straight outings, including all six versus winners.
In those six contests since graduating, Skie’s Music has recorded two wins and finished second on three occasions, including a game runner-up effort behind 1-9 choice Zip Start in the $75,000 West Virginia Lottery Breeders’ Classic for state-bred three-year-old fillies.
“She really has done well in the two-turn races up here, and I think she’ll only get better the longer she goes,” Collins said of Skie’s Music, who posted allowance victories this year on January 22 and February 21 and may return to stakes company soon. “The other day she jogged two miles and she was better the second mile. She’s never going to do well in any of the 4 ½-furlong races up here, but she’s going to be good going two turns and even longer at some point.”
Collins recorded the 300th win of his career in January when Spirit of Windsor won a claiming race. But Skie’s Music has provided a pair of wins to the cause this year.
In her January start, Skie’s Music blitzed the field by 10 lengths in a two-turn allowance for state-bred fillies and mares as the odds-on choice with Arnaldo Bocachica in the irons. Bocachica had been aboard Zip Start when the Jeff Runco trainee edged Skie’s Music in the West Virginia Lottery BC last fall, a race Collins believed his filly could have won with a little more racing luck.
“Zip Start is a really nice filly and Arnaldo rode her perfectly in the stakes race and kept my filly boxed in most of the race,” Collins said. “In fact, [jockey] Fredy [Peltroche] told me he thought he was going to win it if he had been able to get out a little sooner. Boca remembered my filly when he got on her and said he remembered that race. She’s won her last two starts up here pretty easily.”
Collins may have a bit of a conundrum upcoming. According to Charles Town’s stakes calendar, the first slate of stakes, which kicks off April 11 with the Fancy Buckles for state-bred fillies and mares, all are contested at 4 ½ furlongs. Longer races don’t arrive until the May 30 Original Gold.
Collins purchased Skie’s Music’s dam, the unraced Congrats mare Shiloh Road, for $3,000 when she was in foal to Hoppertunity. He brought the resulting foal, Skie’s Music, along gradually.
Fourth twice and fifth twice in her first four outings, Skie’s Music finished second on July 5, 2025 and then graduated by nearly seven lengths as the odds-on choice in a two-turn maiden special weight event on July 26 with Peltroche aboard.
“Those first four starts she was still learning,” Collins said. “But she really started to improve that summer and she got her first win impressively. She’s been really good in every allowance race since then, and she was a good second in that Breeders’ Classics stakes.”
In fact, Skie’s Music hasn’t been worse than third since those early learning experiences. Now there’s one additional hurdle Collins hopes to clear.
“She’s eligible to all the stakes again this year,” Collins said. “I’d like to have her ready for that first one… She’s going to have plenty of chances to win one. I bred the mare back the next year, but she didn’t take. But now I’ve got her yearling full-brother on the ground.”
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