Jockey Eibar Coa won his first race of 2006 on New Year’s Day, piloting 9-5 shot La Baroness home in the fifth race. Nearly 12 months and 290 NYRA victories later, Coa is on the verge of joining a very select group of jockeys.

Since 1940, only Steve Cauthen, Angel Cordero Jr., and Mike Smith – each enshrined in the Hall of Fame – have won 300 or more races in New York in a single year. With nine racing days in 2006, simple math says that Coa, who rides the majority of every Aqueduct card, is 1-5 to join the club.

“To be honest, I really didn’t know I had almost 300 wins until I read the Daily Racing Form this morning,” Coa said. “It’s not something I had in mind or something that I planned. I’m very happy with what I’ve accomplished this year and I feel like I worked very hard.”

For the record, Cauthen won an unbelievable 433 races in 1977. Cordero surpassed the 300-mark twice, winning 340 in 1982 and 309 in 1983. Smith won 330 times in 1991 and 313 races in 1993.

As far Coa, this 35-year-old native of Venezuela is a workhorse. Whether it’s the dead of winter at Aqueduct or the hustle and bustle of Saratoga Springs in the summer, Coa approaches his profession with unbridled enthusiasm.

“He loves what he does and wants to be there,” said agent Matt Muzikar.

“He’s got no problems riding nine a day. I’ve made some mistakes and I’ve put him on some bad horses in the past and he’s never said one negative word to me. I’ve worked for a lot of jocks and he’s the best I’ve ever worked for.”

Coa won two Grade 1 races at Saratoga over the summer, the Test with Swap Fliparoo and Sword Dancer Invitational with Go Deputy. Through Sunday, he ranked fourth nationally in victories and seventh in purse money. Here at the Big A, Coa entered the racing week second in the jockey standings with

17 wins, one off Ramon Dominguez.

Naturally athletic, Coa won five judo championships before he took up riding in his homeland. On horseback, he is confident and fearless.

“He’s so smart,” Muzikar said. “He knows where he is at all times on the racetrack.”

Gulfstream Park does not open its premier winter meet until January 3rd, but Coa has already decided to spend the entire winter in New York. Of course, the chances of Coa landing a top three-year-old that could make the Kentucky Derby and spring classics are far greater in Florida. Coa, however, says the backbone to his yearlong success begins on Aqueduct’s inner dirt track in January and February.

“Spending last winter in New York is the reason I’ve got almost 300 wins,”

Coa said. “Yeah you miss out on some potential Derby horses, but you’re able to build up a good group of customers. Guys I won races for on the inner track were giving me business at Belmont and Saratoga.”

Unbeaten in two starts in the spring of 2005, the talented if fragile Half Ours gets back to the races this afternoon in the eighth, a $47,000 allowance / optional claimer at six furlongs. Since running for the last time on Kentucky Derby Day 2005 – an easy win in the Juvenile over five rivals – Half Ours has been outright bought by owner Aaron Jones for $6.1 million. Jones and Barry K. Schwartz originally bought the horse for $625,000 in a partnership that dissolved this fall.

Trained by Todd Pletcher, Half Ours won his debut at Keeneland going 4 ½ furlongs in April of 2005 by more than 10 lengths. A few weeks later, he won the aforementioned Juvenile at Churchill Downs.

After that, Hal Ours fractured a hind cannon bone that required surgery in late May of 2005. Half Ours was entered in a Gulfstream race last February, but scratched when the fracture opened up again.

As far as his recent works, Half Ours has been breezing every week or so with plenty of spunk at Belmont Park. Jockey John Velazquez has the call.