The Triple Crown Trail/Train Wreck

Normally the trail to the Triple Crown gives us exciting finishes in the top prep races run throughout the early portion of the winter/spring. This years renewal of the preps for the Triple Crown has done just the opposite.  Some say that this is the worst crop of 3 year olds since 2008 when Big Brown won the Derby from the 20 post, I would tend to agree that these colts are at least that mediocre, and one of the worst groups of 3 yr olds we’ve seen in quite some time. Some say run a filly in the Derby, their times are very similar, as a matter of fact R Heat Lightening ran her Oaks Prep a full second faster than Dialed In in the Florida Derby 24 hours later.  The banter for a filly to run in the Derby is legitimate, and two that I think would stand a fantastic chance of doing well are Zazu and Joyful Victory. Both are horses that relax and rate and would not find much trouble running past this group of Grade III 3 year olds.

Here are a few topics that really matter this time of year when it comes to dealing with those who should be considered as Contenders compared to Pretenders.


“Consider the times” – some people want to throw out times, especially when their favorite horse wins a race in a mediocre time or is just simply a slow horse, Dialed In falls into this category, the fact that Nick Zito is able to sell a dime store horse for a million dollar price to some on these blogs and horse racing fans in general gives indication that more and more are thinking with their hearts and not their heads. Closing the final 1/8th of a mile in almost 14 seconds took me off this horses band wagon, and well actually it should have knocked the wheels off the band wagon. Going forward some thought that Zito would crank the horse to get him ready for the Derby, if the 4f breeze in and uninspiring :49 gives you indication of being cranked, please feel free to lower his odds to 2-1 come post time. The objective handicapper would not take that chance.

“Consider the Conditioning”- humans make mistakes, but underestimating the movement forward of 3 year olds this time of year by Todd Pletcher (oh yeah an eclipse award winning trainer) and running his horse short in the Wood Memorial off a series of slow works that gave no indication of building a foundation, and then the quirky prep schedule that put Uncle MO on target to contest another 8.5f race impressively, well words can’t describe the disappointment of watching this horse struggle home the final ¼ mile in the Wood. The horse was short, that is all there was to it, when breaking the gates did he break like a horse with a GI issue, excuses of that nature don’t fly with me when dealing with horses that are raked with a fine tooth comb almost every day of their lives, can he bounce back, maybe, is that likely, absolutely not, his best bet is to look for 9f races down the line to try to garner 3 year old honors. Right now ArchArchArch leads in that category with at least 2 Graded stakes win.

“Consider the pedigree” The factor ran to his pedigree on Saturday at Oaklawn Park, breaking sharp but being out footed to the lead by a couple of horses that were better out of the gate, he was in trouble early, and he didn’t like taking dirt and he didn’t like have to rate with a hold on him, these things show up when a sprinter with the need to lead type running style has to take back for the first time, he resented other horses being beside and in front of him, when they hit the stretch he ranged up and then he spit the bit, not sure if that signals good things to come for this horse at a route of ground but I would tend to say no. What does he have, he does possess amazing speed that he can carry about a mile or so, and so leave him at that, let him take on Goldikova in the BC Mile, or maybe look at the Met Mile and other prestigious races. Be smart and take care of your horse, take a page from the connections of Turbulent Descent, they recognized that 9f was asking too much of their filly and took her back to sprints, there is nothing at all wrong with that. Some just have the Derby Fever and can’t leave well enough alone.

Lastly “Consider the Excuse or Excuses” There are plenty of them out there, what will you do when your horse loses. Find a vet that will validate (1) a small health concern, don’t step up to the plate and say in all honesty “I had him short today”, (2) he’s not cranked, that was the excuse for Dialed In running so slow in the Fl Derby, (3) Equipment Change, anyone ever heard of “If it aint broke don’t fix it” adding blinkers, removing blinkers, figure Eight, I mean what else would we need to do to see if we can’t get the horse to run faster. Resorting to these measures says that something isn’t right, but then when the horse resents it and throws in a clunker you want to go back to square 1, for what reason, I guess because you want a result like the one you received in the Gotham when a horse like Stay Thirsty wins by 4 lengths. “Displaced Palate” – probably legitimate, but you never know, saving face with that one in terms of The Factor is certainly not needed, he’s respected and always will be so hopefully they will get that fixed and Garcia will not be “Grabbing a hold of the horse” in the future so he can run his race. (4) Injuries have taken their toll on the Graded Earnings list. Tapizar, Clubhouse Ride, Permier Pegasus, Author’s Tale, boys of Tosconova , there are others I may be missing but these things happen, for some reason over half mentioned on this list come from California, why is that, why can’t they get their track right to stop the injuries. Hopefully there will be a fix soon, but the Derby Trail is affected by defections like this and its sad to see for these connections.

The Derby being wide open is an understatement, never before have we seen it like this, with such a group of inconsistent, sometimes slow horses, hopefully someone will emerge, and I see that horse being Nehro. Sleep on him if you want. He wants 10f and will get it on May 7. You heard it here.

My Vote For Horse of the Year - BLAME

Who deserves Horse of the Year?

There are 3 horses that would be in the discussion for Horse of the year in my view.
Goldikova 5 out of 6 wins in 2010 all Group 1 and mostly against males BC Mile winner
Uncle Mo - 3 for 3, 2 Grade 1 wins and BC Juvi winner
Blame - 4 out of 5 wins, 3 Grade 1 and Breeders Cup Classic winner

What words do you use to describe Goldikova - Magnificent, Awesome, incredible, stunning, unbelievable, wonderful, astounding, awe-inspiring, brilliant, excellent, fabulous, fantastic, outstanding, phenomenal, remarkable, sensational, stupendous, super, superb, terrific, tremendous, wondrous.
In an article written by Alan Shuback, in the drf, he goes on to list her 2010 accomplishments, in her four Group 1 victories in Europe and her Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Mile triumph, Goldikova was beating 16 winners of 37 Group or Grade 1 races. The overall Group/Grade 1 record of her competition in those five races is 157-37-25-19. In the Mile, she was beating four winners of nine Group or Grade 1 races at a mile on turf. When you think about what it means for a filly to continuously face male after male and defeat them handily without ever really being all out in her races that shows the type of athlete that Goldikova is, she is simply AMAZING.
The fact that she only raced once in the U.S. is considered reason to not give her consideration for Horse of the Year, but if Conduit can come over and win the BC Turf and get an award in 2008 at the eclipse then Goldikova should get consideration also.
Uncle Mo is a most appealing choice for Horse of the Year consideration due to being one of the few undefeated horses in training right now after facing stiff competition throughout the year, winning the Champagne and the Breeders Cup Classic is stuff of legends as a two year old, both prestigious races and at the top of the heap for 2 year old colts. Facing and defeating 5 grade 1 winners in the BC Juvi validates this horse as a very impressive colt and he dispatched of these colts with ease. He is clearly a viable candidate for HOY, but unfortunately will not get a large number of votes.
Blame is the most likely winner of the Horse of the Year award, by merit of wins in the Grade 1 Stephen Foster, the Whitney Handicap and a runner up finish in the Jockey Club Gold Cup and winning the Breeders cup Classic. His 4 for 5 record and winning of 3 Grade 1 races in Open company and at the Highest possible level of horse racing is an amazing record when facing horses like Quality Road, Looking at Lucky, Haynesfield and Paddy O'Prado. Blame was place in difficult spot after difficult spot in 2010 and took on all comers and kept winning Grade 1 races that actually meant something on the National Scene. His record stands for itself and he should win the Horse of the Year award hands down without any issue. Without any emotion being added due to the fact that one horse is more popular Blame will be an easy winner of the Award, but unfortunately each voter will have his or her own view of the award. Winning the biggest race of the year is important as the connections of a number of horses view the Breeders Cup as the beginning and the end of the racing season and therefore winning the Classic is the highest honor other than winning the Kentucky Derby. . The horses that were all considered in contention for Horse of the Year did nothing to separate themselves from the pack up until Nov 6th when Blame hit the wire first in the Breeders Cup Classic. Some argued that winning insignificant races in 2009 up until the Breeders Cup would guarantee a horse the Horse of the Year vote, unfortunately that was an incorrect view and thankfully the voters voted for the horse that has the most ambitious year of racing and won the most important races in the calendar year. In 2010 how do you not award a horse that won significant races all year long, at Churchill and Saratoga and then the Breeders Cup Classic and he doesn’t deserve Horse of the Year. That’s called hypocritical and thankfully those with votes have time to take a look at the full year and be objective about the vote.
When the connections of one horse state that they are not going to “chase Horse of the year” and show it by an uninspiring, unimaginative campaign then why on earth would anyone want to “Give” Horse of the year to the connections that make such a statement. Then to do an about face in October and beg for the award after doing nothing all year long to garner the award seems very unsportsmanlike. But that’s what you can expect from those that put all their eggs in one basket and then lose. Again taking all things into account you can easily see that Blame alone stands out as Horse of the Year.

Rachel, The Breeders Cup, Zenyatta and East & West Coast Peace

We only have a month left in this racing season that means something, yes the clark is later in the year but who really cares about that. Some people are objective and real lovers of the game of horse racing and the athletes that provide us the thrills that we see all year long and certainly what we'll see in November.
I for one will be there in my Rachel gear, but rooting on all of my Favs, Looking at Lucky, Quality Road, Blame, and yes although she's not my absolute fav horse, Zenyatta, because they will be doing what they love most and thats running. If Zenyatta wins there will be debate, if she loses there will be debate. I have been sucked into the constant bickering and going back and forth about the two great horses, both with different owners, both campaigned quite differently, but the major problem is that they never met, which honestly bodes well or better for both sides, no one has the upper hand in an one on one meeting.
Some say Raitch would have won, Some say Zen would have won, no one knows that.
We do know for a fact Raitch is the 2009 HOY, we know that Zen is undefeated, we know they both have beaten the best males of their generation that were running at some point.
What we need to do now is take a step back, be objective about one thing, thats the next few weeks and hoping that everyone is able to come out of their works and their travels to Kentucky Safely. All the rest of it doesnt matter at this point. When they turn for home I will root for my favs, but I'll also root for Zen to do something historic, because I like to be present during history making events. Thats why i was there for the Woodward, because that was history, I will be there on BC day both days to witness the coronation of a worthy BC Classic winner, not on a false questioned surface that has been down for 5 years or less, but on a legit surface that plays to all of the horses strengths, QR's Speed and pure brilliance, Looking at Lucky's pure grit determination and brilliance, Blames strong closing kick and brilliance, and Zen's even stronger closing kick and Brilliance from probably even further back.
Nothing that happens now or happened this year could change the love and admiration that I feel towards Rachel Alexandra, Nothing that can or does happen can change the respect that I have and we should all have towards the undefeated record of Zenyatta, who has defeated every horse that her connections has entered her to run against. Could that route have been different, yes certainly, thats not for debate because no one but Jerry Moss wrote that 60,000 check to pay for a mare that has skin issues that no one else seemed to want.
Loving horse racing is about the horse, not who is right and wrong, or better at handicapping, no one cares about that because no one affects the amount of money going in the others bank accts, but what we can agree on is that the BC is going to be an exciting event, one that will be remembered for a very long time for a strong field of competitors from the first gate break to the hitting of the wire in the Classic. There will be some history made, some horses going for history and some horses looking to make a name. Instead of bickering and arguing and making up stories and scenerios, lets now focus on the positives, Zen still running, Blame still running, QR and L@L still running, Goldikova coming, and possibly Work Force, lets embrace these things as a horse racing world and forget the East Coast West Coast battles and wars for a while and enjoy our favs, root for them and be respectful of horse, connections and ever horse racing lover, and try to find a way to enjoy and relish every moment that we have left in 2010, right around the corner we'll have a major lull with No grade 1 races or anything of mention going on.
I hope we can find a way to turn the page and go forward.
Just some things to ponder.

Goldikova Loses, Yet more impressive than "ANY" Zenyatta Win

In all seriousness, as a true fan of horse racing, and a fan of watching a true champion give effort in a race, having to watch Goldikova lose her race today at Deauville was very conflicting. You never want to see a champion lose a race, but when that champion faces the best there is to offer after running in a supremely impressive and competitive campaign thus far, you have to smile and think to yourself, “This is what defines a Champion race horse”, not a race mare, but a race horse.

Goldikova came into this race on August 15th, with a pretty quick turnaround from her last race which she ran on August 1st. Fact is Goldikova was up against it today, and I am sure this caused her connections to think twice about running, but when you are confident in your charge, in the fact that she is a champion proven over and over again there was no doubt that she would represent herself well. In this race she was up against it on a number of different accounts, the going was softer than she prefers, one of her competitors was very fresh, and she was coming back off less than 2 weeks rest. All of these things makes her performance so spectacular, hitting the top of the stretch Goldikova’s normal acceleration didn’t show up in all its regular routine glory, she quickened but it just wasn’t the Goldi we were or are used to, Makfi & Paco Boy both went by the mare, who decided at that time to really show her championship resolve, beaten and with every right to slow down, what did Goldi do, she quickened again, made up ground on Paco Boy and ran a fabulous final furlong to nab 2nd place.Yes Makfi was the best horse on the day, the connections made no excuses, as classy connections don’t, but although disappointed, Goldikova fans have even more reason to love this mare ever more.

Watching her get passed in the stretch is not something that many of us are accustomed to seeing, a normal horse, even a very good horse would usually take that last 1/8th of a mile easy, but Goldikova dug deep and put forth the effort needed to get her second place finish. This is what makes and defines a champion, facing a number of Group 1 or Grade 1 winners, and giving her “ALL” in a race defines what a champion race horse is. Her connections don’t duck competition and place her in filly and mare events. They don’t take on horses that previously ran in the optional claimer ranks, grade III allowance races, to be assured of an easy win “with her ears pricked” this is not what her connections want to see as they are true sports man, they help to define what championship horse racing is.Sadly on our west coast we have a horse that is undefeated with plenty of *** by the name of that horse, plenty of debate about even how “good” the horse really is considering the path of the absolute least resistance that her connections are consistently pointing her to. This mare has not in her career faced the adversity that Goldi faced in just this one race. Never ran on a off surface that she didn’t prefer due to weather conditions, never faced a competitor at the Grade 1 level that had an obvious advantage of being a fresher horse, and NEVER EVER would this mare be run back in less than a 30 day span.What are we to take away from this. There is a vast difference in the two mares and how they are campaigned? One horse is a “Proven” consistently beating grade or group 1 horses in grade or group 1 company or competition. Never ducking and never scratching due to rain, a horse that doesn’t run to the filly and mare division to hide from competition in the majority of her races. These traits can be attributed to the connections yes. But there is a huge difference in what the fans of these two mares can say.

For Goldi, there should be no doubters or people questioning her campaign, for the other mare, the questions will persist basically forever. How good could she have been if tested during the season of racing alas just 1 race? That does not a champion prove, imagine Goldi taking on fillies and mares all year long and coming over and winning the BC, people would say it’s unfair due to the fact that she was so much better than her division and should have stepped up. Does this sound familiar, no hatred towards either horse or any horse for that matter, but the connections are who cripple the horse, I am sure if they could speak they would say, let me run against the best, the *** are not what they would want to see by their race names, they are thoroughbreds and competitive. It’s very sad that an undefeated record could ruin the state of competition during the season of horse racing and try to elevate the BC to status that is undeserving.Let me end by saying that I applaud the connections of Rail Trip, Looking At Lucky, Blind Luck and others that have come East to run in races that are nationally significant. Kudos to the connections of Quality Road and Blame, Devil May Care and Blind Luck Again. But also double kudos to the connections of Blind Luck, shipping her for the 4th time this year for the Alabama to have a face off of the monsters in the 3yr old filly and mare division. Coming to Arkansas, Kentucky, Delaware and now New York, shows you that any excuses that other connections make are futile. Excuses like the horse doesn’t ship well, the Rocky Mountains are too high, the horse lost weight last time he or she shipped, all of these are embarrassing.
All horses’ ship and all horses are affected in one way or another, some more than others, therefore you allow the horse to acclimate to these issues. First and foremost though it helps to not be so conservative with the horse in the first place to never ship the horse out of its home state for the first two years of its career. Again it is sad that the horse will always be questioned no matter the results of the BCClassic. Another year of soft cream puff competition to come into 1 race the freshest is something that we call “Cowardice”. I implore the connections in the industry going forward to keep the BC in perspective, yes it’s wonderful to win the big race but there are other big races that take place at the Grade 1 level each year nationally.

Saying farewell to an historic 2009, and Hello to what could be in 2010

Saying farewell to an historic 2009, and Hello to what could be in 2010

By: Wesley D. White

What could you say about the year in horse racing that we have seen in 2009, from top to bottom, from the beginning to the end, we have seen some performances and some yearlong achievements that are second to none in this truly magnificent sport. First let me start by saying that in this post I will not weigh in on the HOY debate, as I do not have a vote and even if I did have a vote it would be a vote that I made privately due to the incredibly intense nature of the HOY voting between the horses that are in contention for this honor. Next let me say to the connections of the winner of the 2009 Breeders’ Cup Classic and the Breeders Cup Ladies Classic, congratulations are in order, the owners stepped up on this championship day venue and placed their horses in ambitious spots and were rewarded with the types of races that will not soon be forgotten. Special kudos goes out to Zenyatta and Life is Sweet for putting on an absolute show, and putting their names down in the history books. Never to be forgotten are the trainer, John Sheriffs, and the Jockeys, Mike Smith & Garrett Gomez for great rides on both of these mares. The classic victory by Zenyatta is one for the ages, to beat the boys the way she did it was a remarkable feat and it really showed how classy a lady she really is.

Next let me say to the connections of Rachel Alexandra her owner, trainer and jockey. Thank You, Thank you for again for the 3^rd year in a row allowing your horse to prove its mettle on the track and not just once, but over and over again. In this age of paper races and imaginary fictitious races, I have to say that I am utterly impressed with the way that Mr. Jess Jackson handles his horses. He doesn’t allow his horses to be handled with the proverbial kid gloves, Mr. Jackson could have plotted out a course similar to that of other fillies and mares that run, and placed Rachel strategically in races like the Mother Goose, Alabama, Coaching Club American, Personal Ensign and then the Beldame, but that would have been boring, it would have been nice to see that she could beat the same fillies over and over and over again, but unless one of the fillies were to jump up and beat her and the type of rivalry developed that we had between Proud Spell and Music Note, Jackson would have been criticized for continuing to run in the same boring races throughout the year. Instead he took chances, he took chances that have never been taken before, and had the sense to realize that due to the fact that the filly had been running since February it was important to stop on her. Looking back at the last 12 months for Rachel running 10 times during that time took its toll and would have taken its toll on any horse male or female. I understand that some feel that he should have just continued to run her into the ground by going to the Breeders Cup. But the truth is extending her season another 2 months would have most likely been detrimental to her health. I enjoy that Jess Jackson challenges his horses I can only compare his sporting actions to those of the Europeans who run their fillies and mares against top tier male competition all year long. This is not seen in the U.S. as the many grade 1 races out there allow for the connections to pick and choose the easiest spots or the path of least resistance. Sad but true, and then at the end of the year there is a big push and marketing scheme by the connections and race tracks to lobby for these Eclipse votes. That does not impress and unfortunately leads to an award becoming political. So to the connections out there with competitive horses, please follow the lead of people like Rick Porter the Owner of Fox Hill Farm, Jess Jackson of Stone Street Stables, these men realize that a champion is made on the track, all year long, not by means of a piece of paper or an award.

Let’s not forget the other spectacular performances that we saw that day from Goldikova, Conduit, and Informed decision. First when you think about Goldikova and how this mare is being compared to Miesque, it really gives you an indication that she is something truly special, the way that she wins her races is something that leaves you astonished, because her closing kick is something we’ve not seen in quite a while, now I say that keeping in mind that I am not taking Zarkava into consideration. The reason well because we didn’t see Zarkava up front and personal; in my humble opinion, and I’ll only weigh in on this because for some reason in the horse racing circles, every horse that comes along and is undefeated or very impressive has to be compared to horses of the past. The problem I have with that is with regards to the fact that the respect that Zarkava was given was short lived. The very next year across the pond a colt by the name of Sea of Stars comes along and wins a number of Group 1 events and all of a sudden he is compared to the best, not the best in the last couple of years but the best ever. Now I watched both of these horses win the event, both Zarkava and Sea of Stars, but there is one difference, Zarkava brought such electricity to the race that I was up early watching the running of the race, bright eyed and bushy tailed, this year not so much, I watched the race hours later on YouTube. A filly running by colts from the back of the pack, a filly who faltered in the gate and broke extremely slow, a filly who because of the break was shuffled back to last at the start of the race and was pinned down on the rail the whole time and had to make an amazing run within the last 2 furlongs to win the race comfortably. There is not any amount of words that you can use to describe Zarkava, I for one wish that the Aga Khan would send her to Santa Anita last year. The problem again though is that the way that the Breeders Cup is view by the Europeans, they view the B.C. as second rate or lower tier. They feel that American horses do not deserve to be on the same turf as their horses. And they prove that every year by skipping the Breeders Cup.

Going back and considering the number of stellar performances by the fillies and mares that raced this year, what can you say? Rachel Alexandra, Ventura, Zenyatta, Goldikova, and now to hear that Vodka beat the boys in the Japan Cup. It really shows that there are some outstanding females out there showing they are champion caliber on the track. The connections again are to be applauded for allowing these ladies to do what they love to do most. Whenever these connections have stepped up and thought outside the box they did so with fillies and mares that were able to handle the stresses of facing males but doing so without putting them in races that might take too much out of them. No one wants to see a repeat of the Rags to Riches saga. Her performance against Curlin on Belmont day in 07 was magnificent, but if Pletcher could go back and see what that 12 furlongs took out of Rags to Riches and the rest of her career, maybe, just maybe he makes a different decision about that race. You do not want to put a horse’s career on the line to win or run in one race.

Let’s not forget the performances of the Birds, both Mine that Bird and Summer Bird did some things that will not be soon forgotten. Mine that Bird skimming the rail with Calvin Borel up is one of the most exciting memories to take from 2009. Going into the race no one even knew of the horse, but afterwards he would always be known as a champion, a champion of the Kentucky Derby, a gutsy little colt that reminds me so much of Afleet Alex by stature the way that he accelerates in the final 3/16^th of the race is truly amazing. There were some questionable decisions made by the connections but we all know that Chip Woolley and the owners were doing so in the best interest of the horse. Here’s hoping for a wonderful 2010 season for this little guy. As for Summer Bird he is a big, robust son of Birdstone who has all the talent in the world, when you think about how this guy was ridden early in his career coming from way off the pace because that’s what his father did, and then later in the year being so much closer to the pace, that is extraordinary. You don’t see changes made like that often and certainly not mid season, after a 3^rd place finish in the Arkansas Derby, Summer Bird went on the Win the Belmont, Travers & Jockey Club Gold Cup. This is a stellar resume and I would be quick to say that in many other years Summer Bird and his connections could be looking at HOY honors. Incredibly this year he has been trumped the Ladies. I was saddened to hear that Summer Bird injured himself while training for the Japan Dirt Cup, there are a lot of ways to view this injury, it is possible that he may have injured himself during the running of the Breeders Cup and the injury didn’t show up until now, he may be injured due to a long campaign and it is just now taking its toll. Most important though is that he is able to have successful surgery and enjoy a normal life, I know the owners are stating that he might run again, but that is not going to be the focus going forward. The focus going forward should be on him being able to be comfortable and rehabbing for whatever lies in front of him.

We are led into 2010 with so much anticipation and so much eagerness to get things started. We would be wise to temper our keenness due to the fact that it is possible we may never see another year like 2009 again. The Kentucky Derby and Triple Crown hype has already begun, with horses like Buddy’s Saint, and Super Saver winning big races, Vale of York and Looking at Lucky and of course one of my favorites Dublin. This is one intriguing horse going forward to 2010, while at Saratoga for the Woodward I caught up with D.Wayne Lukas, we talked for a few moments about Dublin and where he intended to winter the horse, and it looks as if he will be coming through Arkansas to achieve his major goals. I would anticipate a run in the Southwest, the Rebel and the Arkansas Derby is all goes well with him. He seems to be a big horse that has not quite grown into his body, I believe the next time we see this big fella he will be more filled out, and much bigger.

The Oaklawn meet is coming upon us pretty quickly and with the quality of horses that are wintering at Fairgrounds those of us close to Oaklawn feel that there could be some incredibly important graded stakes races run during the 56 day meet. The Apple Blossom could potentially include a horse that we all want to know where she will run next, Rachel Alexandra. With Jess Jackson doing the smart thing an allowing her plenty of time off to rest, she is being pointed towards a return in March or April of ’10 and that could possibly mean a run at the Grade 1 Apple Blossom. With the hopeful return of Summer Bird who could run in the Oaklawn Handicap, that leaves the imagination running wild about what we could potentially see that day at Oaklawn, maybe a record crowd of upwards of 80,000. I am excited about the prospect, and to hear that the Arkansas Derby has been upgraded like it rightfully should have been years ago to Grade 1 status.

2009 will go down as one of the most exciting and thrilling years in the history of horse racing, but we need to move forward and look optimistically to 2010 to solidify the game of horse racing, it needs new fans and a new following to be able to get back to the status it had in its glory years. We are now in the age of what have you done for me lately, and what we have lately is an impressive product, one that the ntra and other bodies needs to make sure stays in a positive light. The safety of the equine athletes is most important, the measures being taken to verify that the tracks are in the best shape possible are important in this regard. I will say this Horse Racing is here to stay, the product that is being put out on the track right now is impressive and people are coming back to the sport, we need to keep it that way and continue to enjoy the beauty of these magnificent creatures and the joy they bring to us as they do what they love to do most and that’s “Run like the wind”.

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