Any long time horse racing fan or handicapper certainly knows the ups and downs that come with this extraordinary game. But if the past 12 months could equate to a roller coaster, it would be the newest and biggest ride at Cedar Point!
First, let's start last August 2010 just a week after Personal Ensign and the announcement of Rachel Alexandra's retirement . At the time I had a hard time understanding why they didn't continue to point her to the Breeder's Cup Distaff (Ladies Classic). But after watching the 2010 Breeder's Cup, I began to see things more clearly. Rachel Alexandra probably could have won the Distaff or at least finished in the money. But, when I look through the eyes of her trainer and owner, how could they have really taken her to Churchill Downs that weekend and not run against Zenyatta. Clearly, she wasn't as the same Rachel we new a year before and that put her connections in a no win situation. If she ran in the Distaff, though she could win, they would be ridiculed for not running in the Classic in a match up with Zenyatta that the racing industry had been drooling over for a year. If they ran in the Classic, she was really outclassed at this point in her career and would probably finish well, but out of the money. If they retired her after the Personal Ensign then they would take flak for not running in either race. Her connections ultimately ended up retiring her after the Personal Ensign, which in hind site was probably the lesser of all evils. It was bitter sweet to see her retire, but I guess it always is!
Fast foward 3 months to the Breeders Cup Classic. In two full days at the Breeder's Cup we always see great racing, but two performances stood out. First was Goldikova powering past the field in her patented stretch run to win her third Breeders Cup. Not to mention the tears that came to your eyes watching her groom celebrate as she came down the stretch. Next came the powerful victory by Uncle Mo in the Breeders Cup Juvenile. When I saw his performance that day, I thought we had the chance to see something special the following year in the triple crown races.
The anticipation leading up to post time for the Breeders Cup Classic was intense. We have the likely male 3 year old champion, the likely older male champion and shoe-in older female champion all running in the Classic. And, one of those three would be named horse of the year. My wife and I were standing up in our living room trying to will Zenyatta to the finish line. Though she ran her heart out and showed what she was made of, Zenyatta needed a few more strides and came up just a nose short at the wire. That was probably the most thrilling race I have ever seen. We knew this was Zenyatta's last race and Blame's likely too, but I did not see this being Lookin At Lucky's last race. But just the next week his retirement was announced. Suddenly, with Blame, Lookin At Lucky and the derby winner Super Saver retired my excitement over the 2011 older male division had dwindled. But, I still had two horse in that division that excited me looking forward to 2011, First Dude and Paddy O'Prado.
As we turned a new year, there were three horses I was really excited about First Dude, Paddy O'Prado and Uncle Mo. Oh how things would change by August and there was a rivalry developing right in front of me that I had missed while being down over the retirement of so many horses after the Breeder's Cup. It would be a few months before I would catch on to the excitement.
Then came the San Felipe Stake at Santa Anita. When I opened the past performances Premier Pegasus just jumped off the page at me. I hadn't even kept up with him, but he just seem the best in this race. When he made his move on the far turn and then kicked away powerfully in the stretch to win by 7-3/4 lengths I was ecstatic. With that performance he instantly notched a top spot in my Kentucky Derby thoughts next to Uncle Mo. The week after the San Felipe I logged into the Daily Racing Form to check the racing news, only to read that Premier Pegasus had been injured and was out for the rest of the year. The roller coast headed down again at this point and then came the Wood Memorial.
Uncle Mo didn't seem his best in the Timely Writer, but nonetheless it was a win and his first race of the year. So, I forgave that one in my handicapping. And I thought he was back to his old self as he seemed to kick away from the field just off the turn in the Wood Memorial. Then Uncle Mo flattened as Toby's Corner came charging and Arthur's Tale squeezed by as well. Something didn't seem right and the roller coaster continued until the week of the Derby, when it was announced that Uncle Mo would be scratched due to an unknown illness at the time and Toby's Corner would not run due to an injury. Uncle Mo was later diagnosed with a rare liver disease and would be able to return to racing later in 2011. The roller coaster is now at the bottom of a steep hill.
Then came Kentucky Derby day 2011. With Uncle Mo, Premier Pegasus and Toby's Corner sidelined I didn't have a single horse that I was excited about. I handicapped the race and had Animal Kingdom in my second tier of horses, not good enough for the win, but certainly good enough to complete the exacta or trifecta. I should have listened to Bruno at Grade One Racing about Animal Kingdom's workout. Just when I thought Shackleford was going to kick away, Animal Kingdom come roaring down the middle of the track to win convincingly. With that performance I was an instant Animal Kingdom fan and I already had a ticket to the Preakness in Balitmore. On the same day as the Derby, First Dude won his second race in a row, the Grade 2 Alysheba, with his new style of running. One of the few horses I was exciting about from the 2010 Breeder's Cup Classic seemed to be climbing the ladder in the older male division. The roller coaster was climbing fast now.
On Preakness day we all know Animal Kingdom didn't quite have enough and lost by 1/2 a length to Shackleford. Nonetheless, I was proud of his effort because he had to work around some traffic on the turn and I thought he would be the best in the Belmont. But, I have to be honest the horse I was most excited about on Preakness day was Paddy O'Prado making his 4 year old debut on the Turf in the Dixie Stakes. Being a son of El Prado, the turf was his preferred surface and he seemed a shoe-in. He lived up to everything I expected making a strong move off the turn and through the stretch for the win. I drove home from Pimlico excited that I got to see him run and making plans to go to the Colonial Turf Cup to see him run again. Later that week I logged into the Daily Racing Form and there it was starring me in the face - Paddy O'Prado had been retired due to an injury. The roller coaster just made another sharp drop!
Next I focused on the the Belmont Stakes. I was excited about Animal Kingdom, I thought the distance suited him, Shackleford was not going to last the 1-1/2 mile distance and I didn't see another horse that had proven they were going to run better. Only moments after the gates opened did another jockey move his horse over on Animal Kingdom causing him to stumble and nearly throwing off John Velazquez. He lost 10-15 lengths due to the stumble and while John Velazquez was desperately trying to get his feet back in the irons. Though Animal Kingdom made a serious run at the leaders the best he could do that day was 6th. The next week I once again logged into the Daily Racing form, and you guessed it, Animal Kingdom was out for the year due to an injury sustained in the stumble at the beginning of the Belmont. The roller coaster is now doing a cork screw toward the ground.
On July 9th, First Dude, won another nailed biter as he made a powerful move in the stretch to get up by the smallest of margins in the Hollywood Gold Cup Handicap, a Grade 1 race. With this game effort I was excited about seeing him in the Breeder's Cup Classic. His new stalking running style fit and he had powered home in three straight wins. He had already proven he could run on the dirt and at this point I had him at the top as the horse to beat in the Classic. Anyone want to guess what happened next? First Dude's win in the Hollywood Gold Cup had sent the roller coaster heading up hill again, only to have it plummet a few days later when I read on the DRF website that he had been retired due to an injury. It took me a few days to get over the retirement of First Dude, I really liked this horse.
But as the summer moved on I began to hear more and more about the rivalry between Havre De Grace and Blind Luck. To be honest and to my own fault, I had not kept up with these two fillies. I only knew they had finished 2nd and 3rd behind Unrivaled Belle in the Breeder's Cup Distaff. But just a week after First Dude had won the Hollywood Gold Cup these two amazing fillies squared off in another match up in the Delaware Handicap. I had picked Blind Luck to win. Due to the distance I thought she held a very slight edge over Havre De Grace. As I watched these two beautiful fillies battle down the stretch in a duel that would rival some of the best stretch drives I seen, I was reminded of why I truly love this sport. Some times it's about simply watching these amazing creatures do exactly what God intended them to do and that is to run! While Blind Luck did nose out Havre De Grace and my bet won, I was less excited about that as I was these two horses moving forward toward the Breeder's Cup Races.
Along with several other horse that I am looking forward to watching, Winter Memories, Uncle Mo, Stay Thirsty and Shackleford to name a few, the roller coaster is climbing again. Horse racing is always up and down. From wins and loses, to retirement and injuries. I don't want to give the impression to anyone that I am not thoroughly enjoying horse racing in between these ups and downs, because that would be far from the truth. And, there are a lot of other horses that I keep up with, but for this blog I just focused on the ones that were the hardest to see retire or my major players for the year. Experiencing loses, retirements and injuries is part of horse racing and we fans have to learn to take it in stride just like losing a Pick 4 you thought was a sure thing. Because, just when you are down, you see a horse do something amazing, like Winter Memories exploding past the field in the last 1/16 of mile in the Garden City Stakes at Belmont Park. And it is that roller coaster ride that makes this game the greatest game in the world!
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