Showing posts with label horse racing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label horse racing. Show all posts
Saturday, 7 November 2009
Horse of the Year 2009
This is her: Zenyatta - unbeaten and untouchable.
Her biggest competition, Rachel Alexander, wasn't on the track this weekend. Let the voting begin.
What a year!
Sunday, 17 May 2009
She DID it!!
Kicked the boys' asses, atta girl.
Rachel Alexandra has beaten the best fillies and colts of her generation, with class and style. The favorite won the Preakness, itself a rarity.
She breaks from the far left hole, #13. Her jockey (I will remind you, gentle reader, he is a native New Mexican) is easy to find, he's in canary-yellow silks. Pretty much wire to wire, she ran a great race.
The jockey, Calvin Borel, is the first in history to walk away from the Derby winner to ride a different horse against the Derby winner in the Preakness. Would the race have turned out differently if he'd stayed on Mine That Bird? Possibly, but that's irrelevant. What's done is done, and Rachel Alexandra proved she's one of the best.
The second place horse was Mine That Bird (also of New Mexico), and given his finish in the Preakness is officially my pick for the Belmont. He has the skill and stamina for that race, and I hope to see a good one. Now we have to wait three weeks to see it.
One of the things I love about horse racing - and eventing, and herding trials and coursing and agility and many other dog sports - is there's no division of sexes. Men and women compete against the course and each other with dogs and bitches, intact and altered, take on all comers. May the best team win, the best dog on the day, and move us to try harder to do better next time.
Amen.
Rachel Alexandra has beaten the best fillies and colts of her generation, with class and style. The favorite won the Preakness, itself a rarity.
She breaks from the far left hole, #13. Her jockey (I will remind you, gentle reader, he is a native New Mexican) is easy to find, he's in canary-yellow silks. Pretty much wire to wire, she ran a great race.
The jockey, Calvin Borel, is the first in history to walk away from the Derby winner to ride a different horse against the Derby winner in the Preakness. Would the race have turned out differently if he'd stayed on Mine That Bird? Possibly, but that's irrelevant. What's done is done, and Rachel Alexandra proved she's one of the best.
The second place horse was Mine That Bird (also of New Mexico), and given his finish in the Preakness is officially my pick for the Belmont. He has the skill and stamina for that race, and I hope to see a good one. Now we have to wait three weeks to see it.
One of the things I love about horse racing - and eventing, and herding trials and coursing and agility and many other dog sports - is there's no division of sexes. Men and women compete against the course and each other with dogs and bitches, intact and altered, take on all comers. May the best team win, the best dog on the day, and move us to try harder to do better next time.
Amen.
Thursday, 14 May 2009
Go, girl
Saturday's Preakness is a can't-lose proposition for me.
If the Kentucky Derby winner, Mine That Bird, does well, it proves what we in New Mexico already knew - some damn fine running horses here. We have the richest purse in racing, and some of the toughest and fastest horses. Personally, I think Mine That Bird is better suited to the Belmont, the horse has endurance to spare. In the Preakness he'll be ridden by a jockey from Roswell.
If the Kentucky Oaks winner, Rachel Alexander, beats the boys - look at her easy head motion and massive hindquarters on the far turn - and that's possible, she's a genuine contender. She has untapped speed, which is exactly what is needed in the Preakness. And Calvin Borel will be aboard - gotta root for him!
I still flinch at Ruffian's memory; if Rachel Alexander does well, it will be seen by some as redemption for last year's tragedy.
I'm just looking forward to a great race.
If the Kentucky Derby winner, Mine That Bird, does well, it proves what we in New Mexico already knew - some damn fine running horses here. We have the richest purse in racing, and some of the toughest and fastest horses. Personally, I think Mine That Bird is better suited to the Belmont, the horse has endurance to spare. In the Preakness he'll be ridden by a jockey from Roswell.
If the Kentucky Oaks winner, Rachel Alexander, beats the boys - look at her easy head motion and massive hindquarters on the far turn - and that's possible, she's a genuine contender. She has untapped speed, which is exactly what is needed in the Preakness. And Calvin Borel will be aboard - gotta root for him!
I still flinch at Ruffian's memory; if Rachel Alexander does well, it will be seen by some as redemption for last year's tragedy.
I'm just looking forward to a great race.
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