Barbaro Updates: 990

Posted January 25, 2010

updates are now here.

Update 5901: More frigid weather at Fair Hill. The tracks were closed for training, but I went in and shedrowed four for Michael Pino. A straightforward morning, all bundled up.

Rachel Alexandra got back to work this morning with a very easy half mile breeze in 52.

Yesterday we learned about new slaughter rules for horses in Canada. When they come in to place it will mean essentially quarantining slaughter-bound horses for 6 months, which will add considerable costs to the slaughter system. Also of note are the medications that are banned from any horses that are slaughtered regardless of when those medications are given. These include bute, which is of course used at one point or another with pretty much every horse. Compliance seems to be a key issue: Horse slaughter rules changing in Canada .

Update 5900: Only two ridden this morning for me at Fair Hill. And that was fine by me, another frigid morning. Both just jogged in the shedrow.

Last night was Sovereign Awards night in Canada. The Canadian equivalent to the Eclipse Awards. I was excited to see Tribal Belle win the female sprint division. I rode her a few times, but not in 2009, in 2008: Champs Elysees wins Sovereign award.

Another light weekend for graded stakes racing: WEEKEND STAKES: WHERE TO WATCH brought to you by KBC Horse Supplies.

Penn National has asked the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission to investigate Gill: PENN NATIONAL REQUESTS INVESTIGATION INTO MICHAEL GILL.

Update 5899: It was brutally cold this morning at Fair Hill. 18F with a wind. I rode three, and was very thankful to be done when I was finished. All mine went nicely, not that I would have been able to do a whole lot if they decided not to go well!

Dubai's racing season opened yesterday, and it is a new era with their new Tapeta surface: Gloria de Campeao grabs glory in Meydan opener.

Things are ongoing with Michael Gill. The good thing about the era of internet and social media, this situation just won't easily be brushed away. Kind of like the Ernie Paragallo situation. Two people that horse racing does not need.

January 29, on this morning three years ago Barbaro was euthanized.

And please keep calling.

Update 5898: I have ridden four so far this morning at Fair Hill. I am now waiting on one more to work, we are waiting for the dirt track to open. Hopefully soon, but thankfully Michael Pino has a computer inn his barn office. So far my four horses went nicely. This included one worker on the Tapeta. And our blacksmith came again this morning, bringing with him his usual companions, Corky and Cali.

The Gill saga continues: GILL THREATENS TO SUE THE PAULICK REPORT.

And please keep calling.

Update 5897: Five ridden for Michael Pino this morning at Fair Hill. And it was a chilly morning too, but at least the sun was out. All mine went nicely.

Maggi Moss speaks out regarding the Michael Gill saga: MAGGI TO MIKE: 'PLEASE GET OUT OF RACING'. Maggi has been very helpful in retiring horses and really loves our sport. She also happens to own my favorite horse, Salty!

Yesterday I was in DC for a hearing regarding the horse slaughter issue: Members of Congress, Celebrities, The HSUS Speak Out Against Horse Slaughter and Highlight Need to Protect Wild Horses. Of course it also meant I got to hang out with beatiful people: Kelly Carlson. Anyway, it was a good event I think, and hopefully we can start to pick up some momentum in Washington.

Steve Haskin takes a very early look at the Derby picture and focuses on two trainers, Baffert and Pletcher. Lentenor also gets a mention after his terrific maiden score last week: Kentucky Derby Trail: Battle Stations!.

And please keep calling.

Update 5896: Superfecta here, with your regular weekly update.

Here at Superfecta HQ, we've been busily working away on our redesign; things are finally (more or less) done - we hope you enjoy the new look and feel. If you had any individual posts bookmarked, many will forward to the new site, but a few will get stuck partway through - just hit the search box to track the errant ones down (and I'll spare you my talk on the effect moving from Blogger to WordPress has on linking and SEO). And please check to ensure that 'blogspot' is absent from any links you may have - we're just superfectablog.com.

With that out of the way, we can review the weekend's events: most notably, Winslow Homer went from a slightly-under-the-radar buzz horse to an official buzz horse in his Holy Bull victory. Favored Jackson Bend certainly did not harm his reputation in a second-place finish, however, and the two will likely meet again in the Fountain of Youth. I remain a bit hesitant about Winslow Homer, however, since both his sire and dam seemed to peak early - he may yet prove to be one of those precocious colts we don't hear from again after March of his 3-year-old year - but I'm willing to wait to see how things pan out. If you are not already keeping track of Derby preps with Raceday 360's handy spreadsheet, it's time to start - for those who like numbers at this time of year, it's worth noting that A Little Warm is the only colt to post a triple-digit Beyer in a Derby prep so far - but we're a long way from May.

Things went well on the comeback front: Friesan Fire and General Quarters finished one-two in the Louisiana Handicap - both 2009 Derby trail graduates proved their quality this time, finishing a long way in front of third-place finisher Good and Lucky. It's encouraging to see both of them back in professional style, since we just lost Papa Clem to retirement (via an ankle injury) after his own comeback win. While I cannot see either one offering a serious challenge to Rachel Alexandra or Zenyatta at this point, both should continue to mature into grownup racehorses of quality - and they could be quite exciting to watch by the time summer rolls around. In the meantime, we should see Quality Road in the Donn - we'll have more on that as the race approaches.

On the ownership side of the game, there are a few odd stories kicking around - make of them what you will!

Update 5895: This week's Facebook Group e-mail: Fair Hill, Justin Shepherd, Ramon Dominguez, Lentenor, Johnny Velasquez, La Ville Rouge, Michael Gill, ABR Horse Slaughter contest, River Downs, Chad Moore.

More Michael Gill coverage:

Penn jockeys: Gill horses a safety risk
Penn Temporarily Bans Horses Owned by Gill
Jockeys focus on owner Gill after Penn National breakdowns

I am now off to Fair Hill to get on a couple of horses for Michael Pino, and then to Washinngton DC to talk about the horse slaughter topic.

Update 5894: I shedrowed three horses this morning for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. It was a warm morning, but we are getting plenty of rain. A very straightforward morning's work.

Saturday night, jockeys at Penn National refused to ride the sixth race unless a horse owned by Eclipse Award winning owner Michael Gill was scratched. More here: GILL CENTER OF CONTROVERSY AGAIN.

And please keep calling.

Posted by Alex at 2:14 PM | Comments (256)

Barbaro Updates: 989

Posted January 11, 2010

updates are now here.

Update 5893: I went in this morning to ride four horses at Fair Hill. This was my first Sunday working since I left Canada. Oh well, the extra cash will come in handy. All my four went nicely. After I was done I caught up with Kathee Rengert and interviewed her for my book. Some very interesting insights, Kathee helped with the purchase of La Ville Rouge a few years ago.

Friesan Fire, who was favorite for last year's Kentucky Derby, got back to winning ways on a racetrack he appears to love: No Catching Friesan Fire in Louisiana 'Cap.

In the 3yo division for this year, Winslow Homer won the Holy Bull (Winslow Homer a Thing of Beauty in Holy Bull) and Ron the Greek won the Lecomte (Well-Traveled Ron the Greek Captures Lecomte.)

Update 5892: I rode five this morning at Fair Hill for Michael Pino. Bright sunshine, but it was chilly. All my horses went nicely. After I was finished I had breakfast with Carolyn, an FOB from Baltimore who has a horse in training with Tim. We had some fun discussions.

Here are the major races this weekend, although like recent weeks racing is definitely not yet gearing up: WEEKEND STAKES: WHERE TO WATCH brought to you by KBC Horse Supplies.

2009 Arkansas Derby winner Papa Clem, who made a winning return to the races last weekend, has now been retired due to an ankle injury: Papa Clem retired with ankle injury.

Update 5891: I rode three this morning at Fair Hill for Michael Pino. It felt a little chillier early, with a damp wind. All mine went nicely for a straightforward start to the day.

A nice article on the following of Lentenor: Lentenor's lineage draws a crowd. We did learn, yesterday, the sad news that La Ville Rouge aborted her filly foal on December 24 of last year.

Today I plan to interview Mike Jensen, who covered the Barbaro story for the Philadelphia Inquirer, and received an Eclipse Award for his coverage. Should be a fun interview for my book. Yesterday I spoke to artist Fred Stone.

There is progress in the House, please keep calling.

Update 5890: Four ridden today for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. Chilly start, but bright sunshine made riding out quite pleasant. Jockey Justin Shepherd stopped by the barn and worked a horse for us. And here is a picture of our shedrow forman: Mariann Debreczeni.

As we ramp up our efforts for 2010 to end horse slaughter I am running our ABR YouTube horse slaughter contest again: YouTube Horse Slaughter Contest. Please consider participating by putting together a short video, the deadline for participation is March 19, the prize remains $1,000. Here is the first entrant:

Freedom Fight (Saving Our Horses From Slaughter).

Of course the big news of yesterday was the very impressive win for Barbaro's brother Lentenor. You can watch the replay here: Matz: 'Naturally, With a Horse Like This There Are Thoughts of a Triple Crown Race' After Lenny's Win.

There is progress in the House, please keep calling.

Update 5889: Lentenor romped in his turf race this afternoon. Second down the backside to a longshot, Lentenor waited until other horses began to surround him. Then Velasquez asked him for run coming off the turn and it was all over, quickly.

Update 5888: Three ridden this morning at Fair Hill. Chilly start to the day but bright sunshine, so not too bad. All my horses went nicely.

Lentenor makes his third start this afternoon, and his first start of the year as a 3yo. He runs in the 9th race at Gulfstream and may well be the favorite: 9th race at Gulfstream.

And please keep calling.

Update 5887: Superfecta here, with your regular weekly update - Eclipse Awards edition.

Last night, they handed out a few awards for horse racing - you may have heard a bit about it.

2-year-old male: Lookin at Lucky
As per usual with the juvenile awards, there was no surprise here. His three G1 wins sealed the deal, and he looks to improve this year. We'll soon find out if he likes real dirt, but trainer Bob Baffert seems quite happy with things thus far.

2-year-old filly: She Be Wild
While this category had a little more competition, She Be Wild has a good backstory - former claimer, unwanted at auction wins four out of five, including the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies. Both dirt and turf could be in her future - versatility FTW!

Turf Male: Gio Ponti
A well-deserved bit of recognition for a horse who showed up just about everywhere - but who truly excelled on the grass. And the night was just beginning for him...

Turf Female: Goldikova
While I respect the notion that the Eclipse Award winner should have more than one start in the US, I am quite happy to toss that guideline out when the horse in question is as overwhelmingly superior as Goldikova is. Her repeat of Miesque's back-to-back Mile victories, under the tutelage of Miesque's former jockey, Freddie Head, completes an undeniably satisfying circuit - and the news that she's aiming to capture a third Breeders' Cup victory this year should certainly be rewarded. Given the excitement over Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta, it may be difficult to recall that the opportunity to see a horse of Goldikova's caliber is rare indeed - and it should be celebrated.

Steeplechaser: Mixed Up
How often does a 10-year-old PA-bred win an Eclipse Award? And hey, he doesn't even take Lasix. These are Good Things.

Breeder: Juddmonte Farms
These awards tend to follow the money, and it's certainly hard to argue with Juddmonte's success in producing top-level horses. There were a few stray votes for Dolphus Morrison for breeding Rachel Alexandra - even if he did not want to truly unleash her talents.

Female Sprinter: Informed Decision
The overwhelming pick of her division (although one has to assume that Ventura's positioning in both this category and the Turf Female category may have hurt her chances), Informed Decision won at nearly every track she visited, under a variety of conditions - and the best news is that she'll be back later this spring to extend her winning streak.

Male Sprinter: Kodiak Kowboy
Although he had a respectable career as a 2 and 3-year-old, Kodiak Kowboy truly had the chance to prove himself as a 4-year-old, winning as a sprinter and miler. He goes to stud with a solid record of achievement.

3-year-old Male: Summer Bird
This was a no-brainer - but I am quite curious to know who cast the single vote for I Want Revenge. Trainer Tim Ice reiterated that we should be seeing him back on the track later this year; let's hope his recovery continues in such an encouraging fashion.

3-year-old Female: Rachel Alexandra
The great filly took home the least-suspenseful award of the night - it was also the sole unanimous award (but more on that in a moment). Owner Jess Jackson's acceptance speech was thoughtful, but at something approaching seven minutes, it could have used some judicious editing. But given that the award winners can't speak for themselves, we can allow a little indulgence.

Owner: Godolphin Racing
This was one of the most competitive awards, with only five votes separating the winner from Jerry and Ann Moss. But as in the case of the Breeder category, the Eclipse voters tend to recognize revenue - but the narrow margin of victory demonstrates that there is also a desire to reward owners with a more personal touch.

Trainer: Steven Asmussen
Once again, you cannot argue with the numbers - or his great good fortune in having Rachel Alexandra drop into his lap (although her original trainer, Hal Wiggins, also received a few votes). While I may not be a fan of his record of medication violations, his staff clearly loves the horses they work with, so the award is as much an acknowledgement of their hard work.

Older Male: Gio Ponti
A double on the night for the versatile 4-year-old was clearly in the offing; as much as I love Einstein, based on this year's wins, it had to go to Gio Ponti. He's still flying under the radar in the eyes of the general public, and even the racing press sometimes overlooks his accomplishments, so it was entirely justified that he be doubly rewarded. The Blood-Horse points out that he is the first horse to win this award without a win on traditional dirt - so it's particularly interesting. His future plans may involve the Dubai World Cup - that could end up a very competitive race indeed.

Older Female: Zenyatta
While this was another foregone conclusion, there was a single (protest?) vote from someone at the Daily Racing Form for Icon Project - presumably the backstory there will be revealed at some point. While I still believe she should have been crowned Horse of the Year last year, the news that she will return to the track this year means she may finally get to take home that honor; in any case, winning two consecutive Eclipse Awards and making history in the Breeders' Cup Classic is certainly enough to consider without worrying about Horse of the Year - yet.

Apprentice Jockey: Christian Santiago Reyes
Further proof that Puerto Rico knows what it's doing when it trains jockeys, this 19-year-old has a bright future - he would be wise to study the next winner.

Jockey: Julien Leparoux
It's hard to imagine he won the Eclipse for Apprentice only four years ago - it seems he's had nothing but success since arriving in the US. Clearly, the title of his Facebook fan group is on the right track.

Horse of the Year: Rachel Alexandra
In the end, it wasn't even close: the votes were 130 to 99. That in no way reflects poorly on Zenyatta's accomplishments - it simply honors the fact that during the past racing season, Rachel Alexandra had more opportunities to show off her immense talent, in a wider variety of venues - she won for her efforts throughout the year, not for a single race (regardless of how impressive that race may have been). But as I have said before, while Horse of the Year honors are important to some, a firm place in history means more in the long run. If we are lucky enough to see Rachel Alexandra take on Zenyatta, that would be tremendous - I'd like to see a Best of Five race series at a variety of different tracks. The difficulty will be getting other horses (male or female) into the gate to fill a race - but someone should certainly be working to set that up. Any takers?

Update 5886: Six ridden this morning for Michael Pino at Fair Hill. One was also a worker, which appeared to work nicely. All in all a nice morning's work, and it was reasonable weather too.

Here is this week's ABR Facebook Group e-mail: Fair Hill, Wilmer Mann, Freckles, Zenyatta, Chantal Sutherland, Rachel Alexandra, Steve Asmussen, Scott Blasi, Darren Fleming, Einstein, Lentenor.

The Eclipse Awards were last night, and Rachel Alexandra took top honors: Rachel Alexandra Named Horse of the Year.

And please keep calling.

Update 5885: Four ridden this morning at Fair Hill for trainer Michael Pino. And it was a balmy 40 degrees to start the day! All mine went nicely.

A relatively quiet weekend, but it was great to see Chantal Sutherland win two graded stakes in California. Not bad for a winter break from Woodbine! Of course, while Chantal may be a favorite jockey of mine, Brette Favre is my favorite sports star and he won too!

Tonight it is the Eclipse Awards. Most categories are straightforward, but of course horse of the year honors will be the most interesting decision. Whichever horse wins, Rachel Alexandra or Zenyatta, both are true champions this year: HORSE OF THE YEAR DECISION DAY LOOMS.

Update 5884: It's Sunday, so a day off from riding at Fair Hill.

The biggest news from yesterday, by far, was the "unretirement" of Zenyatta: Unbeaten champion Zenyatta to race in 2010.

Einstein, who was being prepared for one more start before his retirement, suffered a minor injury and has now been retired: Multiple Grade 1 winner Einstein retired.

And Papa Clem, who's last win came in last year's Arkansas Derby, got back to winning ways yesterday at Santa Anita: Papa Clem returns to form in San Fernando Stakes.

Update 5883: I rode three this Saturday morning at Fair Hill. And for the first time since I have been back at Fair Hill the temperature was above the freezing mark first thing in the morning. In fact one of our riders only had a t-shirt on while galloping (and his vest of course). I think that was a little extreme! All my horses went nicely.

Another light schedule this weekend for stakes races, although Santa Anita does seem to have some interesting contests. Both Papa Clem and Stardom Bound feature this weekend, both looking to get their careers on track: WEEKEND STAKES: WHERE TO WATCH brought to you by KBC Horse Supplies.

Barbaro's 3yo brother Lentenor is back in the entries for next Wednesday: Lentenor entered Jan 20!

Update 5882: I ended up riding four this morning at Fair Hill. And my final horse was a worker, it has been a long time since I have worked at horse (racing speed) and now I am tired! All went nicely.

Today is the opening day for the Oaklawn Park meet in Hot Springs Arkansas. No doubt there will be a good crowd in attendance. This is where I spent last winter: Oaklawn Kicks Off Meet With Dixie Belle.

And for NTRAs moment of the year this year, Zenyatta's Breeders' Cup Classic: Zenyatta Wins NTRA 'Moment of the Year'.

And please keep calling.

Update 5881: Still chilly here this morning at Fair Hill. It is supposed to warm up a little later today. I rode three for Michael Pino. All went nicely. This is our pony, Freckles. And here is Will, our blacksmith, who was in the barn shoeing a couple of horses.

Last night I met with Kathy Anderson and interviewed her for my book. Some very interesting discussions and insights.

And please keep calling.

Update 5880: I rode two this morning at Fair Hill, and both went nice and easily. Originally I had three to ride but then one had to be shod by Will, the blacksmith. The weather was still pretty chilly, but apparently it is now going to warm up a little!

As is typical of this time of year, racing news remains quiet. Canadian jockey Julia Brimo continues her long road to recovery: Inside Track: The Long Road to Recovery.

And please keep calling.

Update 5879: Superfecta here, with your regular weekly update.

Many in the racing community were disheartened to learn of the removal of partymanners' well-curated collection of racing videos from YouTube, and there has been some thoughtful commentary from the R2 Collective and Ed DeRosa (among others). Having weighed in on the value partymanners adds to the racing world last year, it only seems right to address the issue again.

While it's not my place to delve into the full details, rest assured that no track or broadcaster complained or claimed copyright (although they would have been well within their rights to do so - clearly, they realized it was more helpful than anything else to have the videos out there) - the backstory is rather more petty and unfortunate, and you are welcome to follow the links and make your own decisions about that.

The current situation emphasizes the danger of relying solely on fan-created content: while there are a few other racing-related YouTube channels, partymanners' was by far the most extensive, and its loss is more deeply-felt as a result. In an ideal situation where an online archive were funded by some sort of industry program, there would be backups and alternate servers, along with full legal clearances. High-quality digital video would exist for more recent races, and older films would be restored, digitized and placed on a fully-searchable site using a simple solution like YouTube or Vimeo to deliver the videos.

But we live in the real world; there is no industry body with the will or ability to deliver the kind of professional solution this would actually demand - it would be expensive and very time-consuming to do it the 'right way' - and given that there are clearly people out there with the skills and time to do it on the fly, there is no reason to discourage those efforts (even if certain individuals seem keen to try to torpedo them for their own ends).

So, what's the next step? The immediate answer would be to create redundancy: ensuring that multiple copies of the videos exist somewhere (and can easily be found via a simple web search) would be the first goal. It's possible that YouTube may re-activate the partymanners account - if, indeed, that happens, a group effort to back up and re-distribute the videos (ideally via a number of different sites) would not be a bad thing.

But to avoid such derailments in future, the videos could at the very least be cleared with their (actual) copyright holders, and that is where it would be nice to get at least a little help from the industry. Editing, hosting and tagging the videos can easily be handled by fans, but if the tracks, broadcasters and the NTRA could come together to craft some sort of blanket fair use statement for racing footage (which should not be necessary, but is a handy thing to have when these roadblocks come up), that would put things on a firmer footing. A suggested Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Online Video is already out there - it's a quick and easy read - and it's not as though anyone is going to become rich by offering someone a chance to see allowance races from the 1980s.

Let's get the party re-started.

Update 5878: Well it was 10 degrees warmer this morning at Fair Hill, at about 29 degrees. And it felt oddly warm! I had two to ride, and both went nicely.

Here is this week's ABR Facebook Group e-mail: Brutal cold, Fair Hill, Joe Clark, Chad Moore, Philadelphia Park Jockeys, Mike Rea, Clever Allemont, Custom for Carlos, Nicanor, Lentenor, Zenyatta.

Update 5877: It was 19F this morning at Fair Hill. I had two to ride, and that was about enough for me for being out in this weather. Fortunately there was not much of a wind, so not too bad. Both my horses went nicely.

And please keep calling.

Posted by Alex at 1:41 PM | Comments (378)