Exports, Track Records and the Dash

- In these desperate financial times, a country has to do whatever it takes to sustain itself. Apparently, the salvation of the United States will be predicated on exporting stallions to Asia. Over the past few days, Peace Rules was sold to Korea, Alke was deported to Thailand and Johannesburg was expatriated to Japan. So annyong-hi kashipshio to Peace Rules, Sawatdi to Alke and sayonara to Johannesburg. Thanks for the memories.

- What was going on at Belmont Park today? It was like a NASCAR track. $35,000 claimer Super Shape tied the track record for 6.5 furlongs at 7-1 in the first. Then, in the third, Birdrun established a new record at a 8.5 furlongs in a NW1X race. It seems too coincidental that two horses with limited resumes would put in such remarkable performaces on the same day at the same track. Was the timer working correctly? Was the grounds crew testing a track condition for the next big day that they want to have fast times? Or maybe the track condition was just listed as concrete? Good one, Dana.

- The renewal of the DeFrancis Dash at Laurel Park is this Saturday after a year off because of a lack of purse money in Maryland. Vinyard Haven will be the favorite but I am rooting, as always, for Ah Day. Brooklyn Backstretch favorite Saratoga Russell is also in the race. The Grade I Frank J. De Francis Memorial Dash is one of my favorite races and I attended it in 2006 when Thor's Echo won and solidified his hold on Champion Sprinter of that year. Thor's Echo was sent to Dubai by his new owner but then returned to Doug O'Neill's barn in 2007. I can't find any updates on his status. Any input you have would be greatly appreciated. We know, as a gelding, he is not standing stud anywhere.

At Least I took a Good Photo

I used to think that every big day at the track is a good day. Not any more. I should have seen the signs and not bothered going. But I did.

First, my friend had a change in plans and would not be joining me. Then, my son's soccer team got crushed 4-0 by a cross-town rival. The weather report guaranteed rain and lightning. But 5 Grade Ones! I had to go to Belmont Park. By myself.

I saw Ernie from afar, but he was working his video magic and I didn't want to interrupt. I couldn't find Handride because of cell phone issues. So, I enjoyed the Beldame as it began to rain.

After Music Note's victory, I positioned myself on the chute to the winner's circle that is only used for Grade 1 races. I was hoping to get a photo of Rajiv and Saeed, and I did.
I also captured a bonus photo of Music Note getting a hose-down. She seemed to love it.
I was knocked out of the Pick 6 in the first leg because I tried to beat the favorite. After that, the heavy rain and lighning came. Kodiak Kowboy was very impressive in beating Fabulous Strike in the Vosburgh, but that knocked me out of the Pick 4 in the first leg.

When I realized that I was envious of Geno, who was dry at an OTB with cheap beer, I knew it was time to go. After getting SOAKED running out to my car and a short ride home, I was comfy watching the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic and the Jockey Club Gold Cup on TV.

Kudos to those of you who were chatting up Summer Bird before the Kentucky Derby and the Belmont Stakes. I thought you were crazy, but you were right. He is the real deal and just needed a little time to mature. The trainer and the owners are easy to root for. I expect that he will be back next year with the breeding market going south.

Looking forward to the next (dry) day at the track. Perhaps the Cigar Mile at Aqueduct.

Update: I forgot the highlight of the day for me. I met Steve Byk and had the opportunity to tell him how much I like his radio show. He's as nice in person as he comes across on the show.

Weekend Thoughts - Twitter, BC Classic and Cosmonaut

- Those of us that follow Sheik Mohammed on Twitter hoping to pick up a gem about his vast horse racing empire were treated to about 100 tweets this week regarding the new Dubai Metro - and this video. I wish he would address racing rather than documenting that he sent congratulations to a 3rd world country on their independence day.

- It is perplexing to me why the Breeders Cup would try to entice Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta to compete in the Breeders Cup Classic by adding an extra million to the purse. First, isn't $5 million enough? Second, Jess Jackson has made it abundantly clear that Rachel will not run on a synthetic surface. Third, common sense says that Rachel will sit out the rest of the year, as her resume has already qualified for horse of the year. And fourth, even if Rachel came back for another race this year, it will not be at a mile-and-a-quarter. She just doesn't do that distance.

- Comparing two new retirees - I think I'd rather breed my mare to Cosmonaut than Pioneerof The Nile.

Maimonides and the Monkey

Maimonides was officially retired this week and plans were announced for him to stand at Vinery in Florida. I was at Saratoga the day the $4.6 million colt broke his maiden in impressive fashion in his first start.
He raced one more time and got hurt. After giving him a chance to come back, Mr. Zayat decided to retire him. In my opinion, this is another case of a precocious, fast, but frail thoroughbred being put in a position to pass on his frailty to another generation. This will just perpetuate the decline of the breed.

This makes me think of The Green Monkey who stands at Hartley/DeRenzo Thoroughbreds in Florida. These guys were the pinhookers that sold him at auction and apparently felt so guilty about taking all of that Coolmore money that they agreed to stand the biggest bust ever at their farm. I was also in attendance for his first start at Belmont Park.
In retrospect, maybe I'm the bad luck charm. Maybe I should just stay away from big-buck debuts in the future.

I'm reading Jim Squires' book, Headless Horsemen, and he has a good quote about The Green Monkey, "...The Green Monkey, who will go down in history as the prototype of the modern thoroughbred "sale horse" - a commodity that became for the racing industry what the subprime mortgage derivative was for Wall Street - a kind of overvalued product that sucked the money out of the market until it was gasping for survival."

Perhaps thoroughbred auctions can now be considered a leading economic indicator. I should dust off my Economics degree and look into that.

Race Course Justice

I made my 3rd annual pilgrimage to Saratoga this past weekend. It is always a pleasure to be there among the thousands celebrating the sport that seemingly fewer and fewer of us still love. I just wonder why the Alabama cap giveaway was weeks before the Alabama Stakes? Not complaining, just wondering.

So, I like to watch races from different locations around the track. For the 2nd race on Saturday, I was watching from the rail on the Clubhouse side of the Winner's Circle. Not the best view of the stretch run, but it's on the finish line and somewhat replicates my favorite spot at Aqueduct that has the best view of the horses coming back after the race.

After a little bumping, City Trooper and Javier Castellano beat Fenway Faithful and Alan Garcia by a length. But hold all tickets, the inquiry sign went up because Garcia claimed foul on Castellano for interference in the stretch. From my spot, I had a great view of both riders making their cases to the stewards on the phone next to the scale:
About 30 seconds after Javier hung up, Tom Durkin announced that the results would stand and City Trooper would not be taken down (correct call by the officials). It was very interesting to see this happening in real time and trying to make out what the jockeys were telling the stewards. It was even better than a scene from Jockeys on Animal Planet.

It's a Man, Man!

18-year old Caster Semnya of South Africa won the Women's 800 meter World Championship in Germany this week, but

Semenya dominated her rivals to win the 800 on Wednesday despite revelations that surfaced earlier in the day that she was undergoing a gender verification test because of concerns she does not meet the requirements to compete as a woman.

This leads me to wonder if we have ever had the same problem in horse racing? Is that filly really a filly, or a "very gelded" colt? I'm sure Jess Jackson had the equine OB check out Rachel before he bought her. And does the Breeder's Cup do anything to ensure gender at our World Championships?

Why Saratoga is Special

I should actually title this, "One of the Thousand Reasons Why Saratoga is Special". I am running through the entries for Friday, and as a fan of the jockeys, this lineup jumped out at me.

The race conditions are:

MAIDEN CLAIMING $35,000

Purse $25,000. (up To $4,750 Nysbfoa) For Maidens, Three Years Old And Upward. Three Year Olds, 118 Lbs.; Older, 124 Lbs. Claiming Price $35,000. One And One Sixteenth Miles. (Inner turf)

So, a Maiden Claiming event for 3 and up. $25,000 purse. And here are some of the jockeys:

John Velazquez
Julien Leparoux
Kent Desormeaux
Cornelio Velasquez
Javier Castellano
Calvin Borel
Edgar Prado
Alan Garcia
Ramon Dominguez

This is an All-Star team riding a Double-A event. It happens elsewhere from time to time, but it is more common in Saratoga. I even excluded the "Successful in New York Jocks" Maragh, Arroyo and Lezcano, who win more than their fair share too.

I love the Saratoga meet and I am looking forward to the next six weeks.