Flooding at the tracks

Above is a photo of Laurel Park (Laurel, Maryland). No meet is being held in Maryland this month, but the heavy rains have halted all training for about a week now. Lets hope that the rain stops and they can get the track and facilities back in order before August.

The video is back

Enjoy!

Quick Hits

- Jesse Jackson says that jockeys are semi-indentured servants. However, they are clearly independent contractors and I don't see a way for them to classified otherwise. They routinely work for 6 or 7 different owners every day. It is their choice where they choose to offer their services, their choice whether they choose to work on any given day and mostly their choice how to ride the horse. They are represented by agents and their success is generally within their own control. Win and make money, lose and don't. The jockeys should be careful what they wish for. Organized labor brings a lot of baggage and Jesse Jackson brings even more.

- www.equinephotographers.org is a beautiful site if anyone is interested in equine photography. I found them because they linked to one of Baloo's posts. You have to be a member to see some of the content, but the free stuff is most impressive too.

- Bill Finley proposes a horse racing World Cup. I absolutely love this idea. I agree that it will never realistically happen, but what a great way to bring interest to the sport! Bring nationalism into the mix and people get excited. I am no soccer fan, but I cared about the world cup this year because it was the USA vs. the world. Great vision by Mr. Finley.

- I finally had a chance to watch Deep Impact win the Takarazuka Kinen on the DVR. Wow. Just Wow. 10 wins and a second in 11 starts. And a lot in G1 company. I wonder how big Sunday Silence would be if he stood in Kentucky?

The Real Leading Sires

I frequently check the Leading Sires list on Bloodhorse.com to see how the progeny of my favorite stallions are doing on the track. The stallions are listed in descending order based on total current year earnings by horses sired by the stallion and running in North America, Europe and Dubai. I always thought the list was a little skewed because one win of a big purse (specifically in Dubai) or one good runner out of 100 can put a mediocre stallion at the top of the list. In a totally unscientific move, I backed out the top current year performer out of total earnings for the sire (as of 6/25/06) and thought the results were interesting:

The top sires by gross earnings (including the top performer) were: Red Ransom, Dynaformer, Pleasant Tap, A.P. Indy and Maria's Mon.

When you back out the top performer, the top of the list looks like: A.P. Indy, Maria's Mon, Distorted Humor, Giant's Causeway and Grand Slam.

If you exclude Dubai purses earned by Electrocutionist and David Junior, then Red Ransom and Pleasant Tap would not even be 0n the Top 100 Stallions list. Neither would Slew City Slew (currently #12) if you exclude Lava Man.

The other stallions that move up most based on my methodology are Unbrided's Song, Bertrando, Not for Love and Elusive Quality. Perhaps these represent value compared to those that move down the list.

The other ones that move down the most are Langfuhr, Forestry and Storm Cat. I guess it is no surprise that the sires of Grade 1 competitors have a disproportionate amount of their earnings from just a few horses. But if I was sending my mare out to be covered, I just don't see value in buying a lottery ticket with one of these stallions that have 1 big winner and 99 performers that don't get close to justifying the stud fee.

Again, I acknowledge that this is an unscientific back-of-the-envelope analysis. It does not consider the number of mares covered nor total number of runners and winners. However, I see some value in the concept.

Apprentice Jockeys

This is a nice little article about the top 3 apprentice jockeys. Julien Leparoux, Martin Garcia, and Anna "Rosie" Napravnik are not just great apprentice jockeys. They represent 3 of the top 5 jockeys in wins.

Drugs.....

Last month I made two posts "He's got a good vet" and "He's got a good vet version 2". I am not sure how many people read the post, but very few people commented. Today I as very pleased to read not one, but two articles posted on Equidaily.com about this issue. The first spoke about the rules for all horsemen at Colonial Downs. It appears that Virginia is doing a great job to keep the playing field level. The second was about the strong rules being enforced at Woodbine. Both Virginia and Ontario are trying very hard to stop any cheating, but this is not enough. I am also concern that the size and scope of this problem is much greater than people think. In the article from the Dailypress, the on site vet mentions that the problem is $5000 horses trying to win $6000 races. I think it is much bigger than this.

The problem runs from the top Grade I horses all the way down to the $2500 claimers. Top trainers (of Preakness winning horses) are getting caught with drugs that they test for, and I am sure a lot of injections contain drugs that are undetectable, or just not on the radar. I have found ads in the Bloodhorse for Chinese herbs that are "performance enhancers". If this company is willing to advertise nationally, how many are flying below the radar.

A major effort to end illegal drugs in the industry needs to be initiated ASAP. What is going to happen when we find out that a Kentucky Derby winner was all juiced up? America and the bettors will turn their backs on the industry, and it will be all over.

I think I am done with my rant for now, and I will step down off of the soap box.

Don't Let Julien Ride Your Favorite Horse

I wonder if this is some kind of record? At Churchill today, the mounts ridden by Julien Leparoux in races 1, 2, 3 and 5 were claimed. Who Goes There was claimed by Steve Asmussen for himself in the first. Ominous was claimed by Mr. Asmussen again in the second. New Awakening was claimed by Dale Romans in the third for McKee Stables. Three Mysteries was claimed by James Fugate for himself in the 5th.

All four of these horses were the favorites in their races. So this is really a testament to Mr. Leparoux getting the best rides. But, I wonder if anyone ever had 4 mounts claimed over 5 consecutive races.

The Future of New York Racing

I finally had a chance to read through the RFP for the New York State Racing Franchise. In general, I think the media has done a good job of reporting on the text of the RFP. However, there are a few items that are very unusual and troubling to me.

1) A response to the RFP depends on changes to New York State law. The RFP seeks proposals on the assumption that the State gaming law will be modified to conform with the Ad Hoc Committee's proposed changes. These changes include permitting entities other than non-profit racing associations from bidding on the contract and a repeal of the law that requires the franchise holder to remit all of its retained earnings to a State fund. The opponents of reform are fighting against these changes. The legislature took a baby step of progress today by passing a bill to permit limited internet betting.

2) The proposals can be filed with an assumption that a VLT casino can be established at Belmont, or without this assumption. Well, that's a REALLY big difference there.

3) And, my big issue. The RFP assumes that all of the Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga real estate belongs to New York State and not the current franchisee, New York Racing Association. Both sides have dug in their heels with decent legal arguments that the properties are theirs. This will undoubtedly go to court and could delay the process for years.

The one guarantee out of all of this uncertainty is that this is going to be an ugly, contentious process and it will not be completed in the timeframe stated in the RFP. There will be a new Democratic Governor in January and he will likely want to put his fingerprints on this Republican-awarded franchise. The future of New York racing is at stake and I have no confidence that the State government will do the right thing. I have been watching Maryland's racing program fall apart with Baloo and I dread seeing that here.

The bidders must identify themselves by the end of this month. I look forward to seeing and analyzing the players.

If you are having trouble sleeping, the link to the RFP is here.

Imagine what the whole shoe is worth???

A nail from a shoe worn by Secretariat in the Belmont Stakes was auctioned off for $6,100. Secretariat.com offered the nail on ebay with an auction that ended a day after this years Belmont. I can only imagine how much an entire shoe would be worth. This is crazy! I wonder how much John Henry's testicles would have been worth if they kept them? I guess we will never know.....And thank goodness for that.

Ryan Fogelsonger wins number 1000

Ryan Fogelsonger wins number 1000 on Sunday at Colonial Downs. The 25-year-old Fogelsonger, a former Eclipse Award winner as top apprentice jockey took 4 years to reach this milestone.

I know I will probably take some heat for this, but I don't think Fogelsonger is that great of a jockey. I get to watch him here in Maryland for most of the year, and he never has impressed me. He was always recognized as one of the top jocks in Maryland until this past year when Rosie Napravnik came in a kicked his butt.

Opinions aside, it is always good for the sport to have a young jockey hit this impressive mark.

It's Not Over 'Till It's Over

Which was a worse dissapointment last weekend?

Phil Mickelson...

Or Perfect Drift?

Both of them gave away huge wins by letting their guard down too early.

Congratulations to Geoff Ogilvy and Seek Gold.

From last to first in a furlong

Watch "Broad Appeal" (Broad Brush) come from 20+ lengths back to win. Great job by the horse and jockey

Julien Leparoux - Happy Ticket

Yesterdays Fleur de Lis Handicap (gr. II) at Churchill Downs was an incredible race. Happy Ticket was able to rally to beat Irish-bred favorite Oonagh Maccool by a dirty nose. While our friends at ESPN did a great job with the coverage, they only touched on the ride of Julien Leparoux. Thanks to the world greates invention, TiVo, I was able to watch the race 4 times. I like to watch the race, and then watch it again paying greater attention to the jockeys skills. Though it was the first time that Leparoux had the mount on Happy Ticket, he rode her like he had done it 100 times. Leparoux showed great patience, tucked in and stalked the pace, and went to the stick at just the right moment.

This guy is an amazing jockey, and I look forward to watching him for years to come.

Progress in Maryland

The Maryland Jockey Club and Horsemen have reached an agreement. that will increase the number of racing days in Maryland for 2007. Earlier this year it appeared that the racing calendar would be cut in half. Now this new agreement will provide a few more days of racing. This is not going to solve all the problems in Maryland, but it will slow down the bleeding. The Maryland Jockey Club is also going to try "twilight racing", starting the card at 3:30. I think this will help attract more people to the track. I know I will probably make a few twilight trips. Lets hope this is just the beginning of the good things to come from the once great Maryland racing scene.

More Winners

Woody Stephens Breeders Cup Stakes (G2) winner Songster with Edgar Prado on board:
The Acorn Stakes (G1) winner Bushfire. She was a handfull in the paddock. She was ready to run, or as Baloo may suggest, may have been visited by an aggressive vet. Either way, she did not want to be saddled.

The Just a Game Handicap (G2)

I'm going through my pictures from Belmont day and found a few others that are worth posting. Here is the story of race 7:

Winner Gorella staring me down in the paddock:

And holding off Pommes Frites at the wire:

Which leads to winning jockey Julian Leparoux being interviewed in the winner's circle:

The Big Get Well Card

I hope noboby minds, but I signed the Barbaro get well card at Belmont on behalf of the Thoroughbred Bloggers Alliance.

Belmont Stakes

Some pictures that I took at the
Belmont Stakes today:


Winner Jazil coming down the stretch

Steppenwolfer in the paddock


Bob and John getting ready

Cornelio Velasquez

Today was a great day for Cornelio Velasquez at Belmont. In 7 mounts, he had 4 wins, 2 seconds and a third. I might add that the 4 wins came consecutively in the 3rd through 6th races. Well done!

He's the hot jock. Watch for him Saturday on Silver Whistle in the Manhattan Handicap, Teammate in the Acorn Stakes, Pommes Frites in the Just a Game Handicap and Celtic Innis in the True North Handicap.

And by the way -> Sunriver will take the Belmont Stakes. Cornelio doesn't have a mount in the feature.

Rosie recognized by Sports Illustrated

One year ago today an apprentice rider by the name of Rosie Napravnik rode her first mount ever to the winners circle. Since then she has made 225 more trips to have a photo taken. She is the leading rider in Maryland, and has won over $4 million in purses. To celebrate the anniversary of her first mount, Sports Illustrated has posted a story about the 18 year old jockey. Keep up the good work Rosie!

"Edgar Prado is the poor mans Rosie Napravnik"
--Baloo from the Bug Boys

Deputy Minister

This evening I started looking at the past performances of the Belmont Stakes contenders and something unusual jumped off the page at me. Deputy Minister shows up closely in the pedigree of 5 of the 12 participating colts. He is the broodmare sire of both Jazil and Bob and John. He is also the "grandsire" of Deputy Glitters, High Finance and Oh So Awesome.

I did some research and it apparently isn't a fluke. Deputy Minister was a most impressive race horse and sire. A champion in both the U.S. and Canada. The leading sire for two consecutive years. Sire of three champions and a classic winner.

Although he died in 2004, it seems that the prominence of the Deputy Minister sire line is increasing. I am no Pedigree Guru, but to a lesser degree, this reminds me of something that Byron said recently regarding the great sire Danzig.

Jockey Updates

Garrett Gomez could stay in the New York colony according to a story in the Thoroughbred Times. That would be great for the New York Circuit, and a major hit to SoCal. I am a huge fan of Mr. Gomez, so I encourage him to hang out on the east coast.

>Jockey Joe Stokes recorded his 1000th career victory this week. Joe's name may not be familiar to many, but he has had some moments of greatness in his career. He won the 1999 West Virginia Derby, and has had some big wins on his way to 1000. Congratulations Joe!

>Hot young jockey Beverly Burress lost her bug this week. She had a nice meet at Oaklawn, and things seem to be going well at Prairie Meadows. Now that she is a journeyman, lets see if the wins keep coming.

Monday Thoughts

> Carolina Panthers Quarterback Jake Delhomme - He and his family raise and race thoroughbreds. He once tried to name a horse "Concussion" after he got beaten up pretty well in a game. That name was taken so he settled on "Woozy".

> John Velazquez - This is one tough guy. He "suffered a fractured collarbone, partially collapsed lung, torn shoulder ligaments and bruised ribs" and he's back winning just 7 weeks later. Pound for pound, jockeys are the toughest guys (and ladies) out there.

> Steve Byk - A while back I wrote about how much I like the show "At the Races and Beyond" on Sirius Satellite Radio. The show keeps getting better every day and I think it has a lot to do with Steve Byk. He comes across as so genuine and so endearing. He seems like a guy that you really want to hang out with and just talk about racing. Now I just have to start betting based on his handicapping and I may change my results at the window.

> Rosie - When she isn't domintaing the Pimlico meet, she moonlights at Delaware Park. In 26 mounts, she has 3 wins, 5 seconds and a third. Not too bad for a second job. She is competing against Ramon Dominguez, Jeremy Rose, Stewart Elliott and a lot of other talented riders but she is competitive when she rides half decent horses. She is outta' Maryland soon. Sorry Baloo.

Quick Hits

> Silver Train to Vinery after racing career - You can be sure that the racing career doesn't have much time left. Another popular star whose racing life will be cut short. I understand the economics. I just don't like it.

> Ron Ellis says Declan's Moon looks Awesome - I just can't wait to see Declan on the track. So far, his training has gone smoothly. Mr. Ellis says he may get in a race after he has 5 more workouts.

> NYRA reaches out to horsemen - The NYRA franchise expires 12/31/07. It is expected that for-profits, non-profits and joint ventures will all be bidding for the franchise. I don't understand many of the issues, but I am certain that this is going to be really ugly and will ultimately be bad for New York racing.

> Rosie Napravnik - Rides to a 19-length win in the 4th at Pimlico on Thursday. The horse was claimed for $15,000 by a happy new owner. It seemed to me that Rosie was in a bit of a slump, but that is because she is winning only one race a day. She has set the bar so high that even a good performance seems like underachievement.

I don't know why....but I find these quotes about Barbero funny......

"In a case such as Barbaro's, his medical team would plan and monitor physical therapy with breeding in mind," she said. "Amazing things have been done to accommodate disabled breeding stallions, from custom-built breeding ramps to supportive splints or casts, to medications that reduce the amount of effort required. But in most cases, simple old-fashioned careful attention to detail, such as highly skilled stallion and mare handlers who can allow the stallion to compensate for his limitations, good athletic surfaces, and a breeding schedule customized to the stallion's fitness and fertility, can help sports injured stallions enjoy remarkably normal and successful breeding careers."