Full of Run

Practically growing up on the grounds of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway teaches you things. One of the most painful lessons is that sometimes racecar drivers die. Luckily, that is not the only lesson. Heck, it’s not even the only lesson involving drivers dying. In their death you learn that they didn’t just die racing, they lived it as well. They were doing what they were born to do.

And so it is with the Thoroughbred. Designed for speed, these magnificent beasts only appear comfortable doing two things. One is standing regally, and the other is racing at full speed. They stand that we might admire their beauty, and they race that we might admire their heart. Like the brave men and women of Indy, they also sometimes die doing what they were born to do.

There are those who say that we should not race horses, calling it “animal cruelty masquerading as a sport.” They jump on any chance they have to show horse racing in the worst possible light. They will take a moment of tragedy and seize it to further their own agenda, often accusing those most in mourning of the worst kinds of behavior. Lead by PETA, these people are not much different than those who would protest a war at a soldier’s funeral. They are blinded by their own hatred of an industry they don’t even bother to understand. For if they understood, they would know that racing a thoroughbred is no more cruel than allowing a golden retriever to swim. But, since sometime somewhere a golden has drown, I am sure they’d want to ban all of them from swimming. THAT would be cruel, indeed.

The tragedy of Eight Belles breaking down while galloping out past the wire in Saturday’s Derby cast a pall over one of the truly great American events. Having just witnessed the tour de force put on by Big Brown, our eyes turned to the second place filly, lying on the track, outriders and security guards holding her head and scrambling for the screens they put up to prevent viewing by spectators. I know what goes on behind that screen and it’s gutwrenching. But, should this horrible event and ones like it prevent us from racing altogether and therefore stop breeding the thoroughbred totally?

As heartbroken as the thoroughbred community is as a whole in the face of such events, it pales in comparison to the devastating loss felt by the breeders, owners, trainers, and jockeys of these fallen athletes. Yet, time after time, these are the same people targeted relentlessly by PETA. Those suffering the greatest loss must further suffer the onslaught of insults, accusations, and calls for “investigations.”

Take PETA’s own words. They claim that Eight Belles was “doubtlessly injured before the finish,” but then go on to say “[If not] then we can probably blame the fact that they are allowed to whip the horses mercilessly.” Those statements can be easily translated to say “We don’t know what happened. We just know that human beings are evil and that this has to be the fault of one.” (For the record, the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority does not allow the “merciless” whipping of horses and has been known to hand down steep penalties for “abuse of the whip.” Something PETA would know if they truly paid attention.)

There will be those who, because of this event, never watch another race. That is certainly their right. There are also those who, because of these kinds of events, work relentlessly within the industry to learn how to minimize their occurrence in the future. Those are the people who are truly interested in the “ethical treatment of animals.”

My deepest sympathy goes out to the connections of Eight Belles, both for their loss and for the inappropriate attacks they are now enduring. I hope they never forget that there are plenty of us who know that they were just allowing Eight Belles to do what she was born to do. Her life brought excitement, joy, and fulfillment to theirs. And to ours as well.

This game was never meant to be easy. I mean, you find a horse you love, tell all your friends, and Whammo! – He draws post 20. That’s 20 of 20, the outside, 20 wide, practically in the stands. That having been said, I still think he wins in a romp. I think he’s that good. His name is Big Brown.

So, here is my take on who I believe are the main contenders for the 134th Kentucky Derby. You may take them with however many grains of salt you wish.

1. BIG BROWN 3-1 - The undefeated winner of the Florida Derby owns the highest speed figures in the field. Like Curlin before him he will attempt to win the Derby with only 3 lifetime starts. His particular lack of seasoning may not matter; he has the natural speed to overcome it. He may very well lead every step, but the important thing to remember is that he doesn’t have to. He can be rated off the lead and uncoil at any time. Saturday night, the world may look back on Derby 134 and say, “How could we have thought it would be any other way?”

2. PYRO 6-1 – There are two reasons Pyro will not be the favorite in the Derby. Big Brown is the first, and Pyro’s own dismal Blue Grass Stakes is the second. If, like me, you believe throwing out his flop on Keeneland’s Polytrack is proper, then Pyro is another standout. If it wasn’t for his loss in Lexington, he’d be co-favorite with Big Brown. In his first two starts this year, Pyro ran visually impressive, but slow races. In the Risen Star he exploded past the leaders after they set a very slow pace. That is a very difficult thing to do normally, and even more so at the Fair Grounds.

3. SMOOTH AIR 20-1 – I love this story. A 70 year old trainer has his first Derby horse, and after reporters were asking him questions outside his barn, his daughter had to explain to him that he had just held a press conference. He is old school and so are his methods. He refers to Smooth Air as his “little horse” and is happy to tell how he decides on feeding by studying his stool (the horse’s stool, that is). Probably the fittest horse in the field, he was second to Big Brown in the Florida Derby and was a full 7 1/2 lengths in front of third place.

4. TALE OF EKATI 15-1 – Winner of the Wood Memorial, trained by Derby winner Barclay Tagg, and out of a Sunday Silence mare, he could be dangerous. He seems to get into trouble, which is almost a guarantee in a 20 horse field, yet he’s a trier. He is making his third start of the year and could be sitting on a big effort.

5. DENIS OF CORK 20-1 – Probably mismanaged by his connections, he still managed to make the field. Oddly, I was not a fan of this horse until he LOST the Illinois Derby. Everyone will tell you that he is distanced challenged, but I disagree. He looks the part and is working beautifully.

6. GAYEGO 15-1 – The only horse to have adequately answered the synthetic to dirt question, and he did it stylishly. It takes a lot for me to back a California horse. I haven’t done that since Alysheba in 1987.

OTHERS TO BEWARE – Z Fortune and Adriano.

Full of Run is my Horse Racing Blog. Simple as that. It’s inspiration, however, is as deep as deep gets.

You’ll notice that the header for Full of Run is a photo of Barbaro turning for home in the 2006 Kentucky Derby. I decided on  that image and the title Full of Run because that is how I choose to remember him; nostrils flaring as he leaves all rivals in the wake of his powerful strides as he charges down the long Churchill Downs stretch. Barbaro’s lasting contribution to the Sport of Kings may be the world-wide attention his subsequent injury and doomed recovery brought to laminitis, but I remember him like he is in the photo; full of run.

The last quarter mile of the 2006 Derby is forever stored on the hard drive of my mind. I was (and still am) convinced that I was witnessing the horse. This 3 year-old son of Dynaformer was going to do “it.”  He was going to end a going-on-thirty-year drought of Triple Crown Winners.

As I stood in front of the TV, barely hearing Tom Durkin calling the race, I began to repeat over and over, “He’s in hand! He’s in HAND!!” I have no idea if the people with me had any idea what that meant exactly, but I am sure they got my meaning. Barbaro crossed the finish line 8+ lengths in front and in a canter. He had soundly defeated a crop of three-year-olds that had earlier in the week been desribed as one of the best ever. “There are seven or eight Smarty Jones’s in this field,” I remember commentator Frank Lyons stating. There was, in fact, a future Belmont Stakes winner and runner up (Jazil and Bluegrass Cat) and a future Eclipse Winner of Champion Older Horse honors (Lawyer Ron). A good portion of the rest of the field were no slouches, either. Barbaro beat them all and made it looks easy.

History will tell the complete story of Barbaro. I, however, will forever tell the story of that first Saturday in May when a colt raced himself into my heart. Thanks to Barbaro my heart is, and forver shall be, full of run.