There Are A Thousand Ways To Lose A Race
California Chrome came up short in the Belmont yesterday. he grabbed a quarter, stepped on himself and got a little bit tangled up coming out of the gate. @#$# happens and cutting your foot at the start of a race that is going to last 2 1/2 minutes will make you uncomfortable and probably slow you down. Jockey Victor Espinosa and the DRF reported blood coming from his right front hoof after the race. I really hope it's nothing serious.
Immediately after the race, commentators were blaming the jockey and his strategy and Chrome's owners were blaming other owners for entering their horses that were fresher than the potential Triple Crown winner.
It doesn't mean the jockey rode a bad race, it doesn't mean the horse was tired, it doesn't mean they should change the Kentucky Derby, move the Preakness, or restrict runners in the Belmont to those that have run in the Derby and or Preakness.
I would like to remind everyone of the obvious. Horse racing is about gambling and entertainment for sure but it is also a difficult and expensive game to play.
Chrome's speaking owner pitched a fit after the race. Me thinks a little humility would have been in order. The luck truck had already dumped its load in front of his barn a long time ago. A six race winning streak worth almost $3.5 million starting in December 2013 is beyond belief. Doing it with an $8,000 mare and a $2,500 stallion is fortune incomprehensible.
I've gone to the races my entire adult life and as a kid with my father. I've also been partners with three others in owning a horse. For some it's fishing, I like going to the races. I've been to the winner's circle, cashed a ticket or two, but I've also gone back to the barn after the horse kicked himself, almost fell on his nose and finished last, wondering if I'd just seen my last race as a horse owner.
Woody Stephen's has the record for winning five Belmont's in a row, he and a lot of other people in the business understand the deal. It's often said there are lots and lots and lots of ways to lose a race but only rarely do you win a race without a little bit of luck.
This is true in horse racing and a lot of other ventures.
Immediately after the race, commentators were blaming the jockey and his strategy and Chrome's owners were blaming other owners for entering their horses that were fresher than the potential Triple Crown winner.
It doesn't mean the jockey rode a bad race, it doesn't mean the horse was tired, it doesn't mean they should change the Kentucky Derby, move the Preakness, or restrict runners in the Belmont to those that have run in the Derby and or Preakness.
I would like to remind everyone of the obvious. Horse racing is about gambling and entertainment for sure but it is also a difficult and expensive game to play.
Chrome's speaking owner pitched a fit after the race. Me thinks a little humility would have been in order. The luck truck had already dumped its load in front of his barn a long time ago. A six race winning streak worth almost $3.5 million starting in December 2013 is beyond belief. Doing it with an $8,000 mare and a $2,500 stallion is fortune incomprehensible.
I've gone to the races my entire adult life and as a kid with my father. I've also been partners with three others in owning a horse. For some it's fishing, I like going to the races. I've been to the winner's circle, cashed a ticket or two, but I've also gone back to the barn after the horse kicked himself, almost fell on his nose and finished last, wondering if I'd just seen my last race as a horse owner.
Woody Stephen's has the record for winning five Belmont's in a row, he and a lot of other people in the business understand the deal. It's often said there are lots and lots and lots of ways to lose a race but only rarely do you win a race without a little bit of luck.
This is true in horse racing and a lot of other ventures.
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