Curlin arrives in California (Charles Pravata)

This break in 1994 profiling is brought to you by disbelief. There I was, in the middle of my mid-afternoon malaise, when I noticed this item announcing the Eclipse winning photo for the year. Surprised, I immediately tweeted “There are many more deserving photos than this one”. Others agreed.

What’s wrong with the winning photo you ask? Nothing. It’s a perfectly nice photo, perhaps too perfectly. In fact I think it’s the image equivalent of a press release. As Patrick points out, it’s not like there aren’t plenty of other photos of Dettori hopping off a horse when he wins.

I’d like to humbly submit the following 20 photos that made an impression on me at some point during this year for your consideration. While I have no idea what the criteria is for an Eclipse award is besides probably, at the very least, being published somewhere other than GbG, I chose shots that 1) were taken this year and 2) felt like solid stand alone images that either spoke to an event this year or what makes racing great overall.

I put this list together relatively quickly and it’s by no means comprehensive. Sorry that I can’t put it in a slide show, they’re not my images!

Big Brown the day after winning the Derby - Charles Pravata

Big Brown in the Belmont - Corrado Photography

Alan Garcia after the Belmont - Raymond Haddad

Big Brown in the paddock at Monmouth - Sarah K. Andrew

Casino Drive greets the kids of Anna House - Sarah K. Andrew

Fairgrounds Racing - Championship Racing

Fairgrounds Racing - Championship Racing

Jackie Davis with dad former jockey Robbie Davis after her first race - Kristen Davis

Ginger Punch out of the gate in the Go For Wand - Jessie Holmes

Zaftig and Indian Blessing in the Acorn - Jason Moran

Notional and Joe Bravo after winning the Salvatore Mile - Sarah K. Andrew

Outrider captures a runaway at Saratoga - Sarah K. Andrew

Ocean Colors after finishing last in the Schuylerville - Sarah K. Andrew

Evening Attire’s retirement party - Melissa Wirth

Zenyatta after winning the Clement L. Hirsch - Charles Pravata

Curlin arrives in California - Charles Pravata

Curlin working at Santa Anita - Charles Pravata

Larry Jones and Old Fashioned before the Remsen - Sarah K. Andrew

We need more of this - Jason Moran

If you had to pick one of Dettori at the BC - Rick Samuels

It’s a tough call if I had to pick one. I love them all but I can narrow it down to Casino Drive with the Anna House kids, Big Brown in the paddock at Monmouth, Evening Attire’s retirement and Larry Jones with Old Fashioned.

What images did you like this year? I’m sure I’ve overlooked some great ones!

Update, check out Patrick’s post… I hadn’t noticed but Juvenile is misspelled!! After thinking about it this morning, I would have to concur with GbG pal and commenter Kevin of Colin’s Ghost on 2 points 1) the pic of Big Brown’s butt losing the Belmont should win and 2) the award should go to a photographer, not a single photograph.

Posted by dana on Dec 29 2008    
Filed Under: Raymond Haddad, Indian Blessing, 2008, Remsen, Jessie Holmes, Big Brown, Jason Moran, Zenyatta, Casino Drive, Frankie Dettori, Mainstream Media, Kentucky Derby, Breeders' Cup, Derby Trail, Curlin, Belmont Stakes, Notional, Sarah K. Andrew, Charles Pravata, Alan Garcia, Racing

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Tabasco Cat winning the 1994 Belmont (Jason Moran)

As we saw with the Juveniles, talent and deep fields are also abundant for the 3 year old in 1994. The same caveats apply as before, let me know if something doesn’t look quite right or if you can shed some light on actual race order.

Going in to 1994, Dehere was the Juvenile champion of 1993 racking up an impressive string of accomplishments including being one of the few horses to sweep all 3 Juvenile stakes at Saratoga. Brocco, who had won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile, and Holy Bull, who was undefeated as a 2yo, had both defeated Dehere. Go For Gin and Tabasco Cat had both also won at 2.

Tabasco Cat kicked off the year by winning the El Camino Real Derby at the now defunct Bay Meadows. This win came only a month after a terrible accident involving trainer D. Wayne Lukas’ son Jeff. According to Wikipedia:

Tragically, in December 1993, Tabasco Cat seriously injured Jeff Lukas who worked for his father as an assistant trainer. In a shedrow accident at Santa Anita Park, the colt broke loose and when Jeff Lukas tried to stop him, the excited horse slammed into him with such force that it fractured his skull and left him in a coma for several weeks. Although he recovered well enough to eventually return to work for a time, he suffered permanent brain damage.

The race also marked Pat Day’s 5,999th win. Holy Bull returned as a 3yo in the Hucheson starting off what would be an incredible year with a win. According to Michael Veitch of the Saratogian:

Holy Bull returned as a 3-year-old in the Hutcheson Stakes, winning with a late surge over Prenup and You and I, both of which became Grade I winners. He suffered the first of only three losses in his 16-race career in his next start, the Fountain of Youth Stakes. Holy Bull flipped his palate, causing him to lose his breath, and finished last.

The Fountain of Youth saw the rematch of Holy Bull and Dehere, and while Dehere got a chance to even the score with Holy Bull, it was his last race as he fractured a cannon bone in training. Go for Gin ran a very game second.

San Vincente winner Flyn’ J. Bryan was the favorite in the San Rafael but Tabasco Cat continued his winning ways. Meanwhile, the San Felipe was billed as a match-up against Brocco and Valiant Nature but it was the Burt Bacharach owned colt Soul of the Matter who blew by both of them in the stretch to win. Brocco and Tabasco Cat then met in the Santa Anita Derby where Brocco won the rousing stretch duel between them but Tabasco Cat held on for a game second.

On the east coast Irgun had been racking up wins in the Gotham and the Wood. While out gamed in the Wood by Irgun, Go for Gin won the Preview Stakes at Gulfstream, where he still holds the record for 1 1/16 at 1:41:62. Ironically the race is now known as the Holy Bull, go figure.

Bloomin’ Affair was the 2-1 favorite in the Arkansas Derby but it was Concern, who went off at 19-1, that made an impressive run from a distant last to win and pay $43.40. Bloomin’ Affair had run second to last and was right there with Concern but couldn’t get past him.

At Keenland Holy Bull cemented his position as the Derby favorite with an easy win in the Blue Grass, but it was not meant to be in the Derby. Go for Gin got the lead on the sloppy track and never looked back. Holy Bull, who finished 12th, skipped the last two races of the triple crown.

A thrilling stretch duel between Tabasco Cat and Go for Gin was the highlight of the Preakness with the win going to Tabasco Cat. Going into the Preakness super trainer Lukas, in addition to his son still recovering from his devastating injury, was in a quite a slump.

Lukas, who led the nation in purse earnings every year from 1983 through ‘92, had lately been mired in the worst slump of his career. He hadn’t won a Grade I stakes race since October 1991. Yet here he was at Pimlico, clinging to the hope that Tabasco Cat, who had finished sixth in the Kentucky Derby, could somehow find a way to overcome Derby winner Go for Gin and eight other contenders in the 1 3/16 mile Preakness, the second leg of racing’s Triple Crown. “It’s a funny thing about these classic races,” he said to a companion. “We all analyze them, but they almost never turn out the way we think they will.

Strodes Creek, who was second in the Derby, was the favorite in the Belmont. Go For Gin got the lead early while Tabasco Cat tracked in second with Strodes Creek not too far behind. When Go for Gin started to run Tabasco Cat went with him and Strodes Creek did not. The second Triple Crown stretch battle between Go for Gin and Tabasco Cat ensued with Tabasco Cat winning again.

During the Triple Crown Holy Bull had taken the opportunity to get acquainted with older horses for the first time winning the Met Mile (replay will be in the Older Horse post, coming soon). He then returned to race against 3yos in the Dwyer on July 4th but only 3 turned up to challenge him making it an easy win.

Tabasco Cat returned in the Jim Dandy, but couldn’t catch Unaccounted For, who also won the 1995 Whitney. Holy Bull narrowly kept his winning streak alive in the Haskell and the Travers where he held on to defeat a super game Concern.

Hucheson:

Fountain of Youth:

San Rafael:

Gotham:

Louisiana Derby:

San Felipe:

Santa Anita Derby:

Lane’s End:

Wood Memorial:

Arkansas Derby:

Preview Stakes:

Blue Grass:

Lexington:

Derby:

Preakness:

Belmont:

Dwyer:

Jim Dandy:

Haskell:

Travers:

Super Derby:

It’s relatively easy to dig up information on the 3yo Colts and Derby Trail in general, but the same can’t be said for the 3yo of Fillies 1994. And from what I can tell it wasn’t like it was a slouchy crop. Even with the 2 meager replays I could scrounge up, it’s easy to see that these were talented Fillies.

Lakeway, who placed in both the Oaks and Alabama (below), still holds the record in the Las Virgenes and Mother Goose! (Rachel Alexandra recently broke her Mother Goose record)

Stable mates Inside Information, who won 7 of 8 starts in 1995 including a runaway win the 1995 Distaff and Heavenly Prize, who ever finished out of the money in her 18 starts, were also 3yos in 1994.

1993 Juvenile Champion Phone Chatter sat out most of the year with an injury but Sardula, who placed to her in the 1993 BC Juvenile Filles, won the Oaks. All but Sardula went on to race at 4, apparently she was euthanized at the end of the year due to a painful bone disease (click in the info icon). Here is her lifetime past performance. She was owned by Ann and Jerry Moss, Zenyatta’s owners.

Kentucky Oaks:

Acorn:

Alabama:

It’s hard to write up an account without really seeing the replays, perhaps I’ll be able to do it in the future if more replays turn up. With folks like partymanners literally adding videos daily I’d give it a 9/2 shot that more will turn up over time!

See how our talented crop of 3yos faired against older horses in the next post in the series. Did you see any of these races? What did you think of these Colts and Fillies at the time? How have they measured up to the test of time? Let us know what you think!

Posted by dana on Dec 27 2008    
Filed Under: Kentucky Oaks, YouTube, Jason Moran, 90s, 1994, Racing History, 3yo, Belmont Stakes, Triple Crown, Derby Trail, Race Replay, Preakness, Kentucky Derby, Racing

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Flanders winning the Frizette (Jason Moran)

1994 was not wanting for talented 2 year olds or competitive fields, that’s for sure.

Before we get started there are a few small caveats to keep in mind that apply to the entire series. In fact, I will probably mention them in every post just make sure you’re paying attention!

I’ve tried to display race replays and compile the list of races in chronological order starting with the beginning of the year. I was rarely able to find an actual date as opposed to a “usually run in the late fall” or “run in the beginning of march”. My goal was try to lay out the racing year as it unfolded. Please leave a comment or contact me if you can help put these races in the right order! Distance and race grade reflect the race in 1994 and again, if you can help correct any errors, let me know.

This is clearly and by no means a complete record, it’s what I could put together over the weekend. If there’s a race you’d like to see listed, let me know and I’ll see what I can track down. I’d love for it to be as complete as possible.

Let’s start off with the Colts. On the east coast you had Montreal Red. By the time racing was nearing an end at Saratoga he was undefeated in 3 races and poised to make history if he could win the Hopeful by becoming one of the few horses to sweep the 2yo series at Saratoga. He had won the Sanford and the Saratoga Special but the Hopeful was not to be for Montreal Red as he placed to Wild Escapade (wish I could find that replay!). He did go on to win the Futurity at Belmont.

On the west coast there was Timber Country, the first horse to win the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile and then go on to win a Triple Crown race (the Preakness). In the fall he was sent east to compete a rousing rendition of the Champagne, check out that field size!

Not only did you have Montreal Red, the east coast buzz horse that had only been defeated once coming off a win in the Futurity, but there was the undefeated west coaster On Target in the mix as well as Hopeful winner Wild Escapade and Mr. Greeley (who really didn’t do much at 2). Timber Country had to fight for it but he secured his spot as the favorite going into the Breeders’ Cup.

The 1995 Derby winner, Thunder Gulch, improved as the year went on winning the Remsen in the late fall. West Coaster Afternoon Deelites also made the end of the year interesting capturing both the Hollywood Prevue and the Hollywood Futurity. He still holds the record for the Futurity at 1:40:74.

Futurity:

Champagne:

Remsen:

Hollywood Futurity:

As for the Fillies, I have one word. Flanders. She’s one of the best kept secrets of 1994 and if I had to pick the most impressive horse of 94, it would be her. She had both speed and guts, digging down to repel bids and win stretch battles like an old war horse.

Going into the Spinaway, her firsts stakes race, Stormy Blues was the big buzz horse from the same barn as Montreal Red. Flanders broke quickly and was able to get the lead. Favorite Stormy Blues and Adirondack winner Seeking Regina sat off of her grueling pace but were “never gonna catch her today” as Durkin put it. She still holds the record at 1:23.

In the Matron, Flanders makes the lead early but sets a more moderate pace. Stormy Blues and Phone Caller both move on her at the top of the stretch and for a moment it looks like Flanders isn’t going to be able to hold on. She digs down and not only repels the bid of Stormy Blues, but finds enough to pull away and win by 2 or 3. Impressive.

Not too many takers in the Frizette, and Flanders easily crushes the 4 horse field by almost 20. On the west coast the impressive Serena’s Song was revving up by winning the Landaluce and Oak Leaf to make sure Flanders had some competition by the time the Breeders’ Cup rolled around.

Serena’s Song and Flanders shared two things beyond their talent, they both had similar running styles and they were both trained by D. Wayne Lukas. Flanders never ran again after the Breeders’ Cup. Given what Serena’s Song went on to do, one can only wonder what Flanders might have been able accomplish given the chance.

Serena’s Song winds up the year with a win in the Hollywood Starlet. Stay tuned to see how how our Juveniles fared in the Breeders’ Cup (the last post in the series). The next post will be 3yos.

Adirondack:

Spinaway:

Matron:

Frizette:

Oak Leaf:

Demoiselle:

Hollywood Starlet:

GbG pal and frequent commenter Jason has some excellent photos from 1994, and all of the 90s for that matter. I’ll be featuring them on my posts but you can see them all here.

Were you there? Was 1994 as fantastic as it looks? Let us know, we’d love to hear from you… share some of your racing history, won’t you?

Posted by dana on Dec 22 2008    
Filed Under: Impressive, Remsen, Jason Moran, 90s, 1994, Demoiselle, Champagne Stakes, Race Replay, Tom Durkin, 2yo, YouTube, Racing

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Cigar winning the 1994 NYRA Mile (Jason Moran)

Several weeks ago I ran into Ernie after work. One of the first things he said to me was “that poll was hard”, something I underestimated.

Given that we’re now entering the final year of this decade, I would imagine that it’s easier to remember horses rather than the year as a whole as pointed out by GbG pal and commenter Carol.

1994 won by nose over 1997 with 6 votes to 97’s 5. 1998 & 1995 were not far behind with 4 apiece. What made 1994 so great? There were a LOT of good horses and plenty of competition. It wasn’t just Holy Bull, there was Concern, Sky Beauty, Flanders, Serena’s Song, Timber Country, Tabasco Cat, Colonial Affair, Montreal Red, Thunder Gulch, Lakeway, Lure, Paradise Creek, Cherokee Run and Cigar bursting on to the scene.

I spent the last few days tracking down replays and trying to recreate 1994 (while living in fear that all of a sudden 1997 would get a few more votes and win sending me back to drawing board). I had originally intended to do a single post but given the surprising amount of replays and information scattered around the interweb, I decided to break it up by division (for the most part) and do it as a 5 part series to round out the year.

The order will be as follows: Juveniles, 3yos, Older Horses, Turf horses, Sprinter/Milers and Breeders’ Cup/Eclipse Awards.

Looking for a more current multi-part series? Check Val’s excellent look at the Fillies & Mares of 2008.

Or perhaps looking for a history of racing in Los Angeles? Check out the multi-part series at Mary Forney’s blog.

Posted by dana on Dec 22 2008    
Filed Under: 90s, Racing History, 1994, Jason Moran, Poll, Race Replay, YouTube, Racing

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Chantal Sutherland prepping for a days work while enjoying a GURU Energy Drink (GURU Energy Drinks)

Earlier in the year I was able to be of some assistance to the fine people of GURU Energy Drink in their quest to track down the talented and stunning Chantal Sutherland. It all worked out in the end and I even ended up being the lucky recipient of some of their product, which I must say is both delicious and unjanglingly energizing.

Recently my pals at GURU got in touch to say hi and, as promised, forward on this photo of Chantal prepping for a day at work while enjoying a refreshing GURU Energy Drink (points for the matching helmet, nail color and beverage can). As indicated earlier, I think she could sell a beverage, no?

Recently the topic of marketing has been racing around the blogosphere (har har) like a house on fire! Winston… Not Really made a great point the other day about using jockeys to market racing. And not only semi-naked ones! I totally agree with him and added several examples of “hot” images of jockeys that don’t involve bikinis, oil or lip licking.

Alan Garcia, hot.
Chantal Sutherland, gorgeous.
Jacqueline Davis, stunning.
Eibar Coa, work it.
Norberto Arroya, bring it.
Channing Hill, oh yeah.
Alex Solis, boom.

These are just a few examples of jockeys looking alluring in a contextually appropriate setting that actually references racing, thus tying the sex appeal to the racing. Sure, the brazen approach might work, but this kind of ad seems more likely to send a guy to his favorite porn site rather than the track.

Posted by dana on Dec 19 2008    
Filed Under: Channing Hill, 2008, Alan Garcia, Marketing, Chantal Sutherland, Eibar Coa, Jocks

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