Last night I got a comment on my Zenyatta vs. Rachel Alexandra poll post (that’s the first search result for “Zenyatta vs Rachel Alexandra“) that said:

The fact that Rachel is ducking the Breeders meant Rachel’s handlers are not confident Rachel can beat Zenyatta. All other speculations are fluff

I forwarded this comment on to pal Jessica with a note:

Just got this. Will they ever give up?

She wrote back:

Ha! We need a name for this phenomenon, along the lines of Birthers and Truthers. The Deniers? Zenyattaistas?

Indeed. Duckers and BCers also come to mind, but since it seems rooted in that pesky and previously discussed sports fan behavior, Zenyattaistas seem most appropriate.

Posted by dana on Sep 07 2009    
Filed Under: 2009, Rachel Alexandra, Zenyatta, Rivalry, Fans, Racing

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(Sarah K. Andrew)

Much to the delight of this horseplayer, the Breeders’ Cup announced today that it’s finally adopting the standard saddle cloths! Anyone who’s read this blog for any length of time knows that this is an issue I’ve been whining about discussing for quite some time. So a hearty “Thank You” to Breeders’ Cup for listening to fan feedback and taking action!

The Breeders’ Cup made its decision to switch to the standard colored system following discussions with its Fan Advisory Council and with horseplayers across the U.S. and Canada and as part of the long-range planning being undertaken by the organization.

A big thanks also goes out to all who signed the Take Back the Race Petition last year. Because of the petition a few of us were lucky enough to be some of the horseplayers to meet with the Breeders’ Cup face to face to discuss many issues effecting fans.

Point 2 of the Take Back the Race Petition stated:

Create a fan committee representing the diversity of the racing audience to provide ideas and feedback on proposed changes and marketing plans to the Breeders’ Cup

The Fan Advisory Council, which they mention in the press release, is just that. I’m lucky enough to be a member along with Patrick of TBA/Handride, Ernie of TRNY, some HANA members and a wide cross section of fans and players. No doubt there are more changes that we’d all like to see, but the changes have started and there’s a mechanism for feedback and dialog.

It’s nice to have something to be cheerful about, especially in combination with some of the other recent unexpected good news. As Swifty is fond of saying, who deserves it more than us?

Posted by dana on Aug 11 2009    
Filed Under: Industry, 2009, HANA, Take Back the Race, :), Fans, Breeders' Cup, Sarah K. Andrew, Racing

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Zenyatta going to the post in the Vanity (crystaldiamondk2)

It’s very curious to me that the either/or mentality that has, in my opinion, cast a pall over our country is alive and well in racing in the form of Rachel vs. Zenyatta. Zenyatta fans, of which I count myself, seem to be a bit miserable this week after Rachel’s win the Haskell.

One Zenyatta fan writes “I’m not ready to jump off the Zenyatta band wagon just yet” while another posts a comment here at GbG “I will be the first to admit as a huge Zenyatta fan that all you Rachel Alexandra people must be whooping it up right now after two mind-blowing performances in the Acorn and Haskell…”

Jump off the Zenyatta bandwagon in order to be a Rachel fan? You Rachel people must be whopping it up? What?? I don’t know about all y’all but I’m on BOTH bandwagons and will be whopping it up just as much when the mighty Zenyatta wins her TWELFTH race a row as I did for any Rachel win. Why is the assumption that if you are for one you are against the other?

No doubt “Zenyatta fans” (who think that they must somehow be against Rachel in order to be a Zenyatta fan) are feeling left out of the fun because her connections have not chosen to give her any challenges worthy of her greatness thus far this year. I know I would have loved to have seen Zenyatta cruise past Rail Trip in the Hollywood Gold Cup (except that I cashed a nice ticket on him), thus proving what we all already know about her… she’s friggin’ fierce.

And no doubt Jess Jackson’s on going refusal to run in the BC has “Zenyatta fans” nervous that they’ll never get the vindication that they seem to crave. While I want to see the two of them battle it out just as much as anyone else, I’m with Gary West & Val (check out her new kick ass site!) on the BC issue.

But back to my point, which is NOT about Jess Jackson and the BC (I suggest you jump into the comment thread here, if you’re interested in that topic). If this either/or mentality is what the industry is so dying to convert to racing, i.e., sports fans, let me just say that I’m not a fan.

Update: Val at Fillies First expands on this topic while Jessica at Railbird provides a spreadsheet tracking Zenyatta and Rachel’s 2009 campaigns.

Posted by dana on Aug 07 2009    
Filed Under: 2009, Rachel Alexandra, Zenyatta, Rivalry, Fans, Industry, Racing

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Asiatic Boy and his long body (Capitol149)

Because I’m only doing posts about things that have already been posted about today, here’s a recap of yesterday at Belmont!

Swifty’s birthday has usually been celebrated at the track and this year was no different. Teresa had been trying to organize a birthday gathering at NYRA’s new Top of the Stretch picnic areas so I suggested to Swifty (out of total self-interest) that maybe we should get in on that action and have a co-birthday party. The results? It crushed the field.

The area itself was great, apparently it was so muddy that our little pen required some straw to hide the mud. This added a nice barn-like ambiance to the affair. There was a festive air amongst all the Top of the Stretch-ers. On one side was a group of young-ish folks who enthusiastically (and drunkenly) hooted and hollered regardless of the outcome of any race (although a couple of them seemed to cash big in a couple of instances) and what looked to be a children’s birthday party on the other side.

We had a great assortment of well wishers for our co-birthday hosts. Naturally, Papa Backstretch was in attendance, which afforded me the opportunity to try to get a little information out of him. After picking the winner in the second, he gave up that he liked the drop in class with the cut back. He even let me know which horse he liked with at least 5 minutes to post once (he must have forgotten himself for a moment!). No doubt I’ll be trying to get more info out of him in a couple of weeks at Saratoga.

Trying to spy on Papa Backstretch, who worked diligently as the party went on around him

Swifty’s crowd included some folks who had gone to the track with us before and some who hadn’t. Not only did everyone enjoy themselves, many seemed to marvel at just how much fun they had “I can’t believe I spent 5 hours at the track, and it was GREAT!” exclaimed one first time guest, who’s 5ish year old daughter cashed on Trusted Heart (pictured below).

Guests marked their beverages while a new chapter of Future Handicappers of America was started

Several folks cashed on name plays, including our grill master Dan who naturally had Dantastic. His wife, a martial arts enthusiast had a nice $73 score with Offensive Attack. She also boxed him with Hero Figure (”I like fighting”). The Ben in the group did not get as lucky as Dan with Just Ben, but don’t feel too bad for him, he also had Offensive Attack!

Yours truly had a somewhat lousy day at the windows. I was too busy eating hot dogs and chatting with all the fab guests which included Andy Serling (now on Twitter!), Dave Grening, Bill Tivenan & Cassandra Cook who authored the excellent Off to Flying Start (more on that to come!), Jessica & Mr. Railbird and various members of the NYRA press office.

It’s always a pleasure when Mrs. Swifty comes to the track as she’s a very knowledgeable horsewoman who’s great to have around during the parade. Fortunately for my quickly shrinking voucher, Dry Martini jumped out at both of us. I liked only horses that had done well at the distance (Asiatic Boy, Rising Moon and Finallymadeit) and was hoping they would look ready to rock in the parade.

Seeing Asiatic Boy’s odds plummet, I was very interested in Mrs. Swifty’s take… when he galloped by she made a somewhat delighted “oh!” and confirmed that he looked good, in particular she liked his long body (something I would never notice or even know why I should I notice). Ready’s Echo also stood out to both of us but I felt strongly that he couldn’t get the distance… but damn he looked good! I put him in a dime super with Dry Martini, Asiatic Boy and Rising Moon… almost!

No doubt we’ll be doing this whole affair again next year but we had a such blast that we were talking about doing it again in the fall. If you’re a local with a will to picnic, you should definitely book a day at the Top of the Stretch… and take some potential new fans, will you?

Posted by dana on Jul 05 2009    
Filed Under: Superfecta, Becoming a Fan, Payouts, 2009, Geldings, NYRA, Gambling, Fans, Belmont, Racing

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Zenyatta after winning the Breeders’ Cup (Aint No Joke)

Having just watched Zenyatta remain perfect at 10-10 in her 5yo debut in the Milady, I’m sure I’m not the only one asking themselves “Zenyatta or Rachel Alexandra?”.

Are they our Personal Ensign and Winning Colors? Will their first meeting be in the Breeders’ Cup or will some track smartly try to draw a very marketable match-up, like say in the Jockey Club or Beldame or Mass Cap?

One thing’s for sure, whenever and wherever this match-up occurs, you really don’t want to miss it.

Zenyatta in the Milady:

Rachel in the Preakness:

In our last poll, GbG readers proved to be on the ball by overwhelmingly thinking that Mine That Bird’s chances in the Preakness were better than he was getting credit for. Although 4 of the 53 votes came after the Preakness. 18 of you thought he had no chance while 17 of you thought his chances where decent on an off track. Perhaps the smartest of all were the 6 brave souls who said they thought he was Triple Crown material… time will tell.

Posted by dana on May 23 2009    
Filed Under: Zenyatta, Impressive, 2009, Rachel Alexandra, Rivalry, Poll, Fans, Race Replay, YouTube, Racing

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