Big Brown and Michelle Nevin walk the shedrow (Sarah K. Andrew)

If you haven’t already, check out fellow TBA-er Fran’s recent update directly from Dr. Ian Mckinlay himself on the state of Big Brown’s feet.

Keep an eye out for another update from the good doctor tomorrow!

Posted by dana on May 27 2008    
Filed Under: Get Well Soon, Sarah K. Andrew, TBA, 2008, Big Brown, 3yo, Injury, Retirement Watch, Belmont, Triple Crown, Belmont Stakes, Racing

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Big Brown in the barn prior to the Preakness (rick samuels photography)

at the real prospect of a Triple Crown winner. I was over at YouTube watching replays of Secretariat, Seattle Slew, and others when this pops up on my RSS.

Then, over at Railbird, this rumor resonated with something that seemed odd to me but I passed off as my apparently new seasonal allergy induced drowsiness (which is irritatingly impervious to caffeine).

In an(other) article about how a mount for Casino Drive hasn’t been decided upon yet:

Desormeaux’s mount for the Belmont is unbeaten Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (G1) and Preakness Stakes (G1) winner Big Brown, who will have to outrun Casino Drive to become racing’s 12th Triple Crown winner.

Nobutaka Tada, managing director of Globe Equine Management Ltd. and spokesperson for Yamamoto and Fujisawa, expects a jockey decision to be made soon and said Take is one of the riders being considered.

…

“We will wait a few days to see how Big Brown is doing and how we are doing,” Tada said.

Desormeaux has ridden Big Brown in four straight starts, including a 5 1/4-length victory in the Preakness on May 17 at Pimlico Race Course. The Boundary colt previously scored a 4 3/4-length win under Desormeaux in the Kentucky Derby on May 3 at Churchill Downs.

Odd, right? I mean why mention that they’ll wait to see how Big Brown is doing? Perhaps I’m taking it out of context too much because the next paragraph goes on to quote Tada as saying that BB was impressive in the Derby and Preakness but that they brought Casino Drive here specifically for this race. But still.

Well, I guess I could have included a “He won’t make it to the Belmont” selection in my poll but even I wouldn’t have voted for that! I actually voted for “They’ll go after Curlin“, and I still really, really hope for that.

So, let’s hope Babe is right and that it really is no big deal… at least that’s what I hope (along with a full 3 yo campaign where he stays sound).

Posted by dana on May 25 2008    
Filed Under: Kent Desormeaux, 2008, Big Brown, Casino Drive, International Racing, Belmont Stakes, Retirement Watch, Belmont, Triple Crown, Racing

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Unimaginative, I know… but I needed a new poll and I’m wondering what you think!

He’s insured for $50 million and Dutrow/IEAH are making the calls with regard to his retirement date… after the Belmont do they call it quits, go after Curlin, will he even hang in there?

It was a tough long battle for the biggest problem in racing with Drugs and All of the above tied at 17 each. Breeding rang in with 10 votes, Lack of Centralization with 6, Greed with 4 and Apathy and Track Surfaces with 2. As always, thanks!

Posted by dana on May 18 2008    
Filed Under: 2008, Poll, Sportsmanship, 3yo, Retirement Watch, Injury, Let Horses Race

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In a word, wow. Not that he had the toughest of competition today but I think someone may have slipped a little Winstrol laced Kool-Aid in my “what am I going to do with an hour to post” beer.

And did anyone call Macho Again? I took a quick look around and didn’t see anyone call that one! It looked really good for Racecar Rhapsody but he couldn’t hold off the hard charging Icabad Crane and Macho Again. Too bad too, my strategy involved a series of tri boxes of Big Brown, Racecar Rhapsody and the field. I also had a much more limited series of exactas, that did not include Macho Again.

Back to Big Brown, I was impressed with how well he rated and how effortlessly he took over to ultimately crush the field. That’s one more thing to check of my “prove it to me” list… can he intentionally rate? Check.

The Belmont should provide an opportunity for him to prove the one last thing that I’d like to see (and just in time too!)… how will he handle some real competition? His only competition so far has been his post position in the Derby. Casino Drive should be the first real competition of the equine variety to cross his path. Bring it on!

In other news, besides missing the Preakness trifecta by 3/4, I missed the Dupont Distaff exacta by nose thus concluding a full day cashing no tickets.

Here’s a note of interest in the Bloodhorse article about Big Brown’s retirement plan:

When the colt will be retired is completely controlled by his owners, IEAH Stables and Paul Pompa Jr.

Do you think there’s a clause in the deal that nullifies it if he’s injured? Do you think the money has changed hands or does it change hands when he’s retired? In other words, who assumes the risk? Maybe they both do if there was some payment now with the balance payable upon retirement. If Three Chimneys assumes the risk it will be interesting to see just how sporting IEAH will be about it… clearly they could certainly count on continued purse money!

Well, congrats to Big Brown and Macho Again and West Point Thoroughbreds… now there’s a partnership group I actually like!

Posted by dana on May 17 2008    
Filed Under: West Point Thoroughbreds, 3yo, Drugs, Greed, Prove it to Me, Wrap Up, Pimlico, Preakness, That's Why They Call it Gambling, Breeding, Gambling, Retirement Watch, Triple Crown, Racing

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Racing right to the shed, Big Brown wins the Derby, but what’s the real cost in the long run? (Charles Pravata)

Hats off to Jessica for pointing this out…

Meanwhile, amid all this talk of improving safety and the breed, IEAH co-president Michael Iavorone boasted on Wednesday that a stallion deal for lightly-raced, achy-hooved Big Brown is nearing completion, and that the farms bidding for the Derby winner’s breeding rights included “one of the most widely recognized stud farms in the world” (Blood-Horse). All the outrage over Eight Belles’ unfortunate death, all the urgent discussion about what happened and what should be done differently, all the critics piling on Rick Porter and Larry Jones — I think we’re talking about the wrong horse, the wrong connections. Big Brown represents the racing industry gone awry, not the filly.

Boom, there you have it. Inspired by this I commented the following on the current Straight Up post, Safety First:

There’s another horse we all should be talking about as well… Big Brown and the implications of such a lightly raced horse with foot issues being put into the breeding shed! We can’t pay lip service to the issues by acknowledging we have breeding issues (among others) while we passively watch a horse that probably can’t even make it past 6 races go to the shed! Shame on everyone! Where is the outrage about this kind of greed? This is EXACTLY what creates more of the circumstances that we should be avoiding when it comes to safety. Wake up people.

I’m also saddened by the Jockey Club’s Health and Safety Panel. How can breeders be objective about issues with breeding? Four of the seven panel members (all men) are in the business of breeding horses. As my grandmother used to say, Jesus H. Christ on a crutch! (clearly we weren’t religious people).

In all sincerity, I hope Big Brown (and everyone else running) stays safe through the Triple Crown. I don’t have the best of feelings about it.

Update: My apologies to Dell Hancock for my erroneous (and moronic) assumption about her gender based on her name… sorry!!

Posted by dana on May 08 2008    
Filed Under: Charles Pravata, Greed, 2008, You Tell 'em!, Triple Crown, Breeding, Retirement Watch, Grrrr, Racing

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