Thoroughbred Beat

THOROUGHBRED BEAT

DECEMBER 28, 2005

New Year's wishes

by James Scully

Triple Crown winner -- We're due a big celebration. There have been

many close calls over the past 27 years, but no horse has been able to sweep the

Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978. The Triple Crown is special, one of the

most difficult prizes to accomplish in all of sports, and Thoroughbred racing is

lucky to have such a grand tradition. That's why it's surprising to hear cries

for changes, like lessening the distances or spacing the races farther apart,

because making the task easier would only cheapen the series. This sport needs

to guard its most cherished institutions, not break them down. There are at

least four extremely promising classic prospects at this early stage -- STEVIE

WONDERBOY (Stephen Got Even), FIRST SAMURAI (Giant's Causeway), BLUEGRASS CAT

(Storm Cat) and PRIVATE VOW (Broken Vow) -- and others will emerge over the next

couple of months. Belmont Park is the place to be when the Triple Crown is on

the line. It's a fantastic experience regardless of the outcome, but I'd like to

celebrate a crowning achievement for a change.

Healthy -- So many top horses had their racing careers cut short by

injury in 2005 (Afleet Alex, Ghostzapper, Kitten's Joy, Roses in May, Southern

Image, Eddington, Smuggler, Madcap Escapade, Sweet Catomine etc...) that we can

only hope for a better 2006. Injuries are a big part of the sport, but there is

one trend that has become more common recently with usually disastrous results

-- running lightly raced horses in the Kentucky Derby (G1). The data is

overwhelming, horses don't win the Derby off only a couple of prep races and/or

a long layoff, but more trainers are taking the conservative

approach every year. The best example came this spring when Nick Zito, a

two-time Derby winner and one of the most respected Triple Crown conditioners of

his era, brought three of his five starters -- Bellamy Road, Noble Causeway and

High Fly -- into the grueling race with little bottom to them. Bellamy Road, the

Kentucky Derby favorite, raced only twice in the seven months preceding the

first Saturday in May and went to the sidelines following his disappointing

seventh-place finish. High Fly and Noble Causeway both tried to win the Derby

off a five-week freshening and were up the track at the conclusion of 1 1/4

miles. All three are winless with only one start apiece since the Triple Crown,

so the strategy of playing it safe before the most difficult test of their

racing career extracted a heavy toll. Horses entering the first leg of the

Triple Crown under adverse circumstances (layoff or limited prep races) are

usually nowhere to be found by the fall.

Keep NYRA -- The New York Racing Association (NYRA) has been dogged by

the New York State Attorney General and financial woes, so it's hardly been the

ideal model for track management, but do we really want to see Magna, Churchill

Downs or one of their affiliates take over Aqueduct, Belmont Park and Saratoga?

I don't think so. These two powerful entities are more like little children who

can't get along. There's simply no common ground -- Churchill hates Magna and

vice versa. Races from Gulfstream, Santa Anita and Maryland can't be shown on

TVG (Churchill's ally). HRTV customers can't watch races from Churchill Downs,

Arlington and Calder. It's a Cold War. NYRA responded enthusiastically to

the Attorney General's suggestions, cleaning house to eliminate any real or

perceived corruption, and they'll be on the road to financial recovery when

slots arrive at Aqueduct. Keeping the franchise with NYRA avoids the tipping of the scales between hated adversaries, and NYRA's

management is better now than it's ever been.

Uniformity -- Kentucky took a positive step in implementing new

medication rules this year, but the sport still needs a national policy that

restricts race-day drug use. The perception is still there that many barns have

an unfair advantage ("he's got the needle"), and international observers are

quick to slam U.S.-based horses as being "hopped up." There's no policy in place

for steroid use among sale horses, and our reliance upon medications is

weakening the breed.

Summer destinations -- Trips to Saratoga and Del Mar are the ultimate

reward for Thoroughbred racing fans. Happy New Year!