The Fillies

OK. Osama bin Laden is dead. Let's get on with our lives and look forward, not back.
Friday Churchill Downs will host the 137th running of the Kentucky Oaks, worth $1 million, and run on the main dirt track at the distance of one and one-eighth miles. Final entries are not yet in, nor have post positions been drawn. But the pre-race betting favorite R Heat Lightning has been scratched from the race due to heat in her right knee. From a field that would have been seven (reduced to six), with R Heat Lightning's withdrawal, several more fillies are being considered possible entries. In alphabetical order, there are now 11 possible runners: Arienza, Daisy Devine, Her Smile, Island School, Joyful Victory, Kathmanblu, Lilacs and Lace, Plum Pretty, St. John's River, Summer Soiree, and Zuzu. Two of the fillies are grey, or roan: Zazu and Joyful Victory (my husband always bet on the grey horses).
As I have stated before, my favorite is Daisy Devine (since I'm Betty Devine, it just seems to make sense...). I also like Zazu, the grey, and St. John's River, a bay. Don't let St. John's River's name fool you - she is a Kentucky bred, as are all three of my picks. Daisy Devine's great-grandsires are: Runaway Groom, Moment of Hope, Halo, and Briartic. St. John's River's great- grandsires are Ack Ack, Stop the Music, Damascus, and Seattle Slew. Zazu's great-grandsires are A.P. Indy, Unbridled, Gone West, and Pleasant Colony. For the moment, these are my favorites.
**NEWS** Toby's Corner, my Florida-bred pick for the Kentucky Derby, has been scratched from the race. He was due to be shipped from Maryland to Louisville today, but it was discovered that he has heat in his left hock. He won't make it to Churchill Downs for the Run for the Roses.