Belmont Stakes, Epsom Derby

It's a wet, soggy three-day weekend and I'm at home.  This is the first time in 5 years that I haven't been house-sitting on this weekend; seems strange.  But that's OK - I have plenty to do to get ready to move.  This is also the weekend of the Boulder Creek Festival, and Monday will see the running of the Bolder Boulder 10 K race, right in front of my apartment building.  Brother-in-law Jim is supposed to be running this year, but between the weather and Kathy's illness, I don't know if he'll actually participate or not.
   It's now two weeks to the Belmont Stakes, the third leg of the Triple Crown horse races.  This race is run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York, over a dirt track with all of the three-year-old entrants carrying 126 pounds for a mile and a half.  For the majority of these horses, this will be the longest race they will ever run in their entire life.  Originally, horse racing consisted of races that were between four and six miles long.  There were so many entrants (as horses didn't begin to race until they were 4 or 5 years old) that the races were run in heats, and the horse that was declared the winner of the race ended up running that distance two or three times in one day.  It was a matter of stamina over the long haul.  Today's horses are bred for their quickness at much shorter distances.  Ah, for the "good old days" of 350 years ago....
  American Pharoah is back at Churchill Downs, and is training there for the Belmont Stakes.   It looks like Frosted will be joining him in the starting gate, as well as previous contestants Carpe Diem, Tale of Verve, Frammento, Keen Ice, Madefromlucky, Materiality, and Mubtaahij. Two new runners look to be Conquest Curlinate and War Story.  I will be very happy if we can celebrate a twelfth Triple Crown Champion this year.  And - if you're interested in the breeding of American Pharoah, check out this article in The Blood Horse, "Hail Hooper, Hyperion":   http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/91940/hail-hooper-hyperion
   At Belmont, it seems that Ziconic, Zenyatta's second foal, has a liking for the flashy Spanish Walk that was his mother's trademark:

And in England, the Epsom Derby will be run on 6 June at Epsom Downs.  There are currently 16 horses entered,, and the early betting favorite, Golden Horn, will have to be a supplemental entry at a cost of 75,000 pounds, if he is to participate.  Another possible supplemental entry could be the filly Found.  These 16 colts, in no particular order, are currently pre-entered: (1) Moheet, (2) Carbon Dating, (3) Best of Times, (4) Storm the Stars, (5) Pour Moi, (6) Epicuris, (7) Prince Gagarin, (8) Great Glen, (9) Elm Park, (10) Giovanni Canaletto, (11) Rogue Runner, (12) Zawraq, (13) Gleneagles, (14) Hans Holbein, (15) Kilimanjaro, and (16) Jack Hobbs.  The Epsom Derby covers 12 furlongs plus 10 yards, or 1.5 miles and 10 yards, The colts are all assigned 9 stone, or 126 pounds.

Bits and Pieces

The head and chest cold that hit me Thursday is starting to subside.  My nose runs and my lungs are full of gunk, and I keep coughing stuff up, but I no longer feel as if my head will explode each and every second.  Now the question is when will the sun shine and when will it get warm?  It's been raining for the past week, and the temperature have been running about 20 degrees (F) below normal.  It's 8:20 a.m. MDT, on May 20, and it's 36 degrees outside.  I'm in my apartment wearing a T-shirt, jeans, wool socks (and sneakers), and a cotton sweater - and I'm still chilly.  A large part of this is due to my cold, I know.
  Surfer Dude, my favorite Chincoteague pony stallion, had his death publicized in the New York Times yesterday.  It's odd how the love of millions of people can make a single pony famous - especially in death.  I bet his foals that are born this year bring high prices at the annual Auction of foals during Pony Penning at the end of July this year.
   My local horse track, in Aurora, (Arapahoe Park) will begin live racing on Friday, May 22.  They offer betting on races daily, and the live racing card will feature thoroughbred, Arabian, and Quarter-horse racing.  I just might have to go visit sometime soon.
   All the colts that ran in the Preakness Stakes on 16 May returned sound and in good shape, except Danzig Moon who had heavy coughing spells for 48 hours after the race.  Possible starters in the Belmont Stakes, run over the distance of 1.5 miles, with all three-year-old colts carrying 126 pounds, include:  American Pharoah, making a try for the Triple Crown championship;  three colts trained by Todd Pletcher, Madefromlucky, Carpe Diem, and Materiality; Mubtaahij, the horse with international connections; Tale of Verve, who finished second in the Preakness; and new-comer Conquest Culinate.  We'll see who is actually running as the 6 June running date gets closer.
   And, finally, both of Zenyatta's colts, Cozmic One and Ziconic, are on John Sherriffs shed row at Belmont Park.  Cozmic One ran poorly in his first race - finished last in a field of seven.  I think he was just having a good time, out playing, in the afternoon.  Hopefully he'll develop the need and drive to finish ahead of other horses.  Ziconic has just finished his breaking and training at Mayberry Farms in Florida.   Think the younger can teach the older what racing is all about?

Varied Photos

Ziconic, yearling son of Zenyatta, on his way to Mayberry Farm for training

Riptide (left) and Skylark, Chincoteague ponies

Curl crested aracari

Fall foliage near Steamboat Springs, Colorado

Golden hay and hills, South Park, Colorado

Thoroughbred Horses

The Grey Gatsby defeats Australia in the Irish Champion

Black Caviar and her new Exceed and Excel filly

Zenyatta and ZPrincess

ZPrincess

Ziconic

Cozmic One on the Belmont Park training track

Zenyatta & Her Breedings

Zenyatta won 19 of 20 races under jockey Mike Smith

She was bred to Bernardini first,

and produced

Cozmic One:

Tapit was the sire of

Zenyatta's second foal, the yearling

Ziconic:

 

War Front is the sire of 

this year's foal, a filly,

born Easter morning:

The Moss Family has asked for suggestions from Zenyatta's fans about

breeding her this year.

Giant's Causeway is my first choice.

Medaglia d'Oro is my second choice. 

Horses, Assateague Lighthouse, Chincoteague Ponies

Zenyatta with Mike Smith up.  Copyright by Barbara Livingston

Cozmic One, Zenyatta & Bernardini's colt, training in Florida

Ziconic, Zenyatta & Tapit's yearling colt

Assateague Lighthouse is having it's Grand Reopening Ceremony today 

Spring Round-up on Assateague, 11 April 2014

New Chincoteague pony foal,  11 April 2014