The field for the $1 million, 1 1/8 mile race, in post-position order, with jockeys, and Friday's morning-line odds:
1—Joyful Victory, Mike Smith, 5-2
2—Lilacs and Lace, Javier Castellano, 12-1
3—Summer Soiree, Gabriel Saez, 5-1
4—Kathmanblu, Julien Leparoux, 4-1
5—Suave Voir Faire, Miguel Mena, 50-1
6—Zazu, Joel Rosario, 4-1
7—Her Smile, Garrett Gomez, 20-1
8—Bouquet Booth, Robby Albarado, 20-1
9—Daisy Devine, James Graham, 20-1
10—Street Storm, Shaun Bridgmohan, 50-1
11—Holy Heavens, Kent Desormeaux, 50-1
12—Plum Pretty, Martin Garcia, 5-1
13—St. John's River, Rosie Napravnik, 30-1
My picks run from the 6, 9, and 13 gates; St. John's River will have Rosie Napravnik in the irons. Napravnik is the only female jockey riding in this year's Derby (on Pants on Fire). ** The Kentucky Oaks will be broadcast live on the Versus network on cable and satellite TV on Friday, from 5:00 EDT until 6:00 EDT.**
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
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.
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.
Monday, May 2, 2011
A Monday in May
I'm at home, the patio door is open, the sun is shining, and I just saw Larry Gatlin (of the Gatlin Brothers) on TV, and felt like I had been transported back in time. The "big news" for today is that Al-Qaida leader Osama Bin Laden was killed in a Navy SEALS assault on a compound in Pakistan. He reportedly was shot through the left eye, and his body has already been buried at sea (as Islamic belief is that a person must be buried within 24 hours of their death). The Navy folks took DNA samples. This is, indeed, good news. But I want the DNA proof. - And will there be retaliatory strikes against innocent people and nations?
> The Kentucky Derby weekend is closing fast. At the moment, it looks like there will be 8 entries in the Kentucky Oaks, the Run for the Lillies, on Friday, May 6. My sentimental picks are Daisy Devine (due to her name and the fact that she sold for only $5500) and Zazu. It still looks like there will be a full field of 20 on Saturday for the Derby, but only two of the colts who competed in the Breeders Cup 2-Year-Old race will be at Churchill Downs. One is Uncle Mo, the other is Stay Thirsty. My favorite is still Toby's Corner, from Alachua, Florida; I'm also looking at Pants on Fire, who will have a female jockey.
> My kits have been drenching me in love since my return home last night. Lovey is constantly rubbing all over my face, and Nedi wants to have his neck scratched. It's definitely different from having two yellow Labs lick every exposed inch of my flesh (and my jeans, my sweater, etc)! We snuggled together and slept together all night - Lovey under the covers, and Nedi on top. - With the sun shining through my glass eastern wall, and banking off the concrete patio walls, it's quite nice. Even though the thermometer says it's 34 degrees outside. I'm off in a few minutes to walk Rosie and Remy... Hope you have a good week!
> The Kentucky Derby weekend is closing fast. At the moment, it looks like there will be 8 entries in the Kentucky Oaks, the Run for the Lillies, on Friday, May 6. My sentimental picks are Daisy Devine (due to her name and the fact that she sold for only $5500) and Zazu. It still looks like there will be a full field of 20 on Saturday for the Derby, but only two of the colts who competed in the Breeders Cup 2-Year-Old race will be at Churchill Downs. One is Uncle Mo, the other is Stay Thirsty. My favorite is still Toby's Corner, from Alachua, Florida; I'm also looking at Pants on Fire, who will have a female jockey.
> My kits have been drenching me in love since my return home last night. Lovey is constantly rubbing all over my face, and Nedi wants to have his neck scratched. It's definitely different from having two yellow Labs lick every exposed inch of my flesh (and my jeans, my sweater, etc)! We snuggled together and slept together all night - Lovey under the covers, and Nedi on top. - With the sun shining through my glass eastern wall, and banking off the concrete patio walls, it's quite nice. Even though the thermometer says it's 34 degrees outside. I'm off in a few minutes to walk Rosie and Remy... Hope you have a good week!
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Happy May Day!
May Day is related to the Celtic festival of Beltane and the Germanic festival of Walpurgis Night. May Day falls exactly half of a year from November 1, another cross-quarter day which is also associated with various northern European pagan and neopagan festivals such as Samhain. May Day marks the end of the unfarmable winter half of the year in the Northern hemisphere, and it has traditionally been an occasion for popular and often raucous celebrations.
>As Europe became Christianized the pagan holidays lost their religious character and either changed into popular secular celebrations, as with May Day, or were merged with or replaced by new Christian holidays as with Christmas, Easter, Pentecost and All Saint's Day. In the twentieth century, many neopagans began reconstructing the old traditions and celebrating May Day as a pagan religious festival again.
>The earliest May Day celebrations appeared in pre-Christian times, with the festival of Flora, the Roman Goddess of flowers, and the Walpurgis Night celebrations of the Germanic countries. It is also associated with the Gaelic Beltane. Many pagan celebrations were abandoned or Christianized during the process of conversion in Europe. A more secular version of May Day continues to be observed in Europe and America. In this form, May Day may be best known for its tradition of dancing the Maypole and crowning of the Queen of the May. Various Neopagan groups celebrate reconstructed (to varying degrees) versions of these customs on May the 1st. The day was a traditional summer holiday in many pre-Christian European pagan cultures. While February 1 was the first day of Spring, May 1 was the first day of summer; hence, the summer solstice on June 25 (now June 21) was Midsummer. In the Roman Catholic tradition, May is observed as Mary's month, and in these circles May Day is usually a celebration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In this connection, in works of art, school skits, and so forth, Mary's head will often be adorned with flowers in a May crowning. Fading in popularity since the late 20th century is the giving of "May baskets," small baskets of sweets and/or flowers, usually left anonymously on neighbours' doorsteps.
>As Europe became Christianized the pagan holidays lost their religious character and either changed into popular secular celebrations, as with May Day, or were merged with or replaced by new Christian holidays as with Christmas, Easter, Pentecost and All Saint's Day. In the twentieth century, many neopagans began reconstructing the old traditions and celebrating May Day as a pagan religious festival again.
>The earliest May Day celebrations appeared in pre-Christian times, with the festival of Flora, the Roman Goddess of flowers, and the Walpurgis Night celebrations of the Germanic countries. It is also associated with the Gaelic Beltane. Many pagan celebrations were abandoned or Christianized during the process of conversion in Europe. A more secular version of May Day continues to be observed in Europe and America. In this form, May Day may be best known for its tradition of dancing the Maypole and crowning of the Queen of the May. Various Neopagan groups celebrate reconstructed (to varying degrees) versions of these customs on May the 1st. The day was a traditional summer holiday in many pre-Christian European pagan cultures. While February 1 was the first day of Spring, May 1 was the first day of summer; hence, the summer solstice on June 25 (now June 21) was Midsummer. In the Roman Catholic tradition, May is observed as Mary's month, and in these circles May Day is usually a celebration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In this connection, in works of art, school skits, and so forth, Mary's head will often be adorned with flowers in a May crowning. Fading in popularity since the late 20th century is the giving of "May baskets," small baskets of sweets and/or flowers, usually left anonymously on neighbours' doorsteps.
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