While walking Rosie and Remy this morning, I ran into Leslie , who lives on Emerald. Leslie was upset. Bandit, her cat had gone out into the back yard this morning, and had a strange reaction to something in the far corner of the yard. Leslie investigated. It was the head, neck, shoulders and forelegs of a short-haired black cat with a small white spot on the chest. The legs were outstretched, and the head angled, as if the cat was sleeping with it's head nestled on its' legs. But there was no other part of the cat. The coyotes had killed and eaten it. The cat belonged to Lesley, who lives across the street from Leslie. Lesley came and identified her, and, while stroking her head, said, "I thought you were faster."
What an awful epitaph. I cried.
Friday, May 6, 2011
Three Hopeful Oaks Fillies
Florida-bred Holy Heavens
Ontario-bred Joyful Victory
Kentucky-bred Summer SoireeThe above photos are from The Bloodhorse
Run For the Lilacs Today
Thirteen fillies will contend to win the Kentucky Oaks today; the gate time is 5:45 EDT.
*Nine of the girls were bred in Kentucky, while Joyful Victory was bred in Ontario, Canada, Her Smile is from Virginia, Holy Heavens is a Florida-bred, and Plum Pretty is from Pennsylvania.
*The two chestnut girls are Lilacs And Lace and Holy Heavens. The three grey/roans are: Joyful Victory, Zazu, and Street Storm. The rest are bays or dark bay/browns.
*Zazu and Joyful Victory were foaled in February; Holy Heavens, St. John's River, and Lilacs And Lace arrived in April. The other eight fillies were born in March, so all are truly three years old.
*Summer Soiree is a descendant of *Forli, and as such, is special to me.
* Every single filly has at least two male ancestors who either won or placed in a Triple Crown race. Joyful Victory has a very impressive pedigree, with A.P. Indy, Unbridled, Icecapade, and Alydar as great-grandsires.
** I'm going to stick with my original three picks - Daisy Devine, Zazu, and St. John's River - plus I'll add Summer Soiree as my sentimental pick for today's race.
<^> NEWS ** Uncle Mo has been withdrawn from the Kentucky Derby, due to continuing gastro-intestinal problems. That means only 19 will start at Churchill Downs tomorrow, barring any other scratches.
*** I'll post my Derby picks after today's race is run, and I can celebrate a new 3-year-old Princess!
*Nine of the girls were bred in Kentucky, while Joyful Victory was bred in Ontario, Canada, Her Smile is from Virginia, Holy Heavens is a Florida-bred, and Plum Pretty is from Pennsylvania.
*The two chestnut girls are Lilacs And Lace and Holy Heavens. The three grey/roans are: Joyful Victory, Zazu, and Street Storm. The rest are bays or dark bay/browns.
*Zazu and Joyful Victory were foaled in February; Holy Heavens, St. John's River, and Lilacs And Lace arrived in April. The other eight fillies were born in March, so all are truly three years old.
*Summer Soiree is a descendant of *Forli, and as such, is special to me.
* Every single filly has at least two male ancestors who either won or placed in a Triple Crown race. Joyful Victory has a very impressive pedigree, with A.P. Indy, Unbridled, Icecapade, and Alydar as great-grandsires.
** I'm going to stick with my original three picks - Daisy Devine, Zazu, and St. John's River - plus I'll add Summer Soiree as my sentimental pick for today's race.
<^> NEWS ** Uncle Mo has been withdrawn from the Kentucky Derby, due to continuing gastro-intestinal problems. That means only 19 will start at Churchill Downs tomorrow, barring any other scratches.
*** I'll post my Derby picks after today's race is run, and I can celebrate a new 3-year-old Princess!
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Family
Those funny, weird white spots on Nedi are snow flakes. Photo was taken on 1 May 2011, Nedi's 13th-month birthday.
Princess Suki, a Samoyed, will be 13 years old next month.
This freckle-faced nut is me - 4 May 2011.Cinco de Mayo
The Irish kids are going to visit the groomer this morning, so I'll be walking them, and Lucy, this afternoon. Before walking, I'll see Dr. Pohlman about the reappearance of my fistula - how lovely! Our definite count of coyote kills now includes Bella, a Bichon Frise, and the Glovers' Maine Coon cat. Chiton, the local orange and white outdoors tom, has been seen. The Department of Wildlife says that they are receiving more complaints than usual about coyotes in North Boulder, but that there is nothing they can do. One of the male coyotes stood on it's hind legs, placed it's front feet on the window sill, and looked into a house that contains two Bichon Frises... That freaked out the owners!
My kits are doing well. Lovey insists that I get up as soon as it's light out, so I've been rising about 5:30 lately. She and Nedi want breakfast, and then they want to run outside and play before everyone else gets up and starts moving around. Of course, they have a good time chasing the squirrels and birds, too.
Robby Albarado, who is slated to ride in both the Kentucky Oaks and the Derby, was thrown from his horse yesterday on the way to the gate at Churchill Downs. The colt then stepped on Robby's face, breaking his nose, and gashing his forehead and eyebrow to the extent that he needed stitches. He will definitely be riding Animal Kingdom on Saturday, but his riding Bouquet Booth on Friday is questionable. ... And NBC has a neat little simulation Kentucky Derby race - they line up the past 20 winners of the Derby, and run them on a fast track. It's interesting to see the race and the results.
So far, my choices for the Oaks still stand: Daisy Devine, Zazu, and St. John's River. There is a 50% chance of rain showers for Friday morning, with a high of 70 in Louisville. There is a 40% chance of thunderstorms, with a high of 68, on Saturday. The track has had over 6 inches of rain fall this week. What will the footing be like for these races? If it stays dry, with no rain, the track might be fast on both days - but I don't know what will happen.
Hmmm... The Derby. Twenty young colts, who have never carried 126 pounds for one and a quarter miles. Who to like?
My kits are doing well. Lovey insists that I get up as soon as it's light out, so I've been rising about 5:30 lately. She and Nedi want breakfast, and then they want to run outside and play before everyone else gets up and starts moving around. Of course, they have a good time chasing the squirrels and birds, too.
Robby Albarado, who is slated to ride in both the Kentucky Oaks and the Derby, was thrown from his horse yesterday on the way to the gate at Churchill Downs. The colt then stepped on Robby's face, breaking his nose, and gashing his forehead and eyebrow to the extent that he needed stitches. He will definitely be riding Animal Kingdom on Saturday, but his riding Bouquet Booth on Friday is questionable. ... And NBC has a neat little simulation Kentucky Derby race - they line up the past 20 winners of the Derby, and run them on a fast track. It's interesting to see the race and the results.
So far, my choices for the Oaks still stand: Daisy Devine, Zazu, and St. John's River. There is a 50% chance of rain showers for Friday morning, with a high of 70 in Louisville. There is a 40% chance of thunderstorms, with a high of 68, on Saturday. The track has had over 6 inches of rain fall this week. What will the footing be like for these races? If it stays dry, with no rain, the track might be fast on both days - but I don't know what will happen.
Hmmm... The Derby. Twenty young colts, who have never carried 126 pounds for one and a quarter miles. Who to like?
- There are 5 Florida-breds in contention: Brilliant Speed, Comma To The Top, Decisive Moment, Mucho Macho Man, and Watch Me Go.
- Three of the colts are descendants of *Forli (which makes them cousins of my horse, Court Jester): Archarcharch, Master of Hounds, and Soldat.
- Five of the colts are bred to run on a sloppy track: Pants On Fire, Shackleford, Soldat, Twice The Appeal, and Uncle Mo.
- The horses' coat colors break down to: 1 grey/roan (Twinspired); 2 chestnuts (Animal Kingdom and Shackleford); 8 bays; and 9 dark bay/brown colts.
- Does actual age count? Watch Me Go was born in January; February colts are: Dialed In, Nehro, Santiva, and Shackleford; March colts are: Animal Kingdom, Archarcharch, Comma To The Top, Decisive Moment, Derby Kitten, Master of Hounds, Pants On Fire, Stay Thirsty, and Uncle Mo. April foals are: Brilliant Speed, Midnight Interlude, Soldat, and Twinspired. Twice The Appeal will actually be 3 on Tuesday, May 10; while Mucho Macho Man has to wait until June 15 to celebrate his true third birthday.
- Mike Battaglia, who is a great handicapper, has made Dialed In the morning-line betting favorite, followed by Uncle Mo, and Nehro.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
An Untimely Death & Derby Post Positions
Last year, Devil May Care's connections were riding on a thoroughbred high - their 3-year-old filly drew post position 11 for the 2010 running of the Kentucky Derby. Hopes were high that she would become another female winner; but she finished tenth. She was then given time off and pointed at the Breeder's Cup races; but in the fall, she was diagnosed with a non-contagious type of hepatitis. Devil May Care has been nursed and tested. She seemed better this winter and was shipped home to Kentucky; but her condition worsened last month. Yesterday, her tests were positive for lymphosarcoma cancer. With a zero chance for recovery, she was put down this morning, a year to the day she was entered to contend in the Run for the Roses. This is my goodbye to a gallant filly, who couldn't win this race.
> A full gate of 20 three-year-old colts were entered for Saturday's Kentucky Derby - actually, 22 were entered, but only 20 are allowed to start these days, based on money earned. The Derby is slated to be run at 6:24 p.m. EDT at Churchill Downs. A total purse of $2,196,800 is up for grabs with the winner receiving $1,436,800. NBC will have exclusive coverage of the Derby itself, on TV from 4 - 7 p.m. EDT; Versus will carry the undercard live from 11 - 4 EDT. With Toby's Corner out due to injury, I'll have to start studying pedigrees tonight to make my choices.
Kentucky Derby (gr. I)
Post - Horse - Jockey - Trainer - Odds
1. Archarcharch - Jon Court; Jinks Fires - 10-1
2. Brilliant Speed - Joel Rosario; Tom Albertrani - 30-1
3. Twice the Appeal - Calvin Borel; Jeff Bonde - 20-1
4. Stay Thirsty - Ramon Dominguez; Todd Pletcher - 20-1
5. Decisive Moment - Kerwin Clark; Juan Arias - 30-1
6. Comma to the Top - Patrick Valenzuela; Peter Miller - 30-1
7. Pants On Fire - Anna Napravnik; Kelly Breen - 20-1
8. Dialed In - Julien Leparoux; Nick Zito - 4-1
9. Derby Kitten - Javier Castellano; Mike Maker - 30-1
10. Twinspired - Mike Smith; Mike Maker - 30-1
11. Master of Hounds - Garrett Gomez; Aidan O'Brien - 30-1
12. Santiva - Shaun Bridgmohan; Eddie Kenneally - 30-1
13. Mucho Macho Man - Rajiv Maragh; Kathy Ritvo - 12-1
14. Shackleford - Jesus Castanon; Dale Romans - 12-1
15. Midnight Interlude - Victor Espinoza; Bob Baffert - 10-1
16. Animal Kingdom - Robby Albarado; H. Graham Motion - 30-1
17. Soldat - Alan Garcia; Kiaran McLaughlin - 12-1
18. Uncle Mo - John Velazquez; Todd Pletcher - 9-2
19. Nehro - Corey Nakatani; Steve Asmussen - 6-1
20. Watch Me Go - Rafael Bejarano; Kathleen O' Connell - 50-1
> A full gate of 20 three-year-old colts were entered for Saturday's Kentucky Derby - actually, 22 were entered, but only 20 are allowed to start these days, based on money earned. The Derby is slated to be run at 6:24 p.m. EDT at Churchill Downs. A total purse of $2,196,800 is up for grabs with the winner receiving $1,436,800. NBC will have exclusive coverage of the Derby itself, on TV from 4 - 7 p.m. EDT; Versus will carry the undercard live from 11 - 4 EDT. With Toby's Corner out due to injury, I'll have to start studying pedigrees tonight to make my choices.
Kentucky Derby (gr. I)
Post - Horse - Jockey - Trainer - Odds
1. Archarcharch - Jon Court; Jinks Fires - 10-1
2. Brilliant Speed - Joel Rosario; Tom Albertrani - 30-1
3. Twice the Appeal - Calvin Borel; Jeff Bonde - 20-1
4. Stay Thirsty - Ramon Dominguez; Todd Pletcher - 20-1
5. Decisive Moment - Kerwin Clark; Juan Arias - 30-1
6. Comma to the Top - Patrick Valenzuela; Peter Miller - 30-1
7. Pants On Fire - Anna Napravnik; Kelly Breen - 20-1
8. Dialed In - Julien Leparoux; Nick Zito - 4-1
9. Derby Kitten - Javier Castellano; Mike Maker - 30-1
10. Twinspired - Mike Smith; Mike Maker - 30-1
11. Master of Hounds - Garrett Gomez; Aidan O'Brien - 30-1
12. Santiva - Shaun Bridgmohan; Eddie Kenneally - 30-1
13. Mucho Macho Man - Rajiv Maragh; Kathy Ritvo - 12-1
14. Shackleford - Jesus Castanon; Dale Romans - 12-1
15. Midnight Interlude - Victor Espinoza; Bob Baffert - 10-1
16. Animal Kingdom - Robby Albarado; H. Graham Motion - 30-1
17. Soldat - Alan Garcia; Kiaran McLaughlin - 12-1
18. Uncle Mo - John Velazquez; Todd Pletcher - 9-2
19. Nehro - Corey Nakatani; Steve Asmussen - 6-1
20. Watch Me Go - Rafael Bejarano; Kathleen O' Connell - 50-1
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