Looking for a way to Humiliate Your Horse? Have it Race Goldikova

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com, @AndyDisco on Twitter


Goldikova, the European version of Zenyatta or Rachel Alexandra kicked more male horse hiney today in England in the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes.




With her being a miler and Zenyatta and Rachel preferring more of a Classic Distance, I wish they could compromise and race in a 1 1/16th or 1 1/8th race, kinda like how Donovan Bailey and Michael Johnson raced in that 150 meter race.

I digressed, though. The point is Goldikova is awesome.







That's how I roll.

Oh Yee-uh Yee-uh Yee-uh

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com, AndyDisco on Twitter


Rachel Alexandra and Rachel Alexandra both race tomorrow. Separately. They are both prepping for the MONUMENTAL showdown in the Apple Blossom next month. Zenyatta hasn't raced since she shook up da worl' in the Breeders Cup Classic in November. Rachel hasn't race since she nearly blew the roof of the historic wooden Saratoga in early September at the Woodford Memorial.

My dream has always been: at the same time Rachel Alexandra races Zenyatta in a race with other horses (i.e. not a match race), while Manny Pacquiao boxes Floyd Mayweather in the infield's backstretch turn, while at the far turn is a steel cage match in a 100 yd. x 100 yd. steel cage that is 50% water 50% land that contains a lion, tiger, orca and a great white shark.

You have to dream big. You HAVE to.





That's how I roll.

Congratulations, Rachel Alexandra

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com, AndyDisco on Twitter


2009 Horse of the Year.

She received 13% more votes than female foe Zenyatta for Horse of the Year Honors. Zenyatta's win in the Classic was legendary, but she won on her home surface against a comparatively weak Classic field (especially since the best horses were not used synthetics). Zenyatta really had nothing to lose in that race either. Rachel on the other hand, raced against boys in Grade 1's, won a leg of the triple crown and beat the winners of the other two. In doing so, she put a lot on the line multiple times and had plenty to lose.











That's how I roll.

You Just Don't get it, do you Breeder's Cup? New Rachel Alexandra v. Zenyatta Possible Development

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com, AndyDisco on Twitter


Too little, too late. You are broke and offering money you don't have when this could have been avoided just as easily as it was created. Throwing more money at multi-millionaire to race his arguably-overworked horse over a disadvantageous surface is pipe dream.

The Breeders' Cup executives are bad at their jobs.







I'm T.R. Slyder, and that's how you Tangueray.

Zenyatta Still Aint Nothin' to Eff With

ZeBy: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com, AndyDisco on Twitter

The awesome Zenyatta is now 12-for-12 after winning the Clement Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar on Sunday. The finish was actually pretty close on this one. What I'm about to say will surprise you- I still want to see her race Rachel Alexandra even though it now appears that Rachel would be a decisive favorite. After seeing their last two races I think of Zenyatta as undefeated and Rachel Alexandra as a Superhorse.

In her last race out, Flashing, a 3-year old filly finished third (of three) to Rachel Alexandra in the Mother Goose Stakes on June 27th- beaten by a wopping 31 lengths. So what did she do in her next race? Won the Grade 1 Test at Saratoga.








I'm T.R. Slyder, and that's how you Tangueray.

I Basically Got Plagiarized by the LA Times

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com, AndyDisco on Twitter


I thought I was the only one who ever dreamt of seeing Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra racing against eachother. Either I am not, or I was plagiarized. I'm going with the latter.

It's a good article though, not just because it plagiarized a good article or 3 by me, it's good on its own merits.

The article came out today in time for Zenyatta's race in the Clement Hirsch Stakes at Del Mar. Thank god it won't be televised nationally, enough with seeing all of those 11-for-11 horses already.







I'm T.R. Slyder, and that's how you Tangueray.

YouTube Results

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com

Here is Rachel Alexandra kicking rear in today's 2009 Mother Goose Stakes. I went with "kicking rear" I could have went with any or all of the following: obliterating the competition, romping, blowing away the field, humiliating the other two horses, looking like a missle with a jockey on its back, giving anyone with a pulse goosebumps, inspiring ME to be a better female racehorse despite me being neither female nor a racehorse, etc.



Zenyatta's race isn't available yet. Here it is. This is what I like to call, "a strong late kick". She coulda won by more but chose not to. Kinda like in "Damn It Feels Good to Be a Gangster", when they say, "real gangsta ass 'n-words' don't flex much, cuz real gangsta ass 'n-words' know they got 'em." Also keep in mind that Zenyatta was spotting the field betwixt 13 and18 lb.s, which is darn-near unheard of.

Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta Both Won

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com

I'll post the YouTube replays of both when they are available.

This article from DRF.com was encouraging.

(This article is also worth reading. It asserts that Rachel is ducking Zenyatta)

I copied and pasted the article below.



Headlines | Posted 6/27/2009, 5:47 pm

Moss wants Zenyatta to face Rachel

By David Grening

ELMONT, N.Y. - Don't rule out a Zenyatta-Rachel Alexandra showdown this year just yet.

Saturday morning, in an interview on the "Down the Stretch" radio show on Sirius XM radio, Jerry Moss, the owner of Zenyatta, said "there's a good chance" Zenyatta would leave Southern California to race this year and that he "would very much like" to see his mare face Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra.

Moss said no decision on Zenyatta's schedule would be made until after trainer John Shirreffs assesses how the mare comes out of Saturday's Grade 1 Vanity Handicap at Hollywood Park.

Zenyatta scored her 11th victory in as many career starts in the Vanity. Rachel Alexandra posted her seventh straight victory with a romp in Saturday's Grade 1 Mother Goose at Belmont Park.

"Obviously, we take it race to race," Moss said. "[Shirreffs] is going to need a week to see how she's come through this . . . then maybe we'll say something about where our next start will be, and it could be out of the state for certain."

Last Wednesday, in a conference call to preview the Mother Goose, Jess Jackson, the owner of Rachel Alexandra, said his filly would not race in this November's Breeders' Cup because it was being run over Santa Anita's synthetic surface. With the belief that Zenyatta would not leave Southern California to race this year, that appeared to put an end to any possible meeting this year.

But Moss's comments opened the door.

"If the two horses are ready and at the top of their form, I would very much like to see a race between the two of them," Moss said.

There are a number of potential places for them to meet. There is the $1 million Delaware Handicap at Delaware Park on July 19; the $300,000 Go for Wand at 1 1/8 miles at Saratoga on Aug. 2; or the $400,000 Personal Ensign at 1 1/4 miles at Saratoga on Aug. 29.

Moss added that he shares Jackson's negative view of synthetic racetracks.

"It's just that I'm a Californian, I moved out here from New York a long, long time ago," he said. "I like the people. This is where I live. This is where I race mostly."

Moss suggested that one reason he would consider shipping Zenyatta out of the state is to help make her Horse of the Year. She finished second to Curlin for that award last year.

"We want to win that this year if it's possible," Moss said. "The horses have got to perform, every step has got to be the right one.

"We hope both horses do well throughout the year and we can meet somewhere."

Update: This is really an update by I didn't want to make a new posting for something so small. I just noticed ESPN.com's horse racing page. I've been more of a drf.com and thebloodhorse.com kinda guy. I'm going to add ESPN's page to my list of links in the margin.

Urine Luck: I'm Writing About Horse Racing Again

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com

Saturday will feature some great horses, namely two I love talking about: Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra. They will, however, be racing in separate races, much like they will be doing on Breeders Cup Day. Under different circumstances I would accuse Rachel Alexandra of dodging Zenyatta, but because the Breeders Cup will be run at Santa Anita over a synthetic race surface- which is Zenyatta's preferred surface, I don't blame Rachel's connections. With Rachel being a dirt horse, racing Zenyatta on her home track on her favorite surface wouldn't constitute a fair fight. Such a clash of the mare titans deserves a fair fight- and the unfortunate location of the 2009 Breeders Cup will be unable to deliver such a fight. It's unfortunate, but understandable.

Speaking of understandable, the 11 people who didn't understand why jockey Calvin Borel chose to ride Rachel in the Preakness, over Derby winner Mine That Bird, should understand today. Rachel is racing in a $300k race, while Mine That Bird will not be racing. She is installed as the 1-5 favorite in Belmont Park's Grade 1 Mother Goose (1 mile and an eighth) against 4 other, lesser foes.

13 minutes after the Mother Goose's post time, the undefeated Zenyatta will take on seven other horses in the Vanity Handicap at Hollywood Park (1 mile and an eighth). She is also the 1-5 morning-line favorite. I usually don't pay much attention to the weights that a horse will carry, but this race wouldn't allow me to ignore it.

You noticed how Zenyatta's race is called the Vanity Handicap. Not the Vanity Derby, or Vanity Stakes. The "Handicap" part is similar to a handicap golf tournament, but instead of using strokes to even the playing field, they use weight. The theory being that, they can even the field by making the better horses heavier and the less-seasoned horses lighter. Usually what that means is the big favorite carries 3 or 4 more pounds more than the rest, and the rest of the field varies by like 2 or 3 pounds.

Saturday's Vanity, however, is unlike any handicap I can recall. Zenyatta will be carrying 129 pounds (that's the weight of the jockey, saddle and added weight in the form of lead bars for the sake of adding weight). The next highest horse will carry 116, with the others carrying betwixt 111 and 114. I've never seen that much disparity before. I also cannot recall another horse carrying 129 pounds before- male or female, and Zenyatta is a female.

You can expect to see the races on this blog tomorrow once they're on YouTube. Prepare to be impressed again. I just hope these horses can somehow find a way to race one another over a neutral surface. For me that would be a dream match up. Much like some people dream of seeing a Cubs vs. White Sox world series, or a Kobe vs. Lebron/Shaq NBA Finals or Duke vs. North Carolina NCAA men's basketball finals, Zenyatta and Rachel head-to-head is my single biggest, currently possible sports fantasy.

UPDATE: Two horses in the Mother Goose scratched this morning. Rachel Alexandra will now be racing against only two other horses. Finally a trifecta I can hit! The most surprising thing about the 3-horse field is that its in New York and not California.

Update #2: This is a great, brief write up about Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra and how it's unfortunate that they won't be facing eachother anytime soon.

Daily Racing Form's Dan Illman Agrees With Me About Zenyatta

By: T.R. Slyder, TRSlyder@yahoo.com

After Zenyatta's stunning win in this weekends Milady Handicap, Dan Illman of DailyRacingForm.com echoed my sentiments about her superiority over the freakisly talented media darling, Rachel Alexandra.

***

With all due respect to "Superstar" Billy Graham, it is Zenyatta that is "the reflection of perfection, the number one selection." The Amazon, the freak, the scourge of the distaff division, Zenyatta is Beauty and The Beast rolled up into one divine package. Despite a wonderful ride from Garrett Gomez aboard the talented Life Is Sweet, Zenyatta wouldn't be denied. Again. Gomez dared Mike Smith to move Zenyatta through a narrow opening on the inside entering the final turn of the Milady Handicap at Hollywood Park on Saturday, and when Smith took the bait, Gomez almost put him over the rail. Undaunted, Zenyatta calmly began to build up momentum, and despite losing ground when wide turning for home, she steamrolled her opposition with the devastating ease that we've come to expect from the champion. Rachel Alexandra may have thrown down the gauntlet by beating males in the Preakness, but she isn't the mare to beat until she tackles Zenyatta.

***

Agreed.