Year of the Blue-Collar Horse

To contact us Click HERE
A post-Breeders’ Cup malaise combined with the arrival ofcolder weather and the end-of-semester crunch has left me uninspired. Can yousay “burnout”? I’m sure I’m not alone in admitting this and yet the sport feelscompelled to shove more and more racing at us. With the saturation point alreadyreached, I suspect other fans may feel as I do: if you take a break from it, it’seasier and easier to just forget about the sport altogether.

Over the past month, I’ve watched only a handful of races (includingRapid Redux’s 21st straight winning effort)—and I don’t think I’ve missed much.Each time I looked at the Paulick Report or another industry publication all Iread was negativity. Federal legislation signed that could allow horseslaughter plants to reopen in the United States. John Veitch “grossly negligent”in Life At Ten incident. One of Rapid Redux’s Charles Town races beinginvestigated for impropriety. Jockeys injured. Promising contenders injured andout of action. Breakdowns galore. Enough! Let’s hope 2012 is a damn sightbetter than 2011.
Still, reflecting back, one of the most interesting developmentsover the past 12 months is the rise of the blue-collar horse, led by RapidRedux. Oh, the narrow-minded have vocally proclaimed there’s no way he isworthy of an Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year, but, honestly, has there beenanother horse more consistent or successful at what they do this year than thePleasantly Perfect gelding? In a year in which no horse—male or female—dominatedgraded stakes events over any surface or distance, why not make a statement andgive the award to a horse that was not only masterfully handled in terms ofrace placement, but also just flat out ran, giving his best effort each andevery time? Watch his races—this isn’t your typical plodder. No matter whatdistance, at what track, over what surface condition, and with whatever jockeyaboard—Rapid Redux did what thoroughbreds are bred to do: he ran, and loved doingso!
He’s not the only claimer or former claimer to capture theimaginations of owners or potential owners everywhere. How about:
Mission Approved: Claimed in June 2010 for $35,000, this7-year-old stepped up to finish a mere neck back to Gio Ponti in the G1 Mano’War a month later; he began this year with a victory in the G1 Manhattan. Sincebeing claimed, he’s earned $425,000 for the Chatterpauls.
Calibrachoa: Dropped into the claiming ranks last Novemberby owner/breeder Nelson Bunker Hunt and trainer Steve Asmussen, this 5-year-oldson of Southern Image was claimed by Mike Repole and trainer Todd Pletcher for$40,000. Over the past year, he’s made $334,500 including three G3 wins and twothird-place finishes in G1 events—the Vanderbilt and Cigar Mile.
Juanita: Stakes-placed as a juvenile, owner/breeder PaduaStables dropped this 3-year-old Mineshaft filly down into claiming company inFlorida this past winter, where she was claimed for $25,000 in March. For hernew connections she made $181,517, including a win in the G2 Indiana Oaks overG2 Fair Grounds Oaks victress Daisy Devine and G1 Frizette winner AZ Warrior.
Jimanator: Claimed in June for $25,000, this 5-year-oldBroken Vow gelding has earned $123,720 for his new owners, including a victoryin the G3 Fred W. Hooper Handicap at Calder.
I’m sure there are others—feel free to chime in. It’s notjust former claimers stepping up in class that made news this year. How aboutsome love for those blue-collar workhorses that just keep plugging away, like12-year-old West Seattle Boy who won four of his 12 starts this year, includinghis 105th career start? Or 10-year-old Ohio legend Catlaunch who won five ofeight starts, topping $1 million in 91 career races?
In an age in which far too many horses are retiredprematurely and barely race, as a fan it’s hard not to love a warrior likeAustralian G2-placed Mustard, a 14-year-old gelding who recently made his 126thlifetime start, or 14-year-old English-raced The Tatling, a multipleG1-runnerup who capped his career recently with an improbable win in his 176thcareer race. In case you missed it:

If you didn’t shed a tear at that storybook finish, youhaven’t a heart. These are the horses we should be talking about, not the injury-plaguedflash-in-the-pan industry insiders too often focus on.
While Havre de Grace may indeed win the Eclipse for Horse ofthe Year—and rightly so given her performances against Blind Luck and againstmales in the Woodward—2011 will not be remembered in the U.S. as the “Year ofthe Chick”—instead, long live the Year of the Blue-Collar Horse! Happy holidays, folks!