Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

PomDeTerre — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 18:44:28 GMT

To Pedigree Ann- It's quite one thing to voice your highly slanted opinions. It's quite another to do so with manners and dignity, something your messages all tastelessly lack.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Pedigree Ann — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 15:21:51 GMT

Since my previous mailing hasn't been posted, I will respond again to Bet Twice. MY POINT was that Zenyatta didn't need inaccurate exaggerations to ensure her place in history. She has already done that quite nicely, thank you.

And the dismissive attitude toward Kincsem is offensive. She was the champion of Europe; she won her era's version of the Arc 3 times in a row. The locations at which she won races are now in 7 different countries. And before WWI, Hungarian breeding and racing was second to none on the Continent.

If the Zenyatta fanatics are going to claim 'all-time records' and 'greatest of all time', comparing with horses of other eras is not out of bounds, IMHO. What does 'all-time' mean otherwise?

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Bellwether — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 07:56:48 GMT

WHERE IS THE TRA & CHRIS SCHERF WHEN WE NEED THEM???...KNOT A PEEP...THE ANIMALS & THE GAMBLER$ GET $CREWED AGAIN???...TIME TO BRING N THE FED TOO...THIS CRAP LOOKS LIKE WALL STREET...PERIOD...STAND BUY BABY!!!...ty...

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Lorri — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 03:55:58 GMT

I'm not gonna comment here Tom. You got some scary dudes with even scarier opinions. I'm off to Jason's blog. It's more gentle, and if he's talkin 'bout Uncle Mo.....well I'm there.

Took me half a day to read all these comments and it still boils down to..

1. Those that love Z

2. Those that hate Z

Give it a rest people. Next year we'll have a new horse to love or hate.

And BTW there is no horse on this earth worth hating. They give their all. Shame there's not more people like them.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Mike Relva — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 21:38:07 GMT

RANAGULZION

Don't know what world you're living in, but horses don't fall from the sky that almost went 20-0!

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Bellwether — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 13:07:40 GMT

ps...LET ME GET THIS STRAIGHT ALSO...THE LARGE CAPS IS FOR OLD & OLDER FARTS LIKE ME THAT CAN HARDLY SEE...EXPO$URE...EXPO$URE...EXPO$URE...FOR "THE GREATE$T GAME ON EARTH"...HAPPY HOLLAR DAYS TO ALL!!!...ty...

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

WinnahPickah — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 12:32:17 GMT

I'd like to see the Breeders' Cup continue to move around.

Weather is dicey in November throughout most of the country. Ain't nothin' nobody can do about that.

Can Calder, Gulfstream, or even Hialeah accomodate a BC?

Never been, don't know much about the tracks, other than the usual "bias stuff'."

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Terri — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 00:17:36 GMT

We've been to Churchill Downs for the last two Breeders' Cups they've had there. I told my husband that we're not going back to the Breeders' Cup 'til it's in California, Florida or Texas again. It was bitterly cold by the time of the Ladies' Classic on Friday night and I would have left early if it hadn't been such a big race. It was impossible to get good photos of either the Ladies Classic or Classic because it was so dark. Please bring it back to California!

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Bellwether — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 11:07:41 GMT

SPEAKING OF HEADS HERE...SOME BETTER FALL OVER THIS HOLE STINKING MESS N KENTUCKY @ churchill...P.E.T.A. IN NORFOLK VIRGINIA IS JUST A SHOT AWAY...THE JUICE'N OF RACEHORSES N AMERCIA WILL BE A FELONY WITH JAIL TIME IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE...ASK MIKE VICK ABOUT THAT...ANIMAL ABUSE IS A FELONY & A SHAME ON U...GET IT RITE NOW PEOPLE OR THE "BELL WILL" DO IT FORE U..."THE GAME IS NOT GO N' DOWN THE TUBES...WE LOVE IT TOO MUCH...LONG LIVE THE HORSE BABY!!!...ty...

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Johnny — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 22:57:30 GMT

Zookeeper; you are 100% correct.

I think Jason signed in using the wrong name, he was suppose to use his alter ego Draynay.

Z horse of a lifetime.

LAL retired people will realize what a gift Z was.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Ranagulzion — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 21:42:20 GMT

Bet Twice, Mike Relva, Zookeeper,

None of us know the future. Horse racing is very risky and many potentially great horses falter because of injury (most recent example being Eskendereya) but who's to tell that Uncle Mo, Awesome Feather or some other unknown quantity won't emerge next year to set the world alight. Let's wish the budding stars best of health and hope that their connections are more enterprising than Zenyatta's (while doing right by the horse).

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Soldier Course — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 20:30:37 GMT

Shuvee:

You highlight a point that is very much worth noting: Zenyatta brought massive attention to racing outside the context of the Triple Crown series.

Another rare thing about Zenyatta: How many other deep closers have even approached her 19-1 record?

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Johnny — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 17:59:22 GMT

Boo Hoo I write a blog and people disagreee with me.

HOTY is a fake award.

One year the BCC does not matter the next it does.

Azeri gets it but not Z is not worthy? Please.

Where is the integrity of the award?

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Zookeeper — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 05:23:11 GMT

Bet Twice - That's exactly what I was thinking: a bird in the hand. I'm glad you understood my point, not too many did. Like you, I fail to see the relevance of bringing up horses of yore and/or of other continents to deny Zenyatta the accolades she deserves for three wonderful years of racing in America. But... what you gonna do?

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Leon — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 02:57:42 GMT

Mike Relva,

If you are satisfied with the system in place, why do you always complain about a bias in the HOTY voting?

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Bet Twice — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 02:46:15 GMT

Shuvee,

Agreed, if Mo wins the Triple Crown, its another story. I would love to see a TC winner, but the last 30+ years suggest I shouldn't count on it (similar to the nearly 30 years it took for a mare to win the BCC).

My point wasn't to call out Uncle Mo but to suggest, as Zookeeper did, that Zenyattas don't show up in racing every year and even very brilliant racehorses often don't stick around as long as she did and race as consistently. Its really the whole bird in hand argument which Zookeeper covered beautifully.

Pedigree Ann,

You are right, we should never forget the accomplishments of a Hungarian mare from the 1870's or a Puerto Rican horse that raced in the 1950's. Whether or not the comparison between their race records and Zenyatta's is at all relevant is another question. Neither Kincsem nor Camamero ever raced in the U.S. Camamero only raced in Puerto Rico and Kincsem raced primarily in her own country, which was then Austria-Hungary. Its problematic to compare Zen's record with Citation or Cigar, but not because of a horse from the 1870's. Clearly you are interested in horse racing, how about comparing apples to apples for a change.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Mike Relva — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 22:55:01 GMT

SLEW

Totally agree with your comments. Without Zenyatta and RA, let's see if we have those thousand-plus blog comments.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Zookeeper — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 22:15:00 GMT

Slew - You're talking to deaf ears but thanks anyway for making sense and keeping it truly real. :)

Another thing I've been dying to say to all who ridicule the emotional fans: You should be grateful to them, in this pari-mutuel world you got their money. So you should thank them instead of making fun of them. In fact, you should praise them for their lack of realism and their meager $2 souvenir tickets. After all, they contributed to your enormous winnings, didn't they? The more emotional they get, the richer you are... so what's your beef?

When they are gone, you will be left betting against people who are just as brilliant as you are and their money is not as easy to get. Best of luck to all!

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Slew — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 21:44:28 GMT

I have to paraphrase a bit...when you take out Oprah, and 60 Minutes, and media sensationalism what do you have? Same thing you had before Rachel and Zenyatta started lighting up the stage...a dying sport with no media coverage.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

JerseyTom — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 20:37:52 GMT

From the writer to Wager for Tom: I don't do the gambling thing on this blog. ... But I wouldn't mind a Pirates cap, and I do believe Laurel will race next year. The question is, what constitutes a "real" meet????

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Mike Relva — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 20:30:00 GMT

LEON

Guess the reason of this year's ratings for Breeders' Cup being up 180 percent was because of Blame? Right. lol

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Soldier Course — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 20:26:53 GMT

Brokentree:

Breeders' Cup has been bragging about its figures for this year's event: attendance, handle, TV ratings, etc. All up. Take away Zenyatta and "the emotions of the fans" and see what those figs would look like.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Brokentree — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 19:09:34 GMT

jshandler wrote: "It's rather simple if you just keep it to facts and not let the emotions of the fans take over"

There you have it--the fans mean nothing.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Zookeeper — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 18:38:59 GMT

jshandler,

Isn't having your own blog enough for you? Tom wrote of many things on this blog, yet the one you chose to comment on is the darn award??? I guess obsession is not restricted to fans of Zenyatta.

re: Things That Make You Go Hmmmm (6)

Wager for Tom — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 16:18:35 GMT

Tom, can we do a friendly wager on whether Laurel Park will conduct a real meet next year? I say NO! Perhaps we can wager a Reds hat vs. a Pirates hat???