Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Monty — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:41:55 GMT

The best, no question, Zenyatta beating the boys in the 2009 B.C.Classic. Coming from far back, and weaving through traffic to outkick Gio, Summer Bird, Twice Over, Incredible, along with the great call by Trevor Denman, it does'nt get any better, and shut up a lot of bias who thought Zenyatta was overated ...

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

derbyfan — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 19:15:23 GMT

i have to say my goosebumps moment was watching mine that bird coming from last then sneaking along the rail to win the kentucky derby. i have watched that race over and over and am still amazed. hurray for the underdog!

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

derbyfan — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 11:57:23 GMT

i have watched the kd every year for as lng as i can remember. the most exciting was mine that bird run along the rail. i can and i have watched it over and over. i also have to add zenyatta in the bcc. i love her!

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Laura Peterson — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 13:24:26 GMT

Thank you, Steve, for your wonderful and heartfelt recollections! Since you are such a strong (maybe the strongest) voice in and for horseracing, and your readers are also horse lovers, might you sometime report on charities you consider worthy that support thoroughbreds and those who care for them?

As a huge fan of Dean Richardson, Barbaro's skillful and dedicated vet, I yesterday visited the website, at www.vet.upenn.edu/.../Default.aspx, of the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton campus, where Barbaro spent his last months in a heroic struggle to survive. It was a tough choice between its laminitis research fund and its Barbaro gift fund, but for sentimental reasons I chose the latter to help to improve the care for injured animals today.

The horses give so much to us that it seems only right to give back to them.

Thanks so much, Steve, for all that you do to give, both to them and to us, by keeping their memories fresh in our hearts and minds.

Happy New Year and may the horses always be with you!

Laura

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

GunBow — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 08:47:22 GMT

I was extremely lucky to be on track for many great races this deacde. In chronological order:

Tiznow- 01' BC Classic. I was shaking so much after the race, my legs went numb and I couldn't walk for a few minutes(I wanted to rush down from the 2nd floor of the grandstand to the winner's circle).

Azeri- 2003 Vanity.

Zenyatta and Rachel have somewhat eclipsed Azeri, but until these two greats came around, Azeri was my choice as horse of the decade. In the Vanity, Azeri was winning her 10th straight race(the streak would reach 11), her 13th of her first 14 starts, her 8th of 11 career grade 1 races, and did it carrying 127 lbs. This was the "A Train", "La Machina".

Smarty Jones- 2004 Preakness.

This is the race when he went from being the "good underdog story" to being the 12th Triple Crown winner(or so we hoped). It was a devastating performance, and a Preakness record margin of victory.

2004 Belmont.

That day was like no else. The weight of history permeated everything. The crowd of 120,000 had the grandstand literally swaying during the post parade and as the horses reached the starting gate. And the race itself could have hardly been any more dramatic.

Cesario- 2005 American Oaks.

The Japanese media and fans were out in full force, and the grandaughter of Sunday Silence delivered a tour d' force that had even the American onlookers in disbelief. Intercontinental, who would win the BC Filly and Mare Turf and the Eclipse award that year, ran earlier on the undercard winning the Royal Heroine, but she wasn't in the same league as Cesario.

Barbaro- 2006 Kentucky Derby.

The 06' Derby looked wide opening going in, and I certainly wasn't expecting any of the horses to dominate. But dominate Barbaro did, displaying speed and stamina the stamped him as a potential all-time great. Then, tragedy struck..

Ouija Board- 2006 BC Filly + Mare Turf

Ouija Board had already won the 04' Filly + Mare Turf and established herself as one of the great female racehorses in recent European history. The 06' BC was the cherry on top, as Ouija Board dominated a strong field with an easy but brilliant victory under Frankie Detorri.

Lava Man- 2007 Hollywood Gold Cup.

By this time, Lava Man had already established himself as one of the greatest "handicap" horses in California history, and was truly a living legend. He had won 2 Hollywood Gold Cups(he won the 05' running by a stakes record 8.75 lengths), 2 Big Caps, a Pacific Classic(sweeping the 3 races in 06'), and a gr.1 turf race. In the 07' Gold Cup he was trying to equal Native Diver's 3-peat in the mid 60s, considered by most to be a record that would last forever. And it wasn't just that Lava Man won the 07' Hollywood Gold Cup, it's that he did it by the slimmest of noses after appearing beaten in deep stretch. The win made him the first, and as of now, only horse to win a gr.1 on dirt, turf, and synthetic.

Rachel Alexandra- 2009 Kentucky Oaks.

Rachel's 20+ length victory left me dumbfounded. In a daze, I was telling complete strangers around me that we had just seen one of the greatest female horses of all time. Yet, I still can't believe she would then win the Mother Goose by 19+, and beat males in the Preakness, Haskell, and Woodward. The greatest season ever by a 3 year old filly in my opinion.

Goldikova + Conduit- 2009 Breeder's Cup.

It's not common that 2 horses repeat on Breeder's Cup day. Conduit's race was profound not only because of the repeat but also because of Presious Passion's amazing runner-up effort. Goldi's Mile repeat is more significant, in my opinion, due to the fact she is a female beating the boys, and had to win from an outside post and a wide trip. Goldi's an all-time transcontinental great.

Zenyatta- 2009 BC Classic.

What a race and what an experience! By virtue of winning the race, Zenyatta became the first female to win the Classic, blew by Azeri as North America's richest female thoroughbred, was the first horse to win 2 different BC races, and concluded a perfect 14 for 14 career. You throw in her amazing charisma, her unbelievable physical presence, her unique "antics", and her popularity, and it produced one of the greatest moments in racing history.

Ventura- 2009 Matriarch.

Ventura winning it for Bobby Frankel. Poignant.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

mark — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 02:39:37 GMT

I was standing on the Santa Anita apron when Zenyatta won the BC Classic. When Zenyatta angled out for room in the stretch, the place turned into a rock concert! It was strange seeing hard-nosed horse players acting like teen-agers! We all knew we were watching destiny. And when I got home, I couldn't get enough of watching the scenes on YouTube of Zenyatta's brilliance. I watch her BC race at least once a day.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Teresa E. — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 01:55:41 GMT

There's been many in the past decade, but there is only one horse of the decade, and that is The Great Zenyatta. If given a chance in 2010, throw Rachel in there and Zenyatta would do the same thing again and give us all the same goosebumps as she did this year. I wish they would bring her back one more year, hell, she's just getting going....

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

joe c. — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:54:41 GMT

I'm glad to see Funny Cide get a "memorable" mention. Back to back unforgetable Belmonts; when Durkin called "Smarty" entering the stretch "to the roar of 120,000 fans"...goosebumps! I had a great time at the 05 Belmont Breeders' Cup; no seat but nominal admission fee, and close to the stretch and winners' circle action. And yes, 2001 was surreal.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Ida Lee — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 20:04:46 GMT

Enjoyed very much reading your list. And yes Zenyatta being steered outside was an even more exciting moment than her actually winning. Let's face it - we were all probably stressed from watching Quality Road's meltdown and then Zenyatta looking rather rank and in LAST PLACE for most of the race. But when she made that outside move, I screamed my head off because at that moment I knew she's going to win (Gio Ponti going for it or not) and I'm witnessing history in the making. Wow I have goosebumps now!!! I also want to mention Big Brown one of my all-time favorite boys. When he got pulled up at the Belmont, I thought I was going to faint. I just knew he was hurt. When it appeared he wasn't, I was so happy that nothing else mattered. But some people were all down on him and it broke my heart. The way the Monmouth Park people reacted to him and showed so much love took away some of the bad feeling I had about the whole Belmont situation. I still have my Big Brown Bubble Head from Monmouth on display in my office.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Dona — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 20:02:24 GMT

Just received my DVD of Zenyatta's races from Hollywood Park. What a treasure! I can watch her run everyday from now on, reliving being there on the rail, as the Classic unfolds. Experiencing the shock of seeing her so far behind and then slowly she's weaving a path through the pack, scared to death she would be trapped in a wall of horses, then the realization she's being wheeled to the outside for her patened run, Treavors' call, the crowd roaring, me jumping and screaming, it's one of the most thrilling memories of my life.

Thanks Steve for giving us this 10 year span of your goosebump moments. If the next 10 years are as good, racing will rock!

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

da3hoss — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:12:58 GMT

Thanks Steve!

My 3 Lists:

Heart-Stopping Moment That Turned Out OK:

Quality Road at the BC

Warm-Fuzzy Moment:

Mine That Bird's connections handing out the Derby Roses to fans.

Afleet Alex's connections adopting little "Alex's Lemonade" as a cause.

Bob Baffert's little guy!

Humorous (in hindsight):

The race call when Rachel Alexandra broke her maiden: "and here's Rachel Alexandra at 12:1 pulling the upset win!"

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Jbruts — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:12:15 GMT

I think rachel really lost out by the Woodward not being televised on ESPN or the primetime networks. Her throwing Calvin Borel before the start and the way she fought back annd pulled away from Macho Again after looking beaten gave me goosebumps...

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Deacon — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 18:21:41 GMT

It seems that these blogs always come down to Rachel vs Zenyatta. I understood Steve's perspective on what he is trying to convey. What are the 10 best goose bump moments/ or 10 best breeders cup moments. Everyone's opinion is valued, that is what makes horse racing so special. It is the passion and how we were moved by each special race. many folks here continue to talk about Zenyatta's 2009 Classic win, they watch You-Tube over and over. We are talking about a 10 year span here, that's a long time. Hundreds of special moments. it is almost impossible to single out only 10. I think we tend to talk about the moments that are fresher in our thoughts.

Here is another moment to remember, Lava Man winning the Santa Anita Handicap, the Hollywood Gold Cup and the Pacific Classic in the same year. I would think that's kind of special. How many have accomplished that feat.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Mary — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 18:15:21 GMT

The replay of Afleet Alex stumbling gave me goosebumps, too and that doesn't happen with me very often.

On Preakness Day that year I had to leave to catch a plane immediately after the race so I didn't see the post race or replays. And in that moment when Alex stumbled real time it didn't look so bad to me.

On Belmont Day I was not going to bet Alex to win because I wasn't convinced he had the grit to get 12 furlongs. But a few minutes later they showed the replay of his Preakness stumble.

It was the first time I saw just how bad it was, with him almost going to his knees. Needless to say I reversed my earlier betting decision and put all my money on Alex.

Sorry for the ramble but seeing that replay two weeks later was the most memorable goosebump moment of the decade for me.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Steve Haskin — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 17:54:40 GMT

DaHoss, one final list today, so feel free to share all your lists.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Amalex — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 17:46:11 GMT

Mary-

Okay first of all, the Woodward was a FANTASTIC race. Second, Rachel did not "Stagger" across the finish line. And third, Calvin Borel did not have to use the crop on her anymore than what anyother jockey would use. Think of the facts, Rachel Alexandra won the Oaks by 20+ lengths, became the first FILLY in some years to win the Preakness, won the Mother Goose by 19 1/4 lengths (beating Ruffian's record [I am not comparing the two]), won the Haskell defeating Summer Bird, the Belmont winner, and then won the Woodward against OLDER MALES. No FILLY OR MARE has EVER won that race. Keep in mind that she beat the other Triple Crown winners and that she also won a race never before won by a filly or mare. And Zenyatta won the Classic and stayed undefeated in a WHIMPY schedule. Never left the state, raced less the Rachel, on synthetics. All Zenyatta proved was that she was the best SYNTHETIC race horse. I know that she was the first mare to ever win the Classic. But she was 5. Rachel was 3, racing against older, not younger males, and became the first filly to ever win that race. Rachel gets my vote and should get everybody else's. She worked harder and won.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Don in Massachusetts — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 17:18:22 GMT

Steve,

Thanks for sharing your "Best Goosebumps Moments" with us.

I was fortunate to be at the Woodward and the memory and experience of that race is as vividly strong today as it was in September. The feelings, excitement, and the shear wall of sound remains with me today. I have never experienced the shared joy and commaderie among so many strangers before or since.

How blessed we all are to be living in these historic racing times and to be witnesses to some of the greatest horses. Future generations will indeed envy us!

Thank you, Steve, for all you do for us, and A Happy, Healthy 2010 to you, your family, and to all racing fans. May the goosebump moments continue!!!

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

da3hoss — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:36:35 GMT

Steve, most humorous, too. I've got a great one for that...;-)

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

sweptclean — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:35:58 GMT

Mine: Watching Ouija Board and Intercontinental gallop out together after the finish of the 2005 Breeders Cup Filly & Mare Turf, where Intercontinental blazed her way to the finish line. The sight of those two great mares galloping out side by side is one I'll never forget.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

da3hoss — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:08:40 GMT

hey Steve, I hope you do a "heart-stopping moment" and "warm fuzzy moment"...I have mine right on the tip of my keyboard!

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

LDP — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 14:42:36 GMT

I agree with Paseana, about widening margins can be just as electric as and epic battle between two horses. For me, that widening margin was in Curlin's DWC. That and his BCC, both such powerful performances.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Soldier Course — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:29:05 GMT

Tiznow 1310:

I too felt goosebumps immediately after Smarty Jones won the 2004 Preakness, when Tom Durkin said, "This. Is. Special." He was letting us know he thought Smarty would be Number Twelve. Years later I heard him say he almost marked the rail at Belmont Park for 31 lengths, the night before he called the 2004 Belmont Stakes. I got goosebumps then, too.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

hoofprintsandhorseplay — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 13:06:18 GMT

After watching all of Zenyatta's and Rachel's races again from 2009 , I must concur - Zenyatta's BC Classic was #1 and RA Woodward was #2.

Sitting by myself watching these races over this weekend gave me incredible goose bumps once again.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

Steve Haskin — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 12:47:56 GMT

This list is not about a great race or a great stretch duel. Those were discussed on previous lists. This is about a singular moment in time. Of the first three on this list, two occurred after a race and one was a split second realization during a stretch run. It was not about a Tiznow -- Sakhee stretch run, but only the split second Tiznow battled back and regained the lead. The Rags--Curlin duel was a prolonged stretch run that was ranked high up there on other lists more pertinent. Again, these are based solely on what I was feeling at one particular moment; not the excitement level of a particular stretch long battle.

re: Best Goosebump Moments / Favorite Breeders' Cup Experiences

seattleslewfan77 — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 12:47:13 GMT

I was at the Woodward and heartily concur with you, Steve. I've never seen anything so amazing, live. Rachel made history. I watched Zenyatta in the Classic and wished I could've seen that live. And the best thing is, you don't have to take sides. These two incredible animals have provided enough goosebumps to last a long time.