From Kentucky to New York to California to Maryland, there were Kentucky Derby works galore the past two days....
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Welcome to the 2014 Kentucky Derby....
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With California Chrome's trainer Art Sherman being thrust into the Kentucky Derby spotlight at age 77, so too will the great Swaps, as Sherman was the immortal Cal-bred's regular work rider and accompanied the colt cross-country by train to Louisville, Ky. for the Derby, where he slept in the straw next to the horse. ...
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Check off the horses who have shown they want to come from a half-dozen lengths back or farther....
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A couple of years ago, I wrote the back story of Mine That Bird's amazing Triple Crown journey. Now, with the motion picture '50-1' having its premiere in Albuquerque, N.M. Wednesday, March 19, I have added to it (and it is quite lengthy) in an effort to tell the entire story as I witnessed it....
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It was 25 years ago this spring. There hadn't been a sweep of the Triple Crown in what then seemed to be an interminable 11 years. Racing fans had been spoiled by the Roaring Seventies when three horses swept the Crown and two others captured the first two legs. And on three other occasions, a horse won either the Derby and Belmont or Preakness and Belmont. So in eight of the 10 years, a horse captured two legs of the Triple Crown....
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If you can imagine those parental feelings of pride a breeder gets watching their foals develop into tough, finely chiseled athletes, try to take it one step farther and imagine how they feel when one of those foals narrowly escapes death days after being born, becomes a sought after yearling, and eventually matures into one of the leading Kentucky Derby contenders. ...
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In "A Midsummer Night's Dream," Puck, also known as Robin Goodfellow, was an impish character who was always causing mischief....
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We've already seen some stress and low tolerance building in the camp of one of the leading Kentucky Derby hopefuls....
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With a Derby Dozen teaser, Steve Haskin talks about Fappiano and his son Unbridled....
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It is November and that means T-Time -- Thanksgiving, Turkey....Twin Spires?...
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If this year's Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands and Preakness Stakes taught us anything it is that Thoroughbred racing has its own unique way of transporting the past into the present, recycling great achievements and sometimes surpassing them....
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10 questions to inspire thought....
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Don't be surprised if two of the participants, who could go off as the two top choices, begin gaping at each other, as two childhood playmates might do meeting years later....
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The day finally had arrived. Everything had gone perfectly for Orb and trainer Shug McGaughey...
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You want Derby works, boy do we have Derby works. A total of eight Derby horses had their final drills Saturday morning, many of them moved up a day due to the impending rain expected later today and tomorrow....
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If there is one thing we've learned from the new points system, it's that you're playing with fire by skipping the 50-point races and going straight from the wee little 10-pointers to the big, bad 100-pointers....
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The Kentucky Derby is like a mountain. It never changes and never withers with time. But in some ways it does change, as every year, new climbers gather on its slopes and attempt to reach the summit, disregarding the many perils along the way....
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Patton vs. Rommel! Lee vs. Meade! Washington vs. Cornwallis! Pletcher vs. Baffert? Yes, the armies are massing and they could confront each other on the banks of the Ohio on the first Saturday in May....
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The Kentucky Derby graded earnings system is gone, thank goodness. No more one-time 2-year-old hotshots getting a free pass and riding the gravy train all the way to Louisville. Those lucrative 2-year-old races no longer will get you a starting berth in the Derby, although we feel some tweaking is needed to separate the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, Champagne, and FrontRunner from the other 10-point juvenile races...
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Not everything on the Derby trail is what it seems. There are so many twists and turns it is often futile to plot a course and expect every step to go as planned. This applies to everyone, not just trainers and owners....
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New Year's Day has come and gone and that means the race for the Kentucky Derby has begun. Some are ready to become immersed in it, while others aren't quite ready to smell the roses and taste the mint juleps this early in the year....
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The Kentucky Derby trail and short memories go hand in hand. Remember not too long ago when Mark Valeski was the next up-and-coming star, grabbing everyone's attention with his gutsy nose defeat to El Padrino in the Risen Star Stakes (gr. II)? ...
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This year's Kentucky Derby contenders are so evenly matched, there is a good possibility the winner will be determined by who gets the best trip and/or the best ride....
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My Adonis to take on Hansen again in Gotham Stakes....
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