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We recently wrote about the possibility of I’ll Have Another sweeping the Triple Crown. So what if we’re getting ahead of ourselves. After 34 years (and we’ve been there through all of them) we’re entitled to think or dream ahead. So, does the son of Flower Alley have the ideal preparation and foundation for such a daunting task? Not if you go by ...

Each year, we go through the same routine, analyzing the winner of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) in an attempt to convince ourselves that he is the next Triple Crown winner. We compile all his attributes, enhance his strong points, and usually deduce that he can indeed accomplish racing’s most elusive feat. We start to get ...

In the 2005 Kentucky Derby (gr. I), Flower Alley (TrueNicks,SRO) was making very promising forward progress when his momentum was halted by the imploding front-runner Spanish Chestnut. Winner of the Lane's End Stakes (gr. II) and runner-up to Afleet Alex (TrueNicks,SRO) in the Arkansas Derby (gr. II) going into the race, Flower Alley was unable to ...

Tradition! As Tevye said in Fiddler on the Roof when his daughter went against tradition and asked to marry a lowly tailor, “Unheard of, absurd…unthinkable.”    For owner Ahmed Zayat, his Bodemeister went against tradition by blazing a half in a near-record :45 1/5 in the Kentucky Derby and still finished second, beaten 1 ½ ...

With Delaware Park and Monmouth Park both kicking off their live meets May 12, a question came to mind again: What is the status of a Mid-Atlantic racing circuit? The status is on-again, off-again talks among some racetracks that are interested in creating a circuit that wouldn’t eliminate overlapping meets but at least capitalize on the ...

Congratulations to Paul Reddam, Doug and Dennis O'Neill, Mario Gutierrez, and breeder Harvey Clarke on winning Derby 138. They were deserving winners, as Reddam puts a lot of money into the sport, Doug O'Neill has spent nearly two decades building a winning barn, Dennis not only has one of the sharpest eyes for horse flesh in the business but ...

Knowing this year's Kentucky Derby was likely going to be popular, set a track record attendance in sweltering temperatures--not to mention me being on call for work, and working late after the race was over. I decided this was going to be the first year I would miss attending the Derby since working at Blood-Horse Publications…that is until ...

Run a few hours before the Kentucky Derby (gr. I), the first English classic, the 2,000 Guineas (gr. I) saw Camelot pay tribute to his late sire, Montjeu. One of the most important sons of Sadler's Wells both as a runner and a sire, Montjeu captured six group one events, including the French Derby (gr. I), Irish Derby (gr. I), Prix de l'Arc de ...

(Originally published in the May 12, 2012 issue of The Blood-Horse magazine. Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions at the bottom of the column.)  By Eric Mitchell - @EJMitchellKy on Twitter In Thoroughbred racing not only do we laud the winner, we also recognize and give credit to those finishing second and third. ...

(Originally published in the May 12, 2012 issue of The Blood-Horse magazine. Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions at the bottom of the column.)  It’s a pretty good indication that a job is special when only three people have held it over the past 100 years. Raymond “Butch” Lehr, the third track superintendent in the ...