Zenyatta assigned 129 pounds for Vanity

[ateamstupid]

Originally Posted by 2Hot4TV

I beleive thier sole purpose for bring Zenyatta out of retirement was to track down and beat the HOY, then Zardena did it for them.

They can't still "track down and beat her" if that was their sole plan?

[CSC]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

J Sheriffs

When the year is over she will have flown over the Rockies 2-3 more times than Quality Road or Rachel has this year, that's the reality of it.

[slotdirt]

Originally Posted by CSC

When the year is over she will have flown over the Rockies 2-3 more times than Quality Road or Rachel has this year, that's the reality of it.

I'll take the under.

[RolloTomasi]

Originally Posted by CSC

When the year is over she will have flown over the Rockies 2-3 more times than Quality Road or Rachel has this year, that's the reality of it.

Hah! Awesome.

So instead of recognizing the absurdity of the Rockies excuse, you choose to embrace it, as though it is an actual marker of greatness for a horse's yearly campaign?

Do you think they'll attempt to break the Donner Party's trans-Rockies record? I doubt it, but maybe I'll have to eat my heart out if she shows up out of town before the BC.

Oh, and don't forget the air quality in the greater Los Angeles area. That's gotta be a real life-drainer.

Forget Grade 1 races, Zenyatta's proving she's great just by standing in her stall.

[NTamm1215]

Just to be fair, Tim Wilkin wrote in his blog yesterday that the Hirsch might not necessarily be their first choice for Zenyatta.

http://blog.timesunion.com/horseraci...rk-maybe/4694/

NT

[CSC]

Originally Posted by RolloTomasi

Hah! Awesome.

So instead of recognizing the absurdity of the Rockies excuse, you choose to embrace it, as though it is an actual marker of greatness for a horse's yearly campaign?

Do you think they'll attempt to break the Donner Party's trans-Rockies record? I doubt it, but maybe I'll have to eat my heart out if she shows up out of town before the BC.

Oh, and don't forget the air quality in the greater Los Angeles area. That's gotta be a real life-drainer.

Forget Grade 1 races, Zenyatta's proving she's great just by standing in her stall.

I don't embrace it, I wish she shipped in for the Foster. Whether she ships now in the summer or in the autumn it doesn't matter to me as long as she is at the BC Classic in good form. I do see a logic in acclimating her in the east prior to the BC at either Keeneland or Belmont Park, and this may make more sense to connections in keeping her fresh rather than making one extra trip out east. It all comes out the same, if this is the case.

[geeker2]

Sounds like it's Del Mar to me - which is just fine for me


http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2...mar-in-august/

[Smooth Operator]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

Of all the monumentally stupid things Zenyattards say, this thing about being a six year old, to me, is easily the most asinine.

Firstly, that 2yo campaign Zenyatta had, I assure you, took nothing out of her. She ran a whole whopping ZERO times at 2.

She did, however, have a far more taxing race schedule as a 3yo. After spending nearly the first eleven months of her 3yo season not racing, she finally makes her debut on Nov. 22 of her 3yo season, then actually made a second start to close out a truly grueling 3yo campaign.

So, in effect, this is really only her third season of racing. Same as RA.

In case the obvious has eluded you, that means that by the time in RA's career that she had locked up the HOY trophy, Zenyatta, was still an unraced prospect, in her own respective career.

What do you think this is, moron, some pseudo-sport like golf or bowling where old fat guys can still compete with younger dudes on a given day?

All of these equine athletes will eventually lose a step or two if they hang around long enough … especially if they're past the age of five.

Pleasantly Perfect was another high-quality relatively lightly raced animal. Do you believe he was as fast in the latter part of his 6yo campaign as he was as a 5yo?

[NTamm1215]

Originally Posted by Smooth Operator

What do you think this is, moron, some pseudo-sport like golf or bowling where old fat guys can still compete with younger dudes on a given day?

All of these equine athletes will eventually lose a step or two if they hang around long enough … especially if they're past the age of five.

Pleasantly Perfect was another high-quality relatively lightly raced animal. Do you believe he was as fast in the latter part of his 6yo campaign as he was as a 5yo?

Pleasantly Perfect was a bad example. I always thought as much if not more of his 3rd place finish in the BC Classic in 2004 than his win in 2003. He received a dreadful ride from Jerry Bailey in 2004 and was really the only horse who did any running from off the pace in a merry-go-round race.

He also won the Dubai World Cup and Pacific Classic as a 6YO, so saying that he was better as a 5YO is kind of stupid.

NT

[slotdirt]

Pleasantly Perfect may well have been as fast the latter part of his 6YO campaign. He won the freaking Pacific Classic in August and - oh no! - lost to Ghostzapper and Roses in May in the Breeders Cup Classic. That is a perfectly retarded comparison.

[RolloTomasi]

Originally Posted by NTamm1215

Just to be fair, Tim Wilkin wrote in his blog yesterday that the Hirsch might not necessarily be their first choice for Zenyatta.

http://blog.timesunion.com/horseraci...rk-maybe/4694/

NT

Sounds like more teeter-tottering to me, probably the result of quick backlash for the carbon copy gutless SoCal distaff campaigns of '08 and '09.

Note in the Hirsch 3-peat article in the DRF, Shirreffs was already on the defensive, as he was apparently called out for pointing for that race next even though he's been an outspoken critic of the Del Mar racing surface since the installation of Polytrack there:

"I said I didn't want to train at Del Mar," he said. "There is a difference."

He's just covering his ass as far as HOY goes. Announcing the Hirsch probable start even before they run the Vanity (which was supposed to be the Stephen Foster back in early May---more teeter-totter) had to have marginalized Team Zenyatta with more than a few Eclipse voters.

[Smooth Operator]

Pretty sure that comparing PP's figures from '03 to those earned in his races leading up to the '04 BC will tell a different story, geniuses…

[RolloTomasi]

Originally Posted by Smooth Operator

Pretty sure that comparing PP's figures from '03 to those earned in his races leading up to the '04 BC will tell a different story, geniuses…

Yes, the 5yo Pleasantly Perfect was awesome.

He nearly got within 5 lengths of Congaree in the San Antonio and Big Cap. He ran one time prior to the '03 BC off a 6 month layoff.

[Indian Charlie]

Originally Posted by NTamm1215

Pleasantly Perfect was a bad example.

NT

Actually, it was the perfect example.

Smooth Operator consistently proves himself inept.

[slotdirt]

Take out that awfully weak version of the Classic in 2003, and there's nothing else about Pleasantly Perfect's 2003 season that was superior than his 2004 season. Then again, there's nothing about Zenyatta's 2009 or 2010 seasons to suggest to me that she wasn't at her best in 2008.

[NTamm1215]

Originally Posted by Smooth Operator

Pretty sure that comparing PP's figures from '03 to those earned in his races leading up to the '04 BC will tell a different story, geniuses…

Right, because he won the BC at SA it had to have been a better year, who cares what happened up to that point, right? It didn't matter either that he had a perfect trip in a race that unfolded the exact way he needed to be successful. That's a much better performance than a race where he ran against the grain of the track while chasing a horse who you yourself have called a monster. Genius.

And that's not even taking the rest of his 2003 and 2004 campaigns into question.

NT

[Thunder Gulch]

Originally Posted by Port Conway Lane

I don't disagree with any of what you said above. I wasn't trying to make excuses for their choice of schedule,I was only pointing out the reality of the situation. She is their horse and they have no obligation to anyone to run her against males or to ship her anywhere they feel would not be in the best interest of their long term goal.

If she stays healthy and continues the easy pickins schedule she will give it one shot at Churchill Downs in November,on dirt, and against males. If she does not win HOY shame on them.

But a lot of people will still freak out if she continues the current path and doesn't win. Much like last year, Horse of the Year isn't decided in a day. What happens if Quality Road continues to set track records all over and goes 6 for 6 before sitting out the Breeders Cup? I'll give it to you that if Zenyatta won the Classic at Churchill on dirt, it would probably trump anything QR could do short of setting 3 more track records, but which would really have a better year.

[CSC]

Originally Posted by RolloTomasi

Sounds like more teeter-tottering to me, probably the result of quick backlash for the carbon copy gutless SoCal distaff campaigns of '08 and '09.

Note in the Hirsch 3-peat article in the DRF, Shirreffs was already on the defensive, as he was apparently called out for pointing for that race next even though he's been an outspoken critic of the Del Mar racing surface since the installation of Polytrack there:

"I said I didn't want to train at Del Mar," he said. "There is a difference."

He's just covering his ass as far as HOY goes. Announcing the Hirsch probable start even before they run the Vanity (which was supposed to be the Stephen Foster back in early May---more teeter-totter) had to have marginalized Team Zenyatta with more than a few Eclipse voters.

You sound like a person that would rather grasp at anything to see Zenyatta lose rather than to truly see her tested at her best. If she races in N.Y or Keeneland and then stays out east, where she will just ship on down to Louisville, wouldn't this suffice your longing to see her to race outside of California, or are your motives one of just seeing beat or beaten up prior to the classic.

[CSC]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

Actually, it was the perfect example.

Smooth Operator consistently proves himself inept.

I think this post proves who is actually inept.

[slotdirt]

Am I the only who thinks it's more likely that George Bush wins a third term as US president than Zenyatta ever races in the Eastern time zone again?