Maybe it was, I dunno.

What I am saying was that it was a long way back behind RA in all three races, to the next horse.

Double digits in the first race back. Something like 5 last time out, then double digits again. If you remove the winner from those first two races, visually speaking, all three of these races look an awful lot alike.

I bet you even the speed figures will not be that far apart either. No doubt this will get the highest figure, but that was to be expected anyways, because of conditioning.

So, in other words, this race really didn't change anything in my opinion.

Yes, the RA of today most likely would have won those two other starts, but not by anything like what we saw today.

I completely agree with you. I don't understand why her natural speed isn't being used to full advantage like it was last year. It is almost as if they are set on having her engage in stretch battles so she can be better prepared to repel the challenge of a certain stretch runner.

Yeah, so can Blame run a little? I think so.

What are the odds of getting Blame, Zenyatta, Rachel, Quality Road in the same starting gate?

I keep wondering what it would've been like had QR been in the starting gate in the BCC last year (without the wigging out costing him energy, either). I went back to watch the starting gate incident which has its own videos up on Youtube. I had to pause halfway through because I knew what was about to happen with his mental breakdown and all that kicking--scary every time. It's like someone told him he was in the rodeo as a bucking bronco, not in the Classic. Did anybody give that assistant starter a trophy yet? Cash reward? I sure hope someone said something to him at the very least.

Hard to believe but I am agreeing with you, your observations are spot on with this one. When Rachel overmatches her opposition, she often looks better than what is truly the case, I liken her to that football team that runs up the score against overmatched opposition, she runs hard to the wire when she is full of confidence and when posed with very little challenges. When the opposition is more on par she wilts, due to the mediocrities that ran against her yesterday it is hard to gauge just how much she improved, I don't think it was as much as most believe.

I highly doubt this.

Rachel Alexandra is back to her 108-110 Beyer form... and we'll see if she can keep it going the rest of the year. She does have to ship over the Allegheny Mountains en route to Saratoga.

yep, spot on. god knows she wilted like a wal-mart flower in the preakness and the woodward!!

Yes

Yes, every time you think he can't be a more ignorant, trolling fool he comes up with a new one, doesn't he?

This too shall pass.

Considering how Mine That Bird, Macho Again, Bullsbay, Unrivaled Belle and Zardana have done of late, yeah I agree she was the world of resistance. Like the Berlin Wall...that eventually fell. Wouldn't you agree?

Brilliant post, to quote a Coach-ism... F____ You

I'm not going anywhere.

apparently i would not. you said when she met resistance, she folded. that's not the case at all.

That's not what I was trying to say, but that's pretty typical for any horse that badly out matches their opposition.

Except for big Z.

Read a little more carefeully. I also she didn't win by 10+ as she does when the races come up easy for her. That's was the point.

More so for Rachel, she's the type of horse that runs hard to the wire, when she's feeling good and full of confidence she doesn't know how to gear down, unlike some horses like Cigar and yes Zenyatta.

WTF? Do you read Rachel's diary or something? Go take a look at the Fair Grounds Oaks and tell me "she doesn't know how to gear down." Or maybe you think Flying Spur really was making up 3 1/2 lengths on her late.

So she's supposed to win by 10+ when the races come up easy, and also when they come up hard?

Well by that circular logic, if she won every race by 10+, they would have all come up easy :zz:

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