Which horses
 

will you be rooting for to win or do well on BC day? I have a few that have taken my heart away, and some I won't even bet on except in my exotics. Heck, I may not even bet on a few of them at all.

#1 Lava Man-This horse wasn't supposed to be nearly as good as he is. If he wins the Classic, it would be one of the greatest horse racing stories of all time. It would become a legend. He is my favorite horse running right now.

#2 Bernardini-Perhaps the most talented horse since the Bid.

#3 Gorella-Love this filly. I hope she brings it and turns it on this Saturday.

#4 Ouija Board-Same as Gorella.

#5 Lawyer Ron-I've always been a huge fan of this horse.

#6 Dreaming of Anna-Because she can beat the boys, and I would love for her to go on and do some great things.

#7 Giacomo-Yeah, yeah, I know, I know. I have just gotten tired of everyone dissing him. At least he has one fan.

#8 Great Hunter-I like his name. The name reminds me of my horse.

#9 English Channel-My mom likes him so I love him.

#10 Henny Hughes-I have always been a fan of this guy. He is brillant.

#11 Happy Ticket-She made me a huge fan when she beat Oonagh Maccool earlier this year.

Gorella
Benardini
Kellys Landing
Great Hunter
Hurrican Run
Ouija Board
Bel Aire Beauty
Happy Ticket

may i dare say that Point Given was just as good as Bernardini ??

Gorella will have a rough time Sat, same goes for EC.

Giaco who ?? kiddin, I liked AAlex.

Go Great Hunter, I am hughe fan of Aptitude

Afleet Alex is my favorite horse of all time.

I just feel sorry for Giacomo because he always gets dissed. I know he is a slow plodder...well, I guess he isn't THAT slow. I mean he does pop up and win a nice race about once a year.

Yes, Point Given was a very talented horse. In fact, I think that Point Given could have been a GREAT horse if he would have kept running. However, I think that Bernardini will prove to be the better one of the two this Saturday.

Of course, some of these horses that I cheer for I won't be betting on. However, I am the kind of person that cheers for certain horses if they win, even if I just lost my bets because of them. I bet for fun. It is always nice to win money, and that is what I try to do. But, it never is a big deal if I lose the money because I only bet money that I can afford to lose anyway.

1.) Lava Man (same reason as Jessica.)
2.) Silverfoot (God, I love this horse...)
3.) English Channel (because of Kevin)
4.) Gatorize (how can you not like a filly with that name? :cool: )
5.) Perfect Drift (I am so tired of hearing that this horse is a cheater and a hanger.)
6.) Happy Ticket (I like this classy mare.)
7.) Kelly's Landing (he loves CD.)

Im not sure if I name any of my pets Giacomo let alone my kid, needless to say Im not Sting either....talking about Derby 05, rabbits did him a huge favor that day and he is not a proven champion. Since, he hasnt won a race, may be once.. therefore not worthy of KY Derby. Look at Funny Cide, almost shares the same fate (only FC won a bit more)

Giacomo is worthy of the Kentucky Derby because he WON the Kentucky Derby. Nobody can take that day away from him... rat or not.

It'd be cool if Silent Name did well in the Mile... only one other Japanese bred has ever run in the Breeders Cup races. Isn't he also due to stand stud here in the US? We need some more Sunday Silence blood in this country.

1) Bernardini
2) Happy Ticket
3) Bernardini
4) Scat Daddy
5) Bernardini
6) Henny Hughes
7) Bernardini
8) Gorella
9) Bernardini
10) Oh, and Bernardini

Whoever I bet on.

i will be rooting for every horse in the classic that is not bernardini. as they turn for home i actually plan on yelling that...."come on everyone that is not bernardini" if he finishes off the board i will be happy as a clam.

if i could pick one horse that i would love to see win.....it would have to be perfect drift.

Why do you not like my man? Because of the sheiks?

i actually don't know what it is. i can't put my finger on it exactly.
the sheiks are part of it.
the annoying trainer is part of it.
the undeserved (imo) hype he has received is part of it.
the fact that i am a huge barbaro fan is part of it. i feel like too many people assume that bernardini would have been better than barbaro even if barbaro had stayed healthy. of course we will never know for sure.....but imo that is wrong. i think barbaro's performance in the derby was the best route race on dirt a horse not named ghostzapper has run in the last 15 years.

Agreed, but you can't hold it against Bernardini because of his connections...

I'm not going against the horse, but I would definitely rather see Lava Man win it.

I love watching Silverfoot run and will be cheering for him in the turf. Also Gorella ( would love to see her run them down like War Chant did in 2000) and Bernardini. Deb

Bernardini or Lava Man = it's all good for me:) .

Mainly because those are two horses that I am going to use in the #1 spot:eek: Actually, to be exact, I'm going to put Bernie on top of all my exotic bets, and put a nice win bet on Lava Man as a lifesavor (just in case; fingers crossed; nothing would be better for racing fans right now than if this gutsy gelding won).

yeah i suppose i don't actually have anything against the horse, but i know i don't want him to win. i wouldn't mind seeing lava man win it either....but imo.....he has little or no chance.
is it just me or is invasor the forgotten horse in this race?

I like Invasor, but I like David Junior better. My top four would be David Junior, Perfect Drift, Lava Man and Bernardini.

if this race was at santa anita....i'd be putting lava man in my trifecta, but not at cd.
i just don't know what to do with david junior and george washington. they make betting this race extremely difficult.

Personally, the horse I'm having the hardest time with is Lawyer Ron. I don't know what to do with him as of yet...

Everyone knows why I like Bernardini.

Lava Man...how good is this horse? He has been beating up on moderate-bad horses all year long, but that is almost irrelevant to me. He has not run to his top numbers this year either, but that is also irrelevant to me also. What is relevant to me is that he is a winning machine and has the heart of a lion. I have noticed something about this horse. He pretty much toys with his opponents. It's as if he waits on them. I have watche and watched his Hollywood Gold Cup race, and I swear that he got faster and dug in harder as the horses were coming to him. It was as if he hit a whole different gear. That race made me a believer in the horse, and it may have just been the gutsiest performance that I have seen all year. With the stumble in addition to the weight, and the fact that horses were taking shots at him throughout the race...I just don't see how he managed to win. What a heart! A plus for Lava Man is that he looked great today at CD. If Bernardini does get beat...this is the horse that will beat him.

I see David Junior running big here. He's a very talented horse, and I think that he is going to convert his turf form to dirt very well.

I also like Invasor. He shouldn't be left out of the mix. This is an outstanding Classic field. I could see a lot of these horses hitting the board. Tough race as far as the exotics go.

Also, Sun King should show up, especially if the pace is moderate/fast. The only question with him is: Is he as effective going a mile and a quarter?

I don't like George Washington. I don't think that he is going to be able to convert his turf form to dirt very well. Also, the shipping is another question mark with this crazy nut. Don't worry Georgie...I still love you.

And of course, there is the good old Perfect Drift, who very well could pick up a piece, although I'm not crazy about him either. I'll still use him though.

Also, Premium Tap has been improving, but I probably won't use him. He's a question mark right now.

I don't like Giacomo.

I don't like Brother Derek.

I don't like Suave.

Flower Alley or Lawyer Ron?--The one that Johnny V. is riding will answer a few of my questions about them.

jess,

what horses have you seen so far at cd work? does anyone stand out to you?

Oh, I am not at CD yet. I will arrive on Wednesday, and will watch them work on Thursday morning.

The only reason that I said that Lava Man looked good at CD is because they show him working on the NTRA website, and he did look fantastic.

Also, eurobounce was there watching him, and he said that Lava Man looked great.

Hmmmmm Advance this is the one part I dont understand the one thing Tommy is not is annoying are you just saying this because of what you have read or has he done something personally to you.

I have known Tommy for a while and he has always shown that he is a classy guy. Really just wondering ehy you felt that way about him.

gotta agree with dixie...the Badge...

And Henny of course, can't forget Henny.

LOL.. that's always my favorite horse too.

1. Ouija Board - Favorite F/M of all. I want to see her reclaim her title before she "heads off to stud" as the British say. I'd like to see her clean house in Japan and Hong Kong, too. One step at a time for one for the ages.

2. Cal-breds - I'm a Cal-bred. This is our 3rd strongest contingent ever. Some would say the best, but any contingent with Tiznow is the strongest - even if he's the only one.

3. Sun King - Charismatic got me into the sport.

4. Round Pond - Became a fan because of the Servis/Elliot connections. I'll still give Servis his due if she wins, but I'd also love to see Matz win the Distaff to cap off the year of Barbaro. There wouldn't be a dry eye at CD or any OTB in North America if she wins.

5. Perfect Drift - For the same reason as everyone else.

6. Gorella - Probably was my bet of the day last year after Motivator didn't come over, so I'd like revenge in the Mile.

7. Red Rocks - Big fan of his sire Galileo, who got off to a somewhat slow start but seems to be rolling now with RR, Sixties Icon, and the 2yo Teofilo. There may be others, too, but aren't hitting my brain.

8. Juveniles by sires I liked on the track - e.g. - Cash Included, CP West, etc.

Rooting for:

Lava Man (he'll be around next year)
Ouija Board (she's danced every dance; wish there were more owners like hers)
Bordonaro (not getting the respect he deserves)
Thor's Echo (so I can feel like a genius with my 25-1)

I'll be rooting against any 3-yr-old who is retiring.

--Dunbar

no i don't know him at all. if you say that he is a classy guy....i have no reason to doubt you. something about his interviews just annoy me. he seems so smug.
you know how there are just people you like and people you don't? sometimes you can't exactly explain what it is. i like most trainers in this sport. he and frankel are about the only two i can think of that i just don't like.

Have you ever seen him do an interview that isn't about Bernardini? The reason I ask is, it may be hard not to seem smug when talking about a horse of yours who's that good..

yes i have....but to be fair i never really felt one way or the other about him until bernardini. listen i am not pretending it makes sense. i don't like the horse because i don't like the trainer....but i don't like the trainer because i don't like the horse. as i said in my initial post in this thread, i can't exactly explain it.....i am just turned off by something about this horse and the people around him.

DRIFTY!!!!! My favorite active runner! My heart will always root for him since he won my heart in his 3rd place finish in the 2002 Derby.

Gorella. Loved this little filly since last year. I just love her. I hope she is able to show you guys that she can kick the boys butts and redemtion for last year.


Malibu Mint. I got to pet her nose once. :) Actually Mr. Chapman was very nice to me in the few minutes when I met him. His daughter is very nice too. I always root for the nice guy.

English Channel-For Kevin so he can be happy with me when Drifty wins the Classic. :) We can go party together.

Those are my heart picks for this year. The rest will be based on my handicapping. Lets see how I do.

I think what you are interpreting as smug is just actually a guy who is really soft spoken and somewhat shy....who is really pleased and confident in what may be the horse of his career. I don't know him but I've met him a couple of times and he is absolutely classy, friendly, gracious...and yes confident.


Same goes for Bobby...for the most part.

Kinda similar to the distortion that happens on the internet... until you get to know someone, it's hard to tell what people are REALLY like.

Based upon what I've seen of TA is exactly what you said about him... the emotion on his face after seeing what happened to Barbaro and watching his own horse win in the Preakness told me that... there wasn't a smug thing about it.

um, no. When one spouts off relentlessly on the internet it is actually very easy to figure out what that person is all about...it is far easier to mask one's self and play nice in person...true colors show when there is no face to face interaction.

BERNARDINI!

Also, would be nice, but I'd settle for just the above:

Gorella in the Mile
Bel Air Beauty or Quick Little Miss
Quiet Royal
War Front

Giacomo would bring a happy ending to a career that has been both bashed and required a good deal of patience from his owners....but it would also require Bernardini to loose which would flat out suck. :)

You think it's easier to mask yourself in person? You must be a good actress, then... because I surely have a hard time being someone other than myself in person. True colors show when there IS face to face interaction. There's no computer screen to hide behind.

hiding behind the computer screen is precisely what allow people to show their true colors...people will tell you what they really think because they don't have to worry about the akwardness or possibility of hurting feelings in person... those who are catty and snide and unable to be trusted will most certainly come out on the internet.
Whereas in person people generally 'go along to get along'...

I am who I am... :D

My experiences have been different, though. I don't judge a book by it's cover, but reading the whole book isn't for everyone.