Derby Trail Forums - Rockport Harbor Euthanized

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Rockport Harbor Euthanized

Due to laminitis. :(

I wasn't a huge fan of "Rocky" when he was running, but he had a huge fan following in part because his owner was very receptive to building that fan base and gave a lot of people an opportunity to get a little peek at racing behind the scenes. Perhaps none of those people ever laid a bet in their life, but racing is a multifaceted sport and there are many ways in which one can enjoy it.

So while some may argue that horses and owners who create fans really do nothing for the sport, I will respectfully disagree.

Rest in peace Rockport Harbor.

From Fox Hill Farm facebook page:

Quote:

FROM RICK PORTER: ROCKPORT HARBOR EUTHANIZED
It’s with great sadness that I report that Rockport Harbor has been euthanized due to laminitis. Rocky holds a very special place in my heart. He was the first really good colt that I had in my stable. After going three for three as a two-year-old, topping it off with a dominant and electrifying win in the Remsen, he’s the first colt to give me “Derby dreams.” Not many people know this, but Rocky’s Nashua was also the start of what became a trademark for me — the bowtie. In New York City for the race without a tie for my son, Scott, a sales lady in a men’s store helped Scott pick one out. She thought he would look great in a bowtie and after I saw it, I took my conventional tie off and she selected for me a bright yellow bowtie with red geese. Dressed in my red jacket and new bowtie, we watched Rocky demolish the field. I’ve not worn a conventional tie since the Nashua except for funerals, and we even have a two-year-old colt named Lucky Bowtie in honor of the great Rockport Harbor. I looked at Rocky’s Remsen again today, and encourage you all to watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBiffhPBbpU What a horse, and what a stride. And he was also a good stallion. Rocky also started something else very important — Rockportharbor.com. Through the forum, I interacted with fans, and even after Rocky retired, we kept the website going, eventually morphing into FoxHillFarmStable.com and a Facebook page. Rocky is responsible for a lot of the joy that I’ve gotten from horse racing, and I’ll never forget him. Rest in peace, big boy.

Oh, no!!:(

I was a big fan...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sightseek (Post 938632)

This was perfect.

I'm so sorry to hear this, sorry for him, his connections and his very loyal and extremely loud yet loving fans.

Rocky was one of the two (along with Funny Cide) most talked about horses on another forum at one time and for a looooong time. HIs fans, one in particular, was so enthusiastic, outspoken and positive that some of us started to feel like Rocky was tattooed on our collective brains. (We also wondered if this guy had a screw loose and if he was indeed a guy but those are stories for another day).

The guy was so extremely nice... no matter how he was mistreated, mocked or whatever he just kept his happy outlook on life and continues talking and updating on this horses that he loved so much.

So the thing is Rockport Harbor, for us, was a daily occurrence.

Because of him and the ways we handled this one guy we all had him in common. He was like a forum horse... a precursor to Zenyatta only in a not so devisive way.

Don't mean to ramble here but foir the rest of my life it will be impossible to hear this name and not think of those years.

Rest in peace, sweet boy, and thanks for the joy you brought to so many people on and off the track.

RIP Rocky !! Changed my life when I got the chance to meet him as a 2 yr old..

Who was it that ran up on him in the Remsen? I want to say either Galloping Grocer or Naughty New Yorker...this keg of Stella Artois has me forgetting ..

hated seeing the news, especially since he was doing well in PA, and we just lost his old man...

So terrible to hear about this. Poor Rocky, so young. Then the fact that we just lost Unbridled's Song makes it worse. I wonder if that new laminitis drug was even an option. The laminitis might've been chronic or too advanced already, or maybe the drug's still so experimental that access just wasn't possible outside of trials. Hopefully this will be a thing of the past soon.

Here he is at Darley in 2008. He was a grand looking stallion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by my miss storm cat (Post 938704)

If you are out there royal blue, sorry for all of the grief I gave you about Rocky. May he rest in peace.