[somerfrost]

I was listening to Jim Rome on radio earlier...since he gotten into the sport he's been a big supporter of racing. Rome is an opinionated guy but I like him (even when I strongly disagree with him) because he speaks with conviction. He took a call from a wacko (yes, I call him that) who is a PETA member, the guy went through the mindless talking points of "animals are people too" and Rome was patient with him. Afterwards admidst the slew of angry phone calls and e-mails Rome noted that while he disagreed with the guy's presentation, he did raise some valid points. This is what I've been saying...we DO need to look at what happened and how it could possibly be avoided in the future...whip usage, track condition, training procedures...these are all valid concerns. IF there is fault then let it fall where it may. Rome believes that horses do enjoy racing (I agree), he doesn't think the injury happened earlier in the race (I don't either) and he can't believe the jock would risk the horse's life as well as his own (there were 18 horses rumbling along behind him afterall) to keep pushing her knowing she was injured. I agree! The accusations of PETA members against the jock, trainer and owners are ill-timed and just plain wrong in my opinion (I mailed a letter to PETA this morning expressing my anger over such irresponsible rhetoric) but I agree with Rome that this must be examined...not to place blame but to learn why and how perhaps we can prevent another wonderful animal's death in the future. He is having a woman from TVG on his TV show today to talk about it...should be worth watching!