Castellano is one lucky rider

[Scurlogue Champ]

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

Nope, I wouldn't consider him great if he was injured right now. That is why I said it in my post above. Just like I don't consider Barbaro and Afleet Alex one of the greatest. I don't even consider GZ to be one of the greatest because, although he was very brillant, he didn't run often enough. If Bernardini is not injured, this is going to be one of the greatest horses ever.

I am usually not one to say "I told you so". You should know that as of now because I have been chatting with you for a long time, and we frequently agree on many issues. I just want everyone to see this horse for what he really is, and to enjoy him while he is here. We don't know when there will be another one like him. Just enjoy him.

I am in total awe of him. Like I said, he is the first horse that I have ever seen race live who left me totally speechless after he won. It was the fact that Javier had so much horse under him and he never even asked him to go. He just loped under the wire. We will probably see what he is really made of in the Travers, and if we do, it is going to be a real show. After taking about a minute to compose myself after watching the Jim Dandy, all I could manage to do was to stare at the TV screen and say, "He is here." In fact, the whole OTB was silent for a few moments after everyone watched what Bernardini did to the field. It wasn't who he beat. It was how he did it.

BTW, I also think BR is one of the most talented horses that I have seen. I wish someone that knew what they were doing would get a hold of him and campaign him as Bobby Frankel did with GZ. Then maybe BR would stay sound long enough to win a few races.

Please explain how you cite Ghostzapper as "not one of the greats" for not running enough and then wish for someone to campaign Bellamy Road just like Frankel did Ghostzapper?

Are you saying that you don't think BR could ever be sound enough for a regular-type campaign, and that Ghostzapper's type of campaign would be good for him?

Or are you both criticizing and praising Frankel for the same thing?

Not necessarily related to my above question, but do you really know that much about horse racing? Honestly?

Or do you just like to pet horses? I'm serious, and I promise I'm not picking on you... I just want to know.

[kentuckyrosesinmay]

Originally Posted by moodwalker

Please explain how you cite Ghostzapper as "not one of the greats" for not running enough and then wish for someone to campaign Bellamy Road just like Frankel did Ghostzapper?

Are you saying that you don't think BR could ever be sound enough for a regular-type campaign, and that Ghostzapper's type of campaign would be good for him?

Or are you both criticizing and praising Frankel for the same thing?

Not necessarily related to my above question, but do you really know that much about horse racing? Honestly?

Or do you just like to pet horses? I'm serious, and I promise I'm not picking on you... I just want to know.

I was saying that BR will never be sound enough to take any other campaign other than a GZ type campaign, and BR may not even be able to handle that. Frankel did a wonderful job with GZ. GZ was a fragile horse that needed extremely careful management. Frankel knew when he could race the horse and when he couldn't. I think that it was only Frankel that kept the horse around as long as GZ stayed around. I will never criticize a trainer by doing the right thing by their horse.

Because GZ was so fragile, I can't consider him an all-time great dirt horse like Secretariat, Man O' War, or Spectacular Bid. Although, as far as talent goes, GZ was right there with them. It is the same with Bellamy Road. He will never be considered an all-time great, but he is a very talented horse that may have a Grade I or two left in him if they can keep him sound long enough to get him there which will almost certainly require a GZ-type campaign.

However, while GZ is not on my top ten list, I do consider him a great horse...just not an all-time great. Even horses that aren't considered all time greats in my mind such as Afleet Alex and Smarty Jones will be remembered by me for their brillant performances.

And I know a great deal about horses in general. I am a real horseman, not just someone who plays the ponies and chats on a message board about it. I work with horses on a daily basis. I have learned most of my knowledge of horse racing in the last year and a half. BTW, even jockeys like Jose Santos and trainers like Micheal Matz like to pet the horses. I could ask the same question to you...Do you really know much about horse racing? Honestly?

[Scav]

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

It is the same with Bellamy Road. He will never be considered an all-time great, but he is a very talented horse that may have a Grade I or two left in him if they can keep him sound long enough to get him there which will almost certainly require a GZ-type campaign.

Jess, lets leave Overrated Road out of this...Horse had his screws as tight as possible that day and caught a perfect track for his running style. While he was impressive in his next race back, he will never win another graded race, let alone race again...horse is fried from that performance, they squeezed the whole lemon that day

[kentuckyrosesinmay]

Originally Posted by Scav

Jess, lets leave Overrated Road out of this...Horse had his screws as tight as possible that day and caught a perfect track for his running style. While he was impressive in his next race back, he will never win another graded race, let alone race again...horse is fried from that performance, they squeezed the whole lemon that day

The horse might come back, but it is highly unlikely. They ruined him when they brought him back into the Travers too quickly which was one of the dumbest moves that I have ever seen in horse racing.

Hey Rupert, did you ever find out what exactly happened to BR in the Travers? I know that it wasn't just the popped splints. Popped splints don't take a horse out of the races for THAT LONG.

[Scurlogue Champ]

Originally Posted by kentuckyrosesinmay

I was saying that BR will never be sound enough to take any other campaign other than a GZ type campaign, and BR may not even be able to handle that. Frankel did a wonderful job with GZ. GZ was a fragile horse that needed extremely careful management. Frankel knew when he could race the horse and when he couldn't. I think that it was only Frankel that kept the horse around as long as GZ stayed around. I will never criticize a trainer by doing the right thing by their horse.

Because GZ was so fragile, I can't consider him an all-time great dirt horse like Secretariat, Man O' War, or Spectacular Bid. Although, as far as talent goes, GZ was right there with them. It is the same with Bellamy Road. He will never be considered an all-time great, but he is a very talented horse that may have a Grade I or two left in him if they can keep him sound long enough to get him there which will almost certainly require a GZ-type campaign.

However, while GZ is not on my top ten list, I do consider him a great horse...just not an all-time great. Even horses that aren't considered all time greats in my mind such as Afleet Alex and Smarty Jones will be remembered by me for their brillant performances.

And I know a great deal about horses in general. I am a real horseman, not just someone who plays the ponies and chats on a message board about it. I work with horses on a daily basis. I have learned most of my knowledge of horse racing in the last year and a half. BTW, even jockeys like Jose Santos and trainers like Micheal Matz like to pet the horses. I could ask the same question to you...Do you really know much about horse racing? Honestly?

Yeah, I guess you are right. Santos is a certified petter....


I obviously don't know as much about it as you do, Mrs. Real Horseman.

"zing..." got me