Garret Gomez sucks

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Bobby Fischer

I have to give him the benefit and assume that his words came out different than he meant.
He had to know Hard Spun wasn't going to out-kick anyone home in one run.

What do you mean? Come-from-behinders with great late kicks get beat all the time when there is a slow pace. They often can't catch the front runners. The front runners don't necessarily need a huge lead either. If you have a good front runner and he has a 1-2 length lead at the top of the stretch and the pace is really slow, there is a good chance that the come-from-behinders will not be able to out-kick him.

If I'm riding Hard Spun and I can take the lead at the 3/8 pole or the quarter pole after running 6 furlongs in 1:16, I would think that I would be very hard to catch. Don't get me wrong, with a horse like HS, I'd rather have a 5 length lead in 1:14 than a 1-2 length lead in 1:16, but either way I would think that I would be hard to catch.

[Cajungator26]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

What do you mean? Come-from-behinders with great late kicks get beat all the time when there is a slow pace. They often can't catch the front runners. The front runners don't necessarily need a huge lead either. If you have a good front runner and he has a 1-2 length lead at the top of the stretch and the pace is really slow, there is a good chance that the come-from-behinders will not be able to out-kick him.

If I'm riding Hard Spun and I can take the lead at the 3/8 pole or the quarter pole after running 6 furlongs in 1:16, I would think that I would be very hard to catch.

Perhaps hard to catch, but I highly doubt that a front runner would be 'sprinting' towards the end. If anything, he probably would have been hanging on for the win, don't you think? I liked Hard Spun to win, so I was a bit frustrated when I saw what was happening, but he looked pretty damn tired to me regardless. IF he was on the front end setting slow fractions like that, I still doubt he would have sped up very much at the end.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Cajungator26

Perhaps hard to catch, but I highly doubt that a front runner would be 'sprinting' towards the end. If anything, he probably would have been hanging on for the win, don't you think? I liked Hard Spun to win, so I was a bit frustrated when I saw what was happening, but he looked pretty damn tired to me regardless. IF he was on the front end setting slow fractions like that, I still doubt he would have sped up very much at the end.

If you look at most of his races, I think HS usually improves his position from the 3/8 pole to the wire. He's not some front runner who has a 5 length lead at the half-mile pole and then barely holds on.

[Cajungator26]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

If you look at most of his races, I think HS usually improves his position from the 3/8 pole to the wire. He's not some front runner who has a 5 length lead at the half-mile pole and then barely holds on.

You're probably right... I just wonder if it would have played out differently at a mile and a half.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Cajungator26

You're probably right... I just wonder if it would have played out differently at a mile and a half.

A mile and a half might be too far for him. It's hard to say. I don't think he fired in the Belmont, so I wouldn't say conclusively that it's too far for him just based on that race. But I would guess that his best distance is probably somewhere between 1 1/16 and 1 1/4 miles.

[Bobby Fischer]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

A mile and a half might be too far for him. It's hard to say. I don't think he fired in the Belmont, so I wouldn't say conclusively that it's too far for him just based on that race. But I would guess that his best distance is probably somewhere between 1 1/16 and 1 1/4 miles.

I can agree with that.
It will be interesting to follow this guy. I'd like to see him do well. Ramon Dominguez is a jockey that could fit a horse like this, not sure what the options are or if Pino has any chances of returning.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Cajungator26

Perhaps hard to catch, but I highly doubt that a front runner would be 'sprinting' towards the end. If anything, he probably would have been hanging on for the win, don't you think? I liked Hard Spun to win, so I was a bit frustrated when I saw what was happening, but he looked pretty damn tired to me regardless. IF he was on the front end setting slow fractions like that, I still doubt he would have sped up very much at the end.

Even in the Derby, after setting incredibly fast fractions, HS out-kicked the entire field(with the exception of SS) from the 3/8 pole to the wire. HS had around a 2-3 length lead at the 3/8 pole and by the time they came to the 1/16th pole, he had a 5 length lead on everyone except for SS.

If you look at most of his other races, he puts the most daylight on the field in the stretch, not early in the race.

[Bobby Fischer]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

What do you mean? Come-from-behinders with great late kicks get beat all the time when there is a slow pace. They often can't catch the front runners. The front runners don't necessarily need a huge lead either. If you have a good front runner and he has a 1-2 length lead at the top of the stretch and the pace is really slow, there is a good chance that the come-from-behinders will not be able to out-kick him.

If I'm riding Hard Spun and I can take the lead at the 3/8 pole or the quarter pole after running 6 furlongs in 1:16, I would think that I would be very hard to catch. Don't get me wrong, with a horse like HS, I'd rather have a 5 length lead in 1:14 than a 1-2 length lead in 1:16, but either way I would think that I would be hard to catch.

It comes down to the individual horses.
Take a horse like Hard Spun for example. He isn't really a sprinter. His strength is his high cruising speed and his pedigree. He can breeze faster than this others and for most of the race. When asked to go slower for the whole race he doesn't benefit any positional advantage from his cruising speed, he doesn't really save that much more energy, and he doesn't have turn of foot to kick home fast.

Now a slow pace would on the other hand help a sprinter type. It would generally hurt a closer. When everyone is within a few lengths and no one has momentum, it is all about position and turn of foot.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Bobby Fischer

It comes down to the individual horses.
Take a horse like Hard Spun for example. He isn't really a sprinter. His strength is his high cruising speed and his pedigree. He can breeze faster than this others and for most of the race. When asked to go slower for the whole race he doesn't benefit any positional advantage from his cruising speed, he doesn't really save that much more energy, and he doesn't have turn of foot to kick home fast.

Now a slow pace would on the other hand help a sprinter type. It would generally hurt a closer. When everyone is within a few lengths and no one has momentum, it is all about position and turn of foot.

You may be right. HS may in fact be the type of horse who runs his best race going a little faster and letting everyone else get tired while they chase him, like in the Derby.

[Bobby Fischer]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

You may be right. HS may in fact be the type of horse who runs his best race going a little faster and letting everyone else get tired while they chase him, like in the Derby.

I think Hard Spun was probably 3rd or 4th best in The Belmont. I can still understand Jones being dissapointed.

Originally Posted by Bobby Fischer

It comes down to the individual horses.
Take a horse like Hard Spun for example. He isn't really a sprinter. His strength is his high cruising speed and his pedigree. He can breeze faster than this others and for most of the race. When asked to go slower for the whole race he doesn't benefit any positional advantage from his cruising speed, he doesn't really save that much more energy, and he doesn't have turn of foot to kick home fast.

Now a slow pace would on the other hand help a sprinter type. It would generally hurt a closer. When everyone is within a few lengths and no one has momentum, it is all about position and turn of foot.

In fact I believe he uses more energy... his stride changes to a less efficient slower form. Plus many of these high cruising types also fight the jock when asked to hold back.