Pletchers Demise

Thank you, pointg5 and rupert, for your input.
I was up on the incident when it happened, but so much has gone on since then.

Actually, a very nice 2yo stakes filly was one of the victims, a highly regarded 3yo sprinter(who had just run out of his skin in a toga allowance race) was another, and there MIGHT have been one more. During this time, LEFT BANK emerged from being a very tough short/mid-distance sprinter type to being untouchable in graded stakes at any distance. LEFT BANK did colic, and might have had prior trouble, which became seriously aggravated.

As for EPO, I didn't mention it.
Obviously some here know about it's use and after-effects.
Many subscribe to the possibility that these runners were all given something which un-intentionally(of course--no one thought differently) led to their quick demise.

I always thought possibly Baffert was one of the first to use it, and the Pletcher situation was almost textbook.
But--nothing was proven through testing(which also leads to the possible conclusion), and no other explanation was ever given other than the ridiculous "patch of grass" theory.

Draw your own conclusion.

The fact that this Oracle fellow had to quickly turn to cheap name-calling makes me wonder what he is all about. Pretty weak rebuttal, imo.

Originally Posted by jackofhearts

Thank you, pointg5 and rupert, for your input.
I was up on the incident when it happened, but so much has gone on since then.

Actually, a very nice 2yo stakes filly was one of the victims, a highly regarded 3yo sprinter(who had just run out of his skin in a toga allowance race) was another, and there MIGHT have been one more. During this time, LEFT BANK emerged from being a very tough short/mid-distance sprinter type to being untouchable in graded stakes at any distance. LEFT BANK did colic, and might have had prior trouble, which became seriously aggravated.

As for EPO, I didn't mention it.
Obviously some here know about it's use and after-effects.
Many subscribe to the possibility that these runners were all given something which un-intentionally(of course--no one thought differently) led to their quick demise.

I always thought possibly Baffert was one of the first to use it, and the Pletcher situation was almost textbook.
But--nothing was proven through testing(which also leads to the possible conclusion), and no other explanation was ever given other than the ridiculous "patch of grass" theory.

Draw your own conclusion.

The fact that this Oracle fellow had to quickly turn to cheap name-calling makes me wonder what he is all about. Pretty weak rebuttal, imo.

Jackofhearts--you need to post more often. I actually like reasing them.

Sorry about my timing, Mr.Oracle.
I said the Asmussen article would break Sunday, but it came out last night.

Any comment, other than name-calling?

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by jackofhearts

Sorry about my timing, Mr.Oracle.
I said the Asmussen article would break Sunday, but it came out last night.

Any comment, other than name-calling?

Hadn't Left Bank suffered from colic previous to that episode? I seem to recall that the horse had serious problems previously but I could be mistaken. Regarding this incident, I recall a bit about it but hadn't heard the "patch of grass" part. I continue to maintain that the ONLY way to get past all this stuff is to require every trainer to provide racing officials with every medication every horse is given, then, any positive for any other substance would be big trouble! Hopefully someday, the technology would allow a pre-race test that would sort out any positives and require the horse to be scratched thus eliminating the incentive to cheat! There are honest mistakes...a stable hand administering the wrong med or dosage etc, and investigation would have to eliminate outside tampering but any trainer found guilty after due process should be banned for life...period!! Then, we'd see less of this! I have no opinion on Mr Pletcher or this situation as I have no real knowledge of the details!

[Five Star Derek]

I'm not blind to the fact that Horse racing has a drug problem but it seems like whenever anyone experiences success in this business the endless speculation begins. Pletcher has his choice of the best horse stock in the world year after year. His horses obviously get fed the best, trained the best and live under the best conditions. Why not give the guy his due instead of implying he's a cheater? To me, he's a great trainer. Until there's concrete evidence to suggest otherwise that's the only conclusion you can come to. Too many people subscribe to "The Magic Needle Theory" whenever a trainer has a good amount of success.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Originally Posted by Five Star Derek

I'm not blind to the fact that Horse racing has a drug problem but it seems like whenever anyone experiences success in this business the endless speculation begins. Pletcher has his choice of the best horse stock in the world year after year. His horses obviously get fed the best, trained the best and live under the best conditions. Why not give the guy his due instead of implying he's a cheater? To me, he's a great trainer. Until there's concrete evidence to suggest otherwise that's the only conclusion you can come to. Too many people subscribe to "The Magic Needle Theory" whenever a trainer has a good amount of success.

He did get nailed for a mepivicaine positive and he's going to have to serve a 45 day suspension.

Why do people suspect that Sammy Sosa took steroids? I haven't seen any proof that Sammy Sosa took steroids. Why not give Sammy his due?

I'm not saying that Plethcer is cheating and I'm not saying that Sosa was a cheater. However, I can definitely see why people would think that they may cheat.

[Five Star Derek]

Originally Posted by Rupert Pupkin

He did get nailed for a mepivicaine positive and he's going to have to serve a 45 day suspension.

Why do people suspect that Sammy Sosa took steroids? I haven't seen any proof that Sammy Sosa took steroids. Why not give Sammy his due?

I'm not saying that Plethcer is cheating and I'm not saying that Sosa was a cheater. However, I can definitely see why people would think that they may cheat.

One look at Sammy early in his career as compared to the end and you see a major difference with how he was built.

Too many trainers make excuses to their owners and other people when they can't rack up wins the way some of their top competition does. A good portion of these trainers need to look in the mirror and figure out what they can do to become better at their craft. Todd Pletcher has had too many assistants and trainers who currently work for him or who have moved on to be able to keep some sort of dark secret about his success. Secrets aren't well kept on the backstretch so I'm sure something would have come out by now if he was using something others weren't. Even his assistants who moved on aren't having nearly the success he is. I am not niave enough to suggest that he is an angel. I am only suggesting that he's playing within the same set of criteria that all others are using.