Good Morning Everyone!
I am so excited! My dear friend and veterinarian while I was at Barn 55, Dr. Dawn Hunkin, helped us in the ELITE EIGHT portion of our contest. She has always been such an important part of My Team. Dawn and I know each other very well. I also know her 2 children, Jack and Emma. As a matter of fact, and this is TOO CUTE, I was at Barn 55 for quite a long time….and while there, I was able to experience both her pregnancies with her! Such fun!
Here are the names of the ELITE EIGHT contestants Dawn selected:
1. Valerie Franklin…………….Davison, MI
2. Georgia Harper…………….Bellevue, WA
3. Dawn Conrad……………….Cedaredge, CO
4. Louann Cingel………………Union, MO
5. Vicki Vinson…………………Apple Valley, CA
6. Thomas Ronholm…………..Rochester, NY
7. Heidi Kruckenberg…………Vallejo, CA
8. Ann Ransone………………..Walkerton, VA
CONGRATULATIONS to these 8 people who will be moving to the FINAL 4! This is truly getting very exciting!
On another note, thank you for the comments about some of MY JOHN’S other Mobile Me links showing up in a prior Diary. The photos of Santa Anita are lovely. The racing pictures are great…and the holiday photos with John and Dottie’s family (and the adorable Sophie Shirreffs in her Christmas outfit) are fun! However, thank you for letting us know that this link was there. It was to be eliminated prior to the video being put up on my web-page. So sorry!
We have let our tech people know to close this. (I guess you are really getting to know John and Dottie’s family life very well. Blush, Blush!) Again, thank you for letting us know!
We will draw the FINAL 4 next week! Dottie has been working with the tech people to get the VOTING procedures organized so all of you are able to participate in the selection of our ZENYATTA BRONZE CONTEST WINNER!
Enjoy the Arkansas Derby and the Blue Grass Stakes today! It is another fun weekend of RACING…plus, the NBA is starting the early rounds of their play-off games! Oh, how I do LOVE SPORTS!
With love,
Hugs to All~(Happy Birthday, Lara!)
Z
judy berube
To: Kealy: well said.
To: Charlotte: So right about John.
Love our Lady Z. Judy B.
Trina Nagele
Sue gave a tip of the hat above to Zenyatta’s first jockey in her races, David Flores. Here’s a link to a four-part interview in which Mike Smith talks about how he missed being with Zenyatta in the beginning, but got her in the end. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y11YxcLM_g
Teresa E.
Congrats to any of you that can win a statue/bronze of The Queen.
How do we go about doing a write in campaign to get Zenyatta back where she wants to be: On THE TRACK?? I know every single one of you would want to see her do her thing again, and she still could do it. I could see if she was burned out, but she wasn’t! She was FASTER her last year running than she was the year she won the Classic! If only she had a bit more urging by Mike, she would have been the TWO time winning female Breeders Cup Classic winner! Woo Hoo! There are still many, many horses, mares included, that are older than our Queen Z, that are still running! Zenyatta CAN do it!! She is not ready yet to be a mother, Mother Nature took care of that! Please, team Zenyatta, bring her back and let this gallant mare do what she loves and that is running and making that famous move of hers to come from behind and win! Come on! Bring Zenyatta Back! Bring Zenyatta Back!! She is bored at the farm.
judy berube
To: Pam Zacek,
NTRA.com is streaming The Bluegrass Stakes live at 5:30 PM today. Just Google NTRA and click as indicated. Judy B.
Linda in NJ
Is anyone watching HRTV. I lost my picture.
Jan
Zenyatta,
Happy weekend sweetie :) yes, there are so many sports to watch this weekend. Do you have a 60 inch TV in your stall and maybe a six pack of Guinness :) Say Hi to the girls and keep healthy & happy. Good luck Elite Eight.
mj
Congratulations to all the finalists!! What a treasure that bronze will be for the winner. Z, I was waiting for you to appear in the Apple Blossom. Havre de Grace is a nice filly, but she’s not YOU! Lots of great racing today, and Mike is busy; I wish him and your team well at the “great race place”.
sandra gomez
GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE! YOUR REALLY LUCKY! I LOVE YOU, ZENYATTA.. YOU ARE SIMPLY THE BEST!KEEP STAYING STRONG AND BEAUTIFUL!!
Brenda
Congratulations to the lucky eight! I’m sure that everyone is looking forward to the next round and getting involved in the final decision. We’ve been treated to a great experience, thanks again Zenyatta.
Kathryn Cogswell
Maybe going around a bend more than many times, things look different. Some thing, however, remain constant: Where the discussion for more camera time on ‘Z’ and more of her under tack is on the table, the last comments of David Ingordo count well: she was tired of racing, ready to retire. Any of those most intimately and financially to gain by continuing to work this mare or now, to expose her to even more coverage, by making a stand for her rest and conformation to a different, quieter life, lay down their own powers to capitalize on her in favor of her own best interests. Someone above ventured an opinion, not wanting to be a scold. That`s true here a lot. But this mare retired sound, healthy, loved and needing a restorative relocation, or she`d not have been moved. Some choices, it is good to know, are not up to the public to make for her, even by a campaign. Driving Ms. Zenny to distraction or a breakdown, pushing her harder, is an entertainment no ‘villager’ ever wanted to see before she retired, and does not want for her either now or in the future.
DJ
Dearest Sweet “Z”,
How wonderful that ‘your’ lovely Dr. can participate in such fun with us! Good luck to all of the elite eight and heartfelt condolences for those not still in the running. Heidi K. Congratulations that your name is still there ‘g’ and all…I’m sure you are ‘g-rateful’ :)
Jan Doyle
Congratulations to the 8 finalists. Hope you are having a relaxing Saturday with the girls, Zenyatta. Thank you Dottie for all you do for us. We could not possibly ask for anymore out of you.
Maryyette
Good luck, good luck to the eight remaining – best wishes to all, and love as always, to sweet Zenny!
max
Congratulations to all who still have a chance to win the prize.
On the subject of the welfare of Zenyatta, I leave that to those who know and love her the best, the Mosses and Team Z. Lane’s End looks like a pretty fabulous place to live for anyone. I would not mind if someone retired me to that location. Long live, the beautiful Queen.
Rosemarie Cola
Congratulations to the Elite Eight!
Just came home from a Monmouth ThoroFan meeting and Zenyatta’s Diary came up in conversation. I mentioned how it seemed that it was Zenyatta and her team that began the appreciation of the fans. From the ablitiy to get up close and personal to the great mare, to this wonderful diary, the Zenyatta Team always got the fact that it is the fan that makes this sport survive. Let it be known, many folks know and appreciate all that you do.
Thanks again to Zenyatta and her wonderful crew!
Alison from Michigan
Yeah – go Valerie Franklin – from a fellow Michigander – good luck!!!!
Ginny
Woo hoo – the Missouri girl is still in it!! I’m from the St. Louis area. Glad to see a “hometown” girl in there!
Thanks Z and Dottie for everything. Good luck in your hopefully upcoming pregnancy Z!!
Sally (B)
Thanks sweet Z for letting us see your vet at barn 55 drawing the cards. She has a very responsible job taking care of horses like you. Oh, do go to work at something you love!! Congrats to the final 8! Valerie Franklin, your my closest neighbor as I am from Wi. Hope the best for you; goodluck to the others too. Z, it is so adorable that you love children. I know you would love my three grandkids as they think so much of you! I do not think I could ever get them to travel to see you with us, as my son’s wife asked for a divorce a year & 1/2 ago. My mission is just to let them know I love them & hope to see them often and let them know how wonderful they are. (The separation of dad & mom can be disasterous to a child) I love them and you Z unconditionally. Enough about me, I am so content knowing all your family, and Lane’s End loves you so that you are really happy!! I am not so sure that I would ever want to have Jerry & Ann bring you out to race again as was stated on this post. You will always be a driven,running winner, and you have proven how great you are, but I do not ever want you to get injured. (Every time you raced I prayed). Yes, we love the racing greatness of you, but we love you just the way you are. love with a BIG kiss on your soft nose.
Hernan Tovar
My dear Zenyatta, I’m so sad that I misspell beautiful…
Good luck to all in the Elite Eight!!
Good bay and good luck, my dear Zenyatta.
Ingrid from South Beach.
Sally (B)
@Trina Nagele, thanks so much for the heads up on the U tube. Mike Smith could not have expressed things better!
@TeresaE E., I think I know where you are coming from, seeing the most awesome race mare who just took the whole world. (My heart, as yours) Yes, it would be great to see again; but she is 7 and I was so happy and thanked God she was never injured in her races. Apart from seeing her again on the track, is there anything really she has to prove? Look at the horses that do have some injuries just recently. I absolutely loved the way she was prior to a race-and then took the race. You love Zenyatta, I do to. I like to see her now enjoying this life of freedom, yet care all the time.
Sheri
Good luck to everyone still left in the competition! Love You Zenyatta!!! :D
Lynn ..... (nearby Hwd Park) California
Congratulations to those of you who made this next round of postcards drawn. My tummy was in knots when I saw my name on the 1st and 2nd drawing. Can’t imagine how tight my tummy knots would be now, if I saw my name in the 8 remaining postcards. Good Luck to ALL.
Someone is getting really close to being the ONE! Looking forward to reading the finals ones. Sleep well finalists! :)
Trina Nagele
I’m with Kathryn Cogswell–I’ll trust the judgment of Team Z(in CA and at Lane’s End)to do what is best for our Queen. Kathryn referenced David Ingordo, who sees her every day and feels that she is a family member “like a sister.” You can check out what he had to say in the interview with him that Samantha L Clark published on February 23, 2011 on Eventingnation.com. Samantha, speaking of Zenyatta, said , “She’s adjusted so well to a completely different life,”
and David responded: “Oh, the best, and happy. Happy as a clam, she couldn’t be doing any better. Her coat’s growing out, she’s putting on weight. She goes out, and if there’s a mudhole out there she finds it and rolls in it. We have to keep horses up in the stalls at the racetrack because of the facilities we have and the way it’s set up, but here she can go out in the field and be a horse. She’s got a lot of her good tendencies, personality-wise, they’re still a part of her, but there’s a part of her that’s a horse again too. I see a totally relaxed animal out there that loves it, she’s in her element, she has friends that she’s hanging out with. She’s assimilated beautifully. I’ve seen a lot of these top race mares coming off the track between here and Juddmonte and wherever, and I’ve never seen one take to it that easily and really look happy to be there.” http://eventingnation.com/mt3/mt-search.cgi?IncludeBlogs=1&limit=20&search=David+Ingordo
Linda
@Dawn Conrad and @Valarie Franklin
Congratulations to the both of you!!!!! I am so happy to see your names in the final 8. I so wanted to see Karen Mitchell & Sarah Powell’s names to be on the list as well because I recognize them from their posts here.
Also I wanted to add that John, Mario, Dawn & the whole Zenyatta team did a fabulous job of keeping Zenyatta healthy, happy and sound while racing. She could not have had better owners. They allowed her time to develop into the fabulous mare her potential suggested. Decisions made during Zenyatta’s racing career were thoughtful, reflected patience & showed just how much everyone loved her. They did things the right way & it showed then & it shows now.
Sue Fredrick
Hi Zen, well here I am in “your green,green grass of home”, and let me tell you folks the grass is beautiful. We drove past Lanes End and I looked for you Z but there are miles and miles of pasture there and I couldn’t see my girl. She sure has a beautiful home now, no horse could ask for more. Went to Keeneland today, gosh it was so cold and windy I couldn’t believe there were so many people there and girls so scantily dressed, they must have froze their dupas off. We only stayed for a few races as my husband is handicapped and he was miserable and cold, but I got to see one of A P Indy’s sons win. Next week we will go to Old Friends,if it stops raining, with a donation and plenty of goodies.
Congrats to all you eight winners and good luck on the last lap I’m rooting for all of you
Debbie G
Congrats and best of luck to the Elite 8. I’m looking forward to reading the Final 4 postcards. The weather was pretty cool and dreary here in the Bluegrass today, but it’s supposed to be much nicer starting tomorrow. Thanks for taking such good care of our sweet Zenny, Dawn. I love you Zenny :-)
Peppermint
Congratulations to all the Elite Eight. It is so much fun to read your posts, Zenny. We’re so glad you retired sound, would not want to see you back on the track even though we miss seeing you run.
Good luck to Dawn from CO.
Lois Gillespie
Best of luck to the elite 8- so much anticipation as the final segments of the contest approach!
I must add my comment here in reference to all Z’s fans who wish she were back on the track and racing – as others have said, she was retired sound and healthy. Isn’t that all we can ask if we truly feel deeply for Zenyatta and all her track family? Races are fraught with risk and tragedy in an instant – our queen is still with us, still vibrant, only in a different setting. Please put this debate to rest and trust that her retirement was the right decision, indeed the only one which really was best for her. Just my humble opinion…
Vicki B.
@kealy, I do appreciate “what has so graciously been shared with us” for so long now by Zenyatta’s team, but I also thought that the marestare camera was not a bad suggestion that Margaret made, as she said, “It’s just an idea.” Since I’m confident that Z’s Team will certainly do what is best for both her and them, then wanting or asking for “more” is not a problem — it’s just a wish. Like wishing we could see Zenyatta race again, coming off the final turn and flying down the stretch, ears forward. Not going to happen again — so I’m grateful and consoled, by knowing and seeing and hearing how happy Zenny is, eating hay, carrots and mints, bucking and whinnying in her paddock, covered in mud she’s rolled in, and sitting like a sphinx in the field with all her BFF’s. Doesn’t mean I’m not always going to want more — like planning on visiting her maybe someday, or like wishing I could have her in my backyard, like maybe a lot of people here. It’s just a product of how wonderful Zenyatta is and has been. It’s just dreams.
@Teresa E. – I don’t believe Zenyatta wants to be back on the racetrack, in training again. I think she’s moved on, and is happier for it. It would be US that might want her back, victorious — not her, happy to be a horse, healthy and not burned out.
LouAnn Cingel of Union, Missouri
WIshing those who are in the remaining eight, lots of luck! and it sure is nice to see what your veternarian at Barn 55 looks like, thanks for putting her picture here Zenyatta. This sure has been a day for races, quite a few unexpected surprises, some disappointments and some celebrations. At least from what I saw today, all the races went off as they were supposed to and everyone did a fine job. It just isn’t the same though, with you not racing anymore Zenyatta. You sure are missed at the tracks. Hope the weather there is wonderful and that you are out and about celebrating life. Take care and my Love & Blessings to you. You shine brighter than any star in the sky above and light my way each and every day!