Good Morning Everyone!
This photo is TOO CUTE! It’s my guy, Mike Smith, who helped us select the FINAL 4 for our ZENYATTA BRONZE CONTEST! Mike stopped by Dottie and John’s last night and held my reins in his hands…just like he did when we were racing. I think this definitely got him IN THE ZENYATTA MOOD to select our Final 4! This photo brings back great memories…for both Mike and I! We had lots of great times together!
The names of the FINAL 4 will be given…along with the thoughts each person expressed as to what I meant to he / she. Go to the bottom of this diary post and click the button next to the person whose entry you think deserves to win. Click the Vote button, and you’ll see the current results.
We will allow the voting to take place for one week. The winner will be announced next Wednesday, April 27th. John will look at the polls before he leaves for the barn that morning (5 o’clock in the morning, CA TIME) and the winner’s name will be posted.
The poll has been moved from the Facebook page to this website so that non-Facebook users may vote!
GOOD LUCK TO ALL 4 OF YOU!
ENTRY #1…..VICKI L. VINSON……APPLE VALLEY, CA I knew Zenyatta was “one” special horse the first time I saw her in person. She came over to me and stuck her nose right in front of my camera. That was before the ’08 Lady’s Secret. Little did I know that a year later she would become the best medicine in the world, in helping me through the worst time of my life. I’ll love you forever Zenyatta!
ENTRY #2…..VALERIE FRANKLIN….DAVISON, MI Zenny, you have made people believe in horse racing again. Our sport has suffered so much tragedy and in this time of economic disaster and with Barbaro and Eight Belles so fresh in our minds, you have given us a chance to escape and to dream. We love you more than you could ever quantify.
ENTRY #3…..GEORGIA HARPER…..BELLEVUE, WA My obsession began half way through your first year and such enthusiasm could not be ignored by my husband. After 49 years, my husband and I have become such good friends but are so busy with work and family we don’t always take time to actually think about one another. As a gift for our wedding anniversary last August, I received an email at work from my hubby with an itinerary attached for San Diego saying “Tickets for my queen to go see the Queen”. We not only had a wonderful day at Del Mar, never leaving the paddock and visiting with so many young people who had been there to see only you but we really enjoyed our time together. I’m not sure what we will do for our 50th this year, but I don’t think it will compete with the happiness we shared last year watching you come across the finish line and celebrating as best friends enjoying not just a horse race but watching the most magnificent thoroughbred ever. We miss you, we love you, and look forward to cheering on your foal.
ENTRY #4…..DAWN CONRAD…..CEDAREDGE, CO Dearest Zenyatta. “Why are you special to me?” Is it the stately stature of the Queen like carriage? Is it the glistening brown coat with the diamond dapples? Maybe it is the dance or those still moments with your head held high? Is it your intelligence and fathomless brown eyes? Was it your first run free or perhaps a camera-ride on the back of Pegasus? Is it posters in the stands, a warm crowd on a cold Kentucky night, the excitement you bought back to racing? Your place in its history and future, the Breeders Cup, 60 Minutes, Horse of the Year, Vox Populi Award? A Fred Stone portrait, Jamie Corum lithograph, Nina Kaiser bronze? The cheers I shouted the tears I shed? Certainly your beauty, power, grace, breathe taking speed, final kick, heart stopping finishes and 19/1. Absolutely your gut wrenching, never give up, try! It is all of this, yet more. It isn’t only who you are, but what you mean to each of us. With Team Z, you are Jerry and Ann’s pride and joy, John’s soul mate and patient masterpiece, Dottie’s muse and she your voice. Mike’s talent, guidance and prayers brought you home safe each race. At Barn 55, you had care from Mario, workouts with Steve, walks with Carmen, loving star struck visitors and kisses from all. At Lane’s End, paddock pals, peppermints, pears and precious motherhood. Your family embodies the word generosity and together you have been transformative. You give pure happiness to thousands. You are a horseman’s ideal, a child’s dream, a friend to charities, a moment of healing to someone ill, a smile in the face of sadness, a sweet memory to all those you meet and a wish of all those that you haven’t “including myself”. While totally unique, I see in you the memories of my youth: the Black Stallion, Flicka, Secretariat and my Cinder (a gift from a brother leaving for Vietman), live again. There were endless summer days of best friends, bareback rides, Breyer’s horses on the bedroom shelves and glorious Triple Crown winners. With you, I am that horse loving girl again. What fun! I have my own challenges in life, as everyone does. While I seek to remain positive there are those moments. You are there to lift my spirits and touch my soul. Your diary is a place of remarkable civility where information, support and all things Zenyatta are shared and celebrated. Facebook, over 70,000 and still counting! The experience has been once in a lifetime and continues to be a magical ride. In the end my love cannot be fully explained, it is simply heart felt and joyful. It is no mystery why the word “angel” is used to describe you, for you are a creation of God, a blessing to us all and a remarkable gift. For everything you are and everything you mean, Zenny, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are truly UNBELIEVEABLE! As always, sweet dreams. Hugs and kisses. XXXOOO
Wow! I hope you enjoyed reading these as much as I did! Dottie commented that she was literally in tears typing them for ME!
Vote for the ENTRY of YOUR CHOICE!
Blessings to All OF YOU who participated in this contest! I can’t THANK YOU ENOUGH for ALL OF THE LOVE AND KINDNESS you have shown ME!
With Love,
Hugs to ALL~
Z
Kimberly Potter
@Regina from NJ~ Thank you so much for your wonderful post. I too, fear that we might lose this what is suppose to be “everything Zenyatta”…
Zenyatta’s #1 fan in Montana!
The Kennedys in San Diego
@Karen G — When we visited the KY Horse Park last November, we spent some time talking with a groom/handler of Funny Cide and John Henry before he died. She was excited about the prospect of seeing Zenyatta before her Breeders’Cup Classic. But she made a comment that I have not forgotten — she said she tries not to fall in love with fillies/mares because after they become broodmares you never see them again. We and our friend had that haunting feeling as we watched Zenyatta walk off the Hollywood Park track for the last time (the day before she left for Kentucky). We hope that is not the case.
DJ
Thank you Carol from CT for calling to attention the needs of ‘Old Friends.’ We too, have been regular donators as well as to ‘Best Friends’ another excellent organization which adopted our Umbrella Cockatoo. They are both are outstanding and in need of continual financial assistance.
WILD HORSES
Happy Monday Big Z. Hope you and all your connections in Cali and at LE had a wonderful Holiday weekend. Thinking of you during all this bad weather passing through. I’m sure you are safe and sound with LE taking care of you. Hoping to hear from you and Dottie soon! Love Ya, Lori
The Kennedys in San Diego
We visit this website for news, photos and videos of Zenyatta. The site is enhanced with information on “The Industry” — breeding, husbandry, racing and all things attendant to it. While we have been fortunate to have met and talked with trainers, jockeys, horse owners and others close to the industry and we have acquired a library of books on the subject, there is nothing that can replace knowledge and experience of some who post on this site. We love hearing from people who “eat, sleep and drink” horses.
ENSIGN,sg, and other horsemen — THANK YOU!
karen g
Yes, I admit I knew this too when my sister and I also watched her walk off @Hollywood Park. Sadly, over the years I’ve seen this more often than not. But am hopeful that’s not the case with our girl. She deserves never to be forgot in the decades to come.
susan in tn
Well, here is a horse story I can tell since the British royals are in the news. We had a dear friend from England who was quite the horsewoman-she was an excellent rider, trainer,etc. When she was eighteen, she worked at the stables belonging to a “Lord (Somebody).” Prince Charles often came out to go foxhunting (this was in the 1970’s) and Karen was a groom then. It fell to her to give the prince a leg-up onto his horse. I wish you could hear her tell it! She said she was very nervous and “I guess I thought he weighed more than he did” because she boosted him up and right over the horse and he landed flat on the ground! She said all his Secret Service men tensed up and leaned forward suddenly. She was scared to death! Then Prince Charles chuckled, got up and was a very good sport- he complimented her on how strong she was! She had a few other stories but i’ll save those for another time- this was the funniest!
Hope everyone is having a great monday! Zenny, we are thinking of you and love you! I’m thinking of going on Google Earth and zooming in on Lane’s End to see if i see her outside_lol.
Sharon Call
@karen g. What makes you think that Jerry and Ann, the owners of Z aren’t doing this because they feel it’s the best way? Bill Farish can’t moderate this web site but Jerry and Ann can through Dottie. I’m not even sure why you’re addressing comments on this web site to Bill Farish. I also don’t think you’re in a position to dictate to Bill Farish how to run his highly successful farm that Jerry and Ann picked to send Z to, knowing she would be in the best of hands. Sorry, just my opinion, but you don’t own Z and are not in a position to make demands on her behalf to anyone. When Jerry and Ann are ready to let us more about Z, they will through Dottie. Bill Farish doesn’t have anything to do with that decision only Z’s owners do.
susan in tn
P.S. My daughter is an equine vet who went to Cornell and is just finishing a 4-year residency in equine medicine. So I will volunteer her to answer any questions anyone has on things you were just wondering about/are interested in. She won’t mind and, besides, she owes me!
susan in tn
P.P.S. just until we start getting zenny news again and the kentucky derby, etc.- not trying to change anything or “take over” !
Gloria Jeanne
It seems as though this site is becoming toxic yet again. Maybe we sould not be allowed to post anything on here… maybe Zenny should just tell us what she wants us to know about.
The Kennedys in San Diego
@susan in tn — Terrific story!
Margaret
@astrid:
I was responding to your post where you pit Dyna King Barbaro’s brother. Since you have been to ABR you know that this is incorrect info to bypassing on here. Alex has emphatically taught people this. It would have been more correct to say something like–they were both sired by Dynaformer.
Enough said.
JUDY
No news on you, hope that means all is well with you. We are all scared that means something is wrong with you. No news on re-breeding either. Please let us know you are ok.
judy berube
Dear Z,
Love you.
Susan in Tn: Very funny story. It will be fun to have your daughter answer questions that fans might ask. Hugs, Judy and Russ
Eveline
Derbypick – trifectabox -PantsOnFire, because of Rosie – Unle Mo, love the horse, connections not so much – any horse Ramon lands on. This is subject to change, we have two weeks to go! (that is Uncle Mo, sorry can’t spell)
L.S.
@Karen G
Lanes End Farm has been entrusted with one job and one job only.
.
Get Zenyatta in foal. Support her to carry that foal to term. Get a healthy foal on the ground.
.
No where in any of that does it involve making her accessible to as a side show to her fans.
.
Jerry and Ann Moss selected Lanes End Farm for Zenyatta for their reproductive experience and skills. They handed Zenyatta to this farm with one goal in mind. GET HER IN FOAL. This is the SAME as when they handed her to the care of John Sherrifs and said MAKE HER THE BEST SHE CAN BE.
.
Jerry and Ann Moss are owners who know how to place their horses with the best professionals and then GET OUT OF THE WAY! If LEF tells the Mosses, ‘Zenyatta needs quiet, no paparazzi, no changing up her routine to drag her up to be photographed, she needs to be left alone with other mares to focus on Nature’s Call’ then you can believe that Jerry and Ann Moss, as GOOD OWNERS are going to respect the PROFESSIONALS they entrusted their mare too.
.
Also, it’s been begged and pleaded on here before but all these people, calling up LEF, asking for information, asking about when they can see her, on and on, is a strain on the farm’s already overloaded staff. Honestly I’m surprised LEF hasn’t ripped their phones out of the wall.
.
Maiden mares catch and slip foals sometimes numerous times. How does it do ANYONE good to announce ‘she’s in foal!’ only to have her slip again and then we all go through that grief again.
.
If Jerry and Ann Moss, decide down the road to provide access to Zenyatta for her fans. IF they decide that giving Zenyatta to her fans is more important than her broodmare career, The Kentucky Horse Park, Old Friends, Our Mims, just to name a few, would probably jump through hoops at the opportunity to host her. But ultimately that is the decision of Jerry and Ann Moss. They are her OWNERS and they alone dictate what sort of access is available to her through the professionals they choose to send her to.
.
My God but in the meantime, if the fans who are so rabid about her, refocused just an ounce of their negativity towards what they CAN’T have, towards what they CAN, farms in need like Old Friends, Our Mims, etc would be seeing black on their books instead of red.
.
Seriously, if every time you Negative Nellies want to post negative comments about LEF and Farish, you stopped and in the spirit of Zenyatta you donated $1.00 to a retirement farm, we’d have those farms working with positive capital in under 6 months!
.
Think about it!
.
This will officially be my last post on this website. I’m also tired of the fact that there is no true love for horses on this site but a constant stream of ‘Me, Me, Me’.
.
Stop with the ‘ME’ and in the true spirit of this mare start looking around at what you can do for the horses and people this mare represents.
Kitei
@ Vicki B. ~ thanks for the new link for the French “collecte hippomobile”! Just think – the exhaust now works for compost!
A charming horse improves the scenery (and possibly the garbage collector’s enjoyment of the job!) like no garbage truck ever could, too!
Vicki’s link again: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/oct/01/french-recycling-horse-and-cart
Aaron in Ca
Well said Mike. I too read often but do not post. Interesting how the person that has been attacked is now attacking others. Not cool. How do we know that Zenyatta’s family does not regard the posts that help people equally if not more important the the statistical ones. They themselves have remarked she is more than a horse and is a phenomena. They have chosen to harness her power and popularity to help others. How do we know that they do not enjoy reading all of the posts and are not offended or bored, but feel extremly proud. I have two horses and if one of mine brought out this kind of good I would be. Even more proud of that fact than the 19 consecutive horse wins. We are all as unique as Zenyatta, let’s appreciate that instead of wanting others to be like ourselves.
ENSIGN
As always L.S., can I get an ‘AMEN’! While I’m sparse myself I’d be sorry to see you gone from the site permanently.
.
@ LauraJ,.
I’m ashamed to say I’ve been so busy I’ve not picked myself a horse for the Derby yet . I’ll be doing some race re-watching and studying on that in the next week ;-) No rumours for now, they oft go unwelcome LOL ;-)
Aaron in Ca
By the way ladies, do not let some of these remarks keep you away. Continue to help each other and if they do not like it they have custody over their eyes and do not have to read it. There was obviously a reason Dawn’s postcard was chosen, it spoke to them. I am sure all were great and people would have sent in a postcard even without a prize just to give their thoughts to Zenyatta and her owners. They deal with horseracing and horse info. all day they are insightful enough to appreciate diversity.
karen g
Sharon Call JEEZ! And you do? See your own post #224! Get this straight all – I’m not ONE of those who call nor whine about not seeing her etc., I’ve had my joyful time (and what a time it was!) AND I’M NOT STUPID!!! Just “VENTING”, get a grip, will ya? See Livey, Sg, LouAnn, Elizabeth, Kimberly above, and Susan in post #228!!! And see all the Kennedy’s in San Diego and Jane in Seattle – NOW THAT’S CLASS!!
Aaron in Ca
And if you do not need a prayer or some assistance, maybe you should give some. How do you know who is posting here that could be depressed, in a wheelchair, have an addiction problem or any other difficulty. The brazenness and nonacceptance of other people’s personal style is ugly, and not of their class.
Sharon Call
@L.S., Ensign. Please don’t leave this web site because of a few spoiled, self-involved people. You are among the few that gives good, reliable, fact-based information. Surely all of this drama will die down once we get passed this contest and the diary posts start rolling again. There are so many of us that completely enjoy your posts and the good information they always contain. I hope you two reconsider.
Trina Nagele
@AARON–I’m so glad you chose to comment today. I hope you will continue to.
@MIKE–Thanks to you too for your comments today. Both you and Aaron made good points about lending a helping hand, and finding inspiration in how others overcome difficulties, in the spirit of the transformative Zenyatta. Blessings.
Kitei
@Carol ~ Not only Zenyatta, but horses and animals in general (and even humans when they can get their minds out of their own way) DO have the power to heal! Check out the 2009 documentary movie “The Horse Boy”(Over the Hills and Far Away)– it’s on Netflix, among other sources. In it, an autistic boy’s family discover how well he connects with a horse, and are led to undertake a healing journey of immersion in the horse culture of Mongolia with their son. Incidentally a look into a very sweet traditional way of life, and a culture with some amazing resonances on this continent! Equine therapy is a VERY real thing here, also!
http://www.horizonfarmeaglcenter.com/iseeonly.asp
http://clarkcountyhorse.blogspot.com/2010/06/horse.html
Don’t forget, the species Equus is nearly 4 million years older than ours! Like most elders, they know (and can teach) a thing or two!
Deborah Richman
One thing I have liked about this site is that it has been a mixture of people from a wide range of age, experience, geographic location, knowledge and lack therof of horses, etc. Some write about the impact that z has had on their livess, others share photos, articles, videos, blogs, and others lend their expertise to clarify, answer questions, and keep us on track regarding the realities of horses, breeding, etc.
L.S., ENSIGN, and our other horsemen and women who post here, thank you!!
@L.S.: Well said. I hope you will change your mind about this being your last post. I’m sure I am but one of MANY who truly value your posts, and learn from them.
Aaron in Ca
Thanks Trina. Some of us men get alot out of the female sensitivity that we cannot always share, and we choose to read these posts and pass by the cut and dry arguments of lessor important details. Would not doubt it, if Zenyatta’s family felt the same as I do. They do not need to read any books at night, when they can read aloud to each other such amazing stories of how their horse touched and changed peoples lives in a deeper way. Some of us have been feeding on ‘horse talk’ all day. They have said that she brings out emotion that is difficult to express otherwise, which is why they just love her.
Kitei
Not only Zenyatta, but horses and animals in general (and even humans when they can get their minds out of their own way) DO have the power to heal! Check out the 2009 documentary movie “The Horse Boy”(Over the Hills and Far Away)– it’s on Netflix, among other sources (our local library system even has several copies!). In it, an autistic boy’s family discover how well he connects with a horse, and are led to undertake a healing journey of immersion in the horse culture of Mongolia with their son. Incidentally a look into a very sweet traditional way of life, and a culture with some amazing resonances on this continent!
Kitei
Equine therapy is a VERY real thing here in the USA, also!
http://www.horizonfarmeaglcenter.com/iseeonly.asp
http://clarkcountyhorse.blogspot.com/2010/06/horse.html
There’s a local “ET” program for veterans with physical, emotion and / or mental injuries…
Don’t forget, the species Equus is nearly 4 million years older than ours!
Like most elders, they know (and can teach) a thing or two!