Happy Friday, Everyone!
Wow, it has been a very busy week in our industry. There is so much going on that I want to share with you.
First of all, I’d love to congratulate FRANKEL (GB) on his success in winning the SUSSEX S. (G1). He is now undefeated and has a race record of 8 for 8. FRANKEL (GB) is truly a sentimental favorite in my camp as he is named for a very dear friend. Jay Hovdey, in the DRF, wrote a special piece on all of this in a recent article. Dottie and Bobby were very close friends for years. Ruben Loza, who now works as one of MY JOHN’S assistant trainers, held the same position for Bobby for 25 years. Jose Luis….who currently grooms MR. COMMONS and STAR BILLING for My John…was a long-time groom for Bobby. “Chuma” (as he is known around the barn) is also such a hard-working gentleman. He has groomed so many other wonderful horses during his career as Medaglia D’Oro, Sightseek, and Intercontinential to name a few.
So, it was with great joy and pride that MY TEAM watched FRANKEL(GB) win #8 on Wednesday. A heartfelt congratulations to his owner and breeder, Juddmonte Farms, his trainer, Mr. Cecil, and the entire team who works with this exciting colt!
I’m sending him a special HIGH HOOF for a job well-done!
Both of the SUMMER MEETS on each coast are in full-swing….and this weekend, Monmouth Park has a wonderful stakes program including the HASKELL. This should be a very exciting race!
Then at Saratoga, several big stakes races are taking place including the JIM DANDY and THE THE RUFFIAN. These should be great to handicap and enjoy. At Del Mar, we have some very accomplished sprinters competing in the BING CROSBY. So much action!
From all reports, the dirt surface at Santa Anita is terrific! This is fabulous news. In California, they now have Santa Anita open for training in addition to Del Mar. Hollywood Park closes for the next 5-6 weeks to allow the maintenance crews to completely clean out the barn area and freshen up everything that needs to be repaired and painted. The track crew, headed by Dennis Moore, is given the opportunity to work on the track and the surface to get it freshened up for the upcoming year. This is traditionally done in CA each summer…one year Santa Anita is closed to accomplish these maintenance needs and the next Hollywood Park. This alternating system works out quite well for everyone and it really helps to keep everything in the best possible shape.
Thus, since nothing can be left out at Hollywood Park for this big clean-up process to take place…everyone and everything needs to be out of Barn 55. My John and his crew did a great job getting this organized and properly storing everything that was in MY STALL. It was all safely packed for the future!
So all of my horse BARN 55 friends had to relocate as well for the summer. They were split between Santa Anita and Del Mar. In the photo above, you see STAR BILLING on the left and EBLOUISSANTE on the right getting ready to travel. They are loaded on the van and on their way to Del Mar. They are comfy, cozy, the windows are open just right…and these girls are READY TO GO TO THE BEACH!
I gather “E” wanted to snack along the way.
The TOO CUTE part of all of this is that “E” is in the same exact stall on the van I always used. In California, I shipped on Vida and David Randall’s Ranch Runner’s van. That was MY STALL! They even put a plaque on the side of this stall with MY NAME on it. So, I guess for all practical purposes, I still get to travel right with them…..in spirit!
Have a FUN weekend…and enjoy RACING!
With Love,
Hugs to All~
Z
DJ
To Charlotte: It’s not a dumb question. We invested for the first time to see Zenyatta at Church Hill Downs and it was quite expensive. Primarily because it is a two day inclusive event. She was racing on Sunday and that day was approx. $315 per. or so, and then there was Fri and Sat tickets. I only bought for Sat. and Sun. Approx. $1000 total for two box seats both days. Saturdays seats were the best and the least expensive approx. $130 per ticket inside the lovely Clubhouse. Zenyatta was so booked up on Sunday, that of course we paid double and seats were outside and not Clubhouse, but still excellent. The real expense for us because we live in Ca. were the plane tickets, the hotel (which had to be for three nights because the whole area books up months in advance and only Thurs. nites are usually available for arrival.)Not to mention the meals. However, it was a once in a life time treat and a memory we will treasure always. An investment worth it’s weight in saving, savoring and enjoying!
http://bcwc11.com/tickets/
I hope you can make it because. ..you deserve it!! Blessing.
DJ
Dumplings: I propose we offer donations for Charlotte to go to the Breeders Cup! All..probably just a 10-Spot apeice would do it. How often do we have the honor to know someone close to us; walking beside us who is doing this kind of good work for the spirit of the sport? And for no honor to herself, just because it is the ‘right thing to do!’
Karen (Kathy) Gogue
DJ
DON’T TELL HER THAT! Geez, we can’t live with her now as it is! BTW, if she sticks with me at Breeders’, she will be walking beside one who thinks Elvis is still alive – along with Howard Hughes – and that my middle name really is Kathy!! (I love you Char!) :)
Karen (Kathy) Gogue
@DJ
GULP! I had no idea it cost an arm and my other leg!! And besides, who wants to be kooped up in a box with a dancing sisterZchic? Really, though, I had no idea it was that expensive – let’s see, Breeders’ Cup 2009 cost me (without box seats) no more than $40 total – and I went just about everywhere I wanted to! And had a heck of a time enjoying the thrill of Zenyatta thundering down the stretch to the roar of the crowd. But I live locally and had no plane to catch either, so those who saw her race last year, it was worth it, I’d say!
Trina Nagele
Dearest Zenny, Before I say good-night, may I ask a favor of you? You know your dear friend Dottie has a birthday coming up on August 10, and there are some of us who would like to snail-mail greetings and best wishes to her. Now that Hollywood Park is closed for cleaning and repairs, we wonder if you could possibly help us out with a suitable postal address for our missives? Thanking you in advance, and wishing you sweet dreams of peppermints, your fan, Trina.
susan
Just found this site. Got to say the races aren’t near as much fun to watch without “The Queen” in the running. Hope all is well with you & the little one. You’re missed.
Sarah Powell
@Diana S got my nametag – as Zenny would say TOO CUTE – thank you for all the hard work. I cliped mine to a picture of her hanging over my desk – maybe someday I’ll get to wear it but I think I’m too far out of the loop. Looking forward to hearing about you trip with Charlotte. Enjoy your posts. Thanks again.
Barbara Wood
@DMCQ–well said!
@@signofthetimes–sending you hugs and prayers today
@Kari Bussell–sending prayers for your puppies (I call all dogs, no matter how old “puppies”)
@Gary Moulton–that way of fixing the economy sounds good to me!
@DJ–lovely prayer.
@Karen Gogue–you are so funny!
Barbara Wood
Forgot to mention–GO SHACKLEFORD!
Lisa g
DJ: I am in, info when you can.
Donna
@MAX. Thanks for the Timeform info appreciate it. I keep watching the replay of FRANKEL he is amazing.
Way to go STAY THIESTY, I have always loved BERNADINI since I first saw him win the Preakness, I made quite a bit of money when I bet him to win and he did.
Donna
Sorry typo THIRSTY
Linda in NJ
Hi Zenny: This picture of Ebby is Too Cute. When I visited Barn 55 I noticed that Ebby didn’t have hey for her bedding. I asked your John about that and he said Ebby eats it. Here is a picture of Ebby eatting. She likes her food. Lol!! Take care Zenny.
Anyone headed for the Haskells today. I’ll be wearing my Z-Dumpling pin. Would be nice to meet other Z-East coast Dumpling fans.
Linda in NJ
Opps I think I better go back to school. I meant: Hay
The Kennedys in San Diego
@Linda in NJ — Have a great time! And good luck! We will be rooting for Shackleford.
Bravo, Stay Thirsty, for your Jim Dandy win.
Brenda S
Good morning Zenny, I see that the heat continues in Ky so I hope that you and the babe are comfy and hydrated.
@ Abigail – Thank you, thank you for the Zenyatta magazine. I will be adding it to my June 11, 1973 Sports Illustrated copy of the Secretariat issue and I’ll then be the lucky owner of souvenir magazines of the King and Queen of TB racing.
Good luck to Shackleford today, safe trips to all.
Gary Moulton
@Babies go to Sunday School Class …………………07-31-11 (12:30 pm est.)
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There are two Classes at the Spa, race 2, and race 4. I will “Skip Away” the state bred fillies and play the claiming race. Race 4 in my mind is a cheap race for Saratoga on a weekend. One of the ways I gauge a claiming race is the size of the purse compared to claiming price. If the claiming price is the same as the purse, I give that an even race rating. If the purse is higher then the claiming price, then I give that race a plus rating. If the purse is smaller then the price, I give that a negative rating. In the 4th race today the price is 50K and the purse is 29K, almost half the price down. I use the gap between the purse and the price in a secondary mathematical formula to reach another number to help me class the race itself. I don’t use it very much because I don’t play many straight claiming races but I do play the optional claimers. I’m going to miss the “Claiming Crown” this year. I tend to stay away from races less then 25K.
At DM there is just one Class, race 1, and there’s not very many children attending.
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SARATOGA –
Race 4 – I think a first time starter will win this race because there is only one horse in here that has had a race. There are three “Lion Heart” babies in this one. Watch it be an all Lion Triple, LOL, that’s a crazy hunch. I will put the oldest of the three in there. D Wayne has a good eye for the youngsters so I will throw his horse in there. I guess I will put Kenny’s horse in because his horse was born in January and I was born in January and that’s as good of a reason as any in this race. #5 “Bunker’s Ledge”, #8 “Lionator”, & #9 “Afleet Bandit”.
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$1.00 Triple Zox 5, 8, 9 = $6.00
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DEL MAR –
Race 1 – Only a 7 horse field so we will save a buck and bet to win.
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$5.00 to WIN on #5 “Lookin for Jonesy” (note: If the odds go below 2 -1 Pass the race)
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$11.00 invested -$105.00 going in, Good Luck
Gary Moulton
@“Fourstardave” – With all eyes pointed towards the “Haskell” today I would like to take a moment to reflect on one of the most popular fan favorites of the modern era at Saratoga.
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They called “Fourstardave” the “Sultan of Saratoga.” He was truly a folk hero, a horse for the course and one that took to Saratoga with the intensity the Colonials used against the British.
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“Fourstardave” was absolute hickory. He won 21 races and placed in 55 percent of his 99 starts. He would win six stakes at Saratoga, in five consecutive years, while placing in four others at the upstate track. His record was 9-for-18 and 3 seconds at Saratoga, 12-for-77 elsewhere, including his 0-for-21 record at Aqueduct. Now I’ve heard of horses for courses but this one set a course record of 1:38 4/5 for a 1 1/16, the fastest time at the distance on any surface in the history of New York racing. Dave won one or more races every year for 8 straight years at the Spa. He was a true super star.
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Maybe it was the smell of the northern pine or the Spa’s spring water that he drank, but “Fourstardave” loved Saratoga and the racing fans adored the “Sultan.” He won at other tracks but he owned Saratoga’s “Graveyard of Favorites”. Even as a fan favorite entered well over his head, he found a way to reward his army of followers. Racing was his business and business was booming every warm August day at the Spa. .
They filled the grandstand every August with “Fourstardave” T-shirts and posters of Go Dave or You the Sultan. He was a star and he knew it. He loved cameras like “Zenyatta” and if you pointed one his way he almost seemed to pose with head high and a bright glitter in his big brown eyes. He loved attention and loved to mug. He always pranced on parade from the paddock.
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Every time Dave ran he gave it his all. The word “QUIT” wasn’t in his vocabulary. When he won or was cheered by his admirers, he pricked his ears and bobbed his head. It was his way of saying, “Thanks folks”. He won the “Daryl’s Joy Stakes” two years running (1990-91) and two years later, with age catching up, he was second to Breeders’ Cup Mile winner Lure. In 1996 the “Daryl’s Joy Stakes” was renamed the “Fourstardave Stakes”.
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At 10 the old man was sent to an Ocala Farm where the famed gelding was to finish his years in a “Life of Riley” setting. But the old timer soon missed his August days at Saratoga and was rewarded with a trip back each year, leading the post parade to the start of his “Fourstardave Stakes”.
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Born to run and always ready to race, he actually finished second at age 12 in a charity steeplechase in Kentucky and that was his 100th start. His appearance alone raised the roof on money collected. I saw Dave finish 3rd as a 2 yr old in the “Laurel Dash Stakes” and I was at Saratoga for many of his races.
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In 2002, His owner/breeder “Richard Bomze” agreed to have Dave, then 17, lead the post parade of retired New York-breds on New York’s Showcase Day at Belmont in an effort to help the New York State breeding program. The horse was sent to O’Brien at Belmont for some light training. On the morning of Oct. 14, O’Brien’s son, Keith, who had been Dave’s regular exercise rider, mounted the old gelding and took him to the training track for a trot the wrong way. He said he could feel the horse’s heart thumping over and over. “He just turned around and died of a heart attack,” Bomze said. “But I thought, at 17, he was still young enough to handle it. I guess I made a mistake. I should have left him at Tony’s farm. I think his death typified what kind of heart and competitiveness he had. Just getting on the track and thinking about running proved too much for him. He was a gladiator”. Dave is buried on the Saratoga backstretch in the Clare Court area. Only two other horses have had that honor. “Fourstardave’s” epitaph read, “Ay, every inch a king.”
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And so it was and so it is.
Gary Moulton
@Frankel best there’s ever been
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http://www.independent.ie/sport/horse-racing/galway-races/frankel-best-theres-ever-been-cecil-2833208.html
Quarterhossgal
Zenny…I envy the girls on their way to Del Mar! We enjoyed our visit there last week, great weather and great racing. We were at the Breeder’s Cup in Louisville and had a great time without a big cost. We didn’t have box seats but the seats were good when we were in them. I love to go to the paddock to see the horses before I place a bet so we move around quite a bit. We also went to Kentucky Horse Park to visit with Cigar, DaHoss etc.and of course to see Michael and all his 4 legged animals at Old Friends. Being in the Midwest it is a trip if we go to Kentucky or Del Mar. It is well worth the cost for the exciting races we get to see. Enjoy the races Queen Z!
Terry Crow
@Kari Bussell-Pants on Fire. @Kim S and Gary Moulton-Thank you. @Karen Gogue-I think I’ll use Larry as a moniker when I post a really bad joke. There have been plenty of those. @DMCQ-I did better when I didn’t know so much. @Diana S-I would think that the Breeder’s Cup people would be honored to have Charlotte Farmer as a special guest with all expenses paid. Think of what a feature about Noor could be. Looks like another project for superwoman.Today’s joke, really more of a description–I’ve sure gotten old. I’ve had two bypass surgeries and a hip replacement and I’m battling diabetes. I can’t hear anything below the volume of a jet plane, take 40 different medications that make me dizzy and subject to blackouts. Can hardly feel my hands and feet anymore. Can’t remember if I’m 85 or 92. But, thank God, I still have my California driver’s license.
DJ
For those who would like a Morning Prayer/Hymn:
…………………………………
O God of light, the dawning day
Gives us new promise of your love.
Each fresh beginning is your gift,
Like gentle dew from heav’n above.
Your blessings, Father, never fail:
Your gifts, our daily bread,
The holy truth of your love,
By whom each day your children are led.
Make us the servants of your peace,
Renew our strength, remove all fear;
Be with us, Lord, throughout this day,
For all is joy if you are near.
To you Father, ever blest,
Our petitions, we humbly pray:
Show us the splendor of your light
and in this morn, the dawn of a perfect day.
………………………..James Quinn
judy berube
Dear DJ:
Amen. Hugs, J.B.
DJ
To Karen G: A Dumpling Alert! Since all of us Z Dumplings already have your address, and you are a trustworthy friend of Charlottes, can we who would like to see Charlotte go to the 2011 Breeders Cup send you a check made out in her name? Those who like risk, can send a bill, but you risk not only the postal man but also Karen G!! :) Is there anyone more deserving to go to the Breeders Cup than our Charlotte Farmer? Let’s make it happen, for when it happens for one, it happens for ALL Dumplingz in Spirit!
……………………………….
DJ
ps. to Karen G: Elvis is not alive!?!
DJ
To Barbara W: I’m glad I picked a nice one for you!
judy berube
Dear Terry Crow:
You know that’s whose driving when you can only see the very top of their heads. (Sometimes not even that; looks like no one’s behind the wheel). Ha, ha. Hugs, J.B.
DJ
Lisa g: Great!
judy berube
DJ:
You gotta have more faith in a fellow Dumpling. I’m in on sending Charlotte F. to Breeder’s Cup. Hugs, J.B.
Charlotte Farmer
@Breeders’ Cup – I appreciate the thought about the Breeders’ Cup but I will pass. My dream is another race. I will be happy just going to Arcadia and seeing all the people in the racing world that I have been connected with for quite a few years, one in particular, my friend Kip. As Mister Rogers would have said, “It will be a lovely day in the neighborhood.”
@Dawn Conrad – Again, does anyone know if she is alright?