Dear Friends,
I sincerely hope each of you had a very peaceful and loving holiday. The time we spent at the farm visiting with everyone was wonderful. I am overwhelmed by all of your support, love, and warm wishes to myself and MY TEAM.
I will forever be grateful to each of you!
In life, things may often travel an unexpected path. Sometimes, the surprises are wonderful and joyful. Other times, no matter how hard you work and no matter how hard you try, the result is totally out of your control and not as positive as you would hope.
I’d personally like to thank each of you for the concern and love you have expressed for CLOUD MAN. He definitely ‘knows’ how you all feel and the many candles and prayers you honored him with yesterday.
Needless to say, it is a very sad time for MY TEAM. They loved him very, very much…and he will be greatly missed.
Your kindness and thoughtfulness, as always, is deeply appreciated and means so much to all of us!
With Love,
Hugs to ALL~(Special blessings…dear Cloud Man)
Z
Jo
My heartfelt sympathies to the Mosses, John and Dottie and all in Barn 55. This is a heartbreaking loss. So many of followed Cloud Man and loved him dearly. He will be greatly missed. Rest in Peace, beautiful boy. Love to Z and Team Zenyatta.
Janet Newman
So sorry for all of you. This is the sad part of horse racing. When I watch any race I always pray for the safety of the horses and their riders. We were very blessed that Cloud Man raced under such a great barn and ridden by Mike. God always has his plan and while we do not understand it, we know that Cloud Man has crossed the finish line.
D Stuart
@Cloud Man: Three of my rescue kitties passed away this weekend, Boots, Vicky, and Dominique (who passed yesterday). They will be your barn kitties in heaven, and others here have barn dogs to watch and play with you. RIP beautiful boy until we all meet again.
diastu in tempe
stephanie
Mike lost 2 mounts this weekend Cloud Man and Irrefutable may both horses enjoy green pastures and soft gentle rays of sunshine.
Carolyn Caswell-Brown
@ Sarah Powell & harold moore:
The love from this amazing group helped me when I recently dealt with the same loss we now share. My heart & hugs are with you both. To know the love of a dog is to know true unconditional love. How effortless they can do what we as humans seem unable to master. What is THEIR secret?
The loving, HEALING sentiments concerning the loss of Cloud Man & others, as well as thoughts on what happens “after”, send a positive message about our humanity for each other when negativity & hatred seem to abound and get all the publicity.
In the beginning, we came here to proclaim our unfailing, shameless love & joy for the “Dancing Queen” Zenyatta. The early posts were mostly light, airy, and as we all enjoy saying “TOO CUTE”. Zenyatta was on the road to the Breeder’s Cup, and we were all along for the magnificent ride. Sometime, in a subtle, barely noticeable fashion, after the beginning journeys end, this ride has led to a very special “sanctuary”. We have shared much loss, hope, success, failure, vacations, births, deaths, in short, our lives with each other. We brought no personal baggage. We did not have to dress for the occasion. We didn’t have to make sure the house was clean or the dishes done. We brought no pre-conceived notions or judgements about each other, only our thoughts. We expected nothing more than to share those thoughts and be respectfully heard. What a rich, reward coming to this party has been! We came as strangers and are here now for each other as “faceless” friends.
My hope is that this family of unity & support, started by Zenyatta, extending through Cloud Man today, will continue to grow & reach out to anyone in need of having their story heard, be respected, be embraced, and be a part of a greater good.
Is this the lasting legacy of ZENYATTA?
PEACE & LOVE
Terry Crow
At times like this, words truly fail us. D Stuart said it best. Now he really is a cloud man. I hope he is playing with my old hound. I know they will be great friends.
Abigail from Montreal
Report of Cloud Man’s death in Thoroughbred Times:
http://www.drf.com/news/hollywood-park-cloud-man-euthanized-after-suffering-injuries-hollywood-derby
Ollie
My heart is heavy with sadness over
the loss of Cloud Man and for his
beloved connections.RIP.
Susan
Hi Z,
Am so sorry for the loss of Cloud Man….I hope your Team knows how much we appreciate that they care so much for their horses. So glad he was loved.
Dani
Rest in peace beautiful Cloud Man. You are in the angels’ hands now.
Sharon Call, Atlanta, GA
Tears and a sad heart for Cloud Man and all of his team.
Alex Bowdoin - MA
To Barn 55 and the Mosses, My heartfelt condolences for the loss of Cloud Man. I was very sorry to read about your loss on the diary today. Hugs to all….
Marty R / Colorado
This isn’t the outcome we hoped for, but even in this most difficult decision, what was best for the horse was first. My heartfelt condolences to everyone who cared for and loved Cloud Man. RIP beautiful runner.
Debi Hamari
So sad and sorry to hear of this loss. Cloud Man is forever in our hearts and he runs free and faster than ever now.
Love and hugs and prayers!
Debi
Agnes Carlson
Oh, sweet Cloud Man… He will be greatly missed, by all of us. RIP beautiful boy. <3
Kathy B. (SoCal, FL)
I got to see Mike ride a couple of races earlier in the day but had to leave before the 9th….I am so sorry for everyone involved. Hollywood Park is a wonderful track and a top notch facility, and I know it’s been a tough weekend. But like John Shirreffs told the DRF that’s all part of racing….you have to take the good with the bad. No one likes the bad stuff and it only gives the naysayers fuel for their fire, which is unfortunate. RIP Cloud Man.
Alex Bowdoin - MA
Carolyn Caswell-Brown, That was Beautiful what you wrote, Thank you…So True…
Debbie
hi Z! My heart is very heavy today, I’m so sorry about Cloud Man… my love to YOU and the Mosses, John, Dottie, Mike and all.
Eveline / Maryland.
@ Sarah & Harold – so sorry for the loss of your companions. They must have been very well taken care of to life that long.
Barbara Wood (Texas)
To All those who have lost pets lately–my heartfelt condolences.
Team Z– you must know that we are all reaching out with prayers and virtual hugs that I hope you can FEEL. We love you all so much. Suffering comes to us all in this old world, but it is devastating when it does. I won’t be able to watch the replay. If I didn’t believe in heaven for animals, I couldn’t bear it.
@MLV–thank you for the lovely post. There are so many things we can’t “see” with our eyes.
@Jeanie– THANK YOU FOR THE ALERT OF HOW WE CAN HELP. I’m going to donate to save those right now, and I’ll make my donation in memory of CLOUD MAN. THANK YOU to all who have helped in the past. Marlene is a wonder-woman, and she knows the heart of Team Z is for the horses who have no voice but those who will reach out to rescue them. I’m choosing to honor those who have gone on by helping the ones still here. Love you all.
Sharron Evans
My deepest condolences to John, Dottie, the Mosses, Cloud man’s groom and everyone else connected to him. I have also been following him all year and was watching live on TV, worst fear realized. There is this one comfort, and that is in the knowing of the quality and impeccability of his care and the deep and genuine love and regard in which this colt was held. He was so lovely, he will be missed, and my heart is with all those who loved and cared for him.
darlene
rip Cloud man it is so sad a part of racing that I hate I am sure Mike and the Mosses did all they could be happy and safe always dear Z love you
kelly- Allentown, Pa
@D Stuart – So sorry about the rescue kitties. I’m a cat person who fell in love with horseracing because of a cat named Seabiscuit. I keep a can of catfood in the car @ all times, because you never know when a stray will find you. ^-^
signofthetimes
A lovely tribute to the TB lost this weekend of racing by Jody Lawrence HRN contributor;
“I’ve already seen blogs saying that racing is a cruel and
senseless sport. These are from the people who don’t understand
that any of these life ending circumstances could HAVE HAPPENED IN A BARN OR PASTURE. THE THOROUGHBRED RUNS FOR THE LOVE OF RUNNING, WHETHER IT’S ON THE TRACK OR OFF, IT IS AS SIMPLE AS THAT”
“TO THE CONNECTIONS OF GENERAL MAXIMUS, BZ WARRIOR, GALEX, BACK STREET HEAT, IRREFUTABLE, CLOUD MAN, YOU DON’T SUFFER ALONE. EACH OF US SHARE YOUR LOSS AND CRY YOUR TEARS. PLEASE FIND PEACE KNOWING THAT ALL WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR THE EXCITMENT AND JOY THEY BROUGHT US… FOR THE VERY SHORT TIME THEY WERE WITH US”
JODY LAWRENCE
http://www.horseracingnation.com/news/In_Memoriam_123
Janie (in L.A.)
I am so sorry to hear about Cloud Man, but I can picture him in my mind’s eye romping and playing with Barbaro and all the other darling horses on the other side. They know how much we love them and they are happy and okay. I just KNOW it!
Kim
Deepest sympathy on the loss of Cloud Man. Racing is a heartbreaking game sometimes and this is one of those times. Run free now, Cloud Man. Chase rainbows, jump clouds, enjoy the view. You will be missed
Eveline / Maryland.
@ DianaS & Sue Frederick – A bad weekend for you guys as well. Thinking about you and your losses. Our fur babies really are family.
Suzen
“The deeper sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain.”
Nancy
What was it that Gretchen Jackson said when Barbaro was put down? “Death is the price we pay for love?” Sad, so very, very sad. RIP, Cloud Man. You are up there with the clouds now.
signofthetimes
For all of Cloudman’s Connections and those on this site:
The lovely Rainbow Bridge poem: (adapt to horses)
http://www.petloss.com/rainbowbridge.htm