To all my dear, loving fans,
I want to THANK all of you for your support, encouragement and love.
I gave it a good GO in the Breeders’ Cup Classic…and tried my best! I’m home now at my Hollywood Park Barn. The flight back to California was great. My friends, Mario, Frank and Harmonious, traveled on the plane with me. It was a smooth trip!
The last week has been exciting and thrilling! I had a great time in KY and everyone was so kind to me. I posed for hundreds and hundreds of photos yesterday alone with so many fabulous fans. They brought me Z cakes, apples, peppermints, and carrots. They hugged me, kissed me, and made me feel so special. I am one lucky mare.
Then when I got back to the barn there was a great WELCOME HOME ZENYATTA sign hanging at the barn. People signed it with such sweet messages for me! Everyone makes me feel so special.
Today, I’ll walk and relax a bit and, of course, GRAZE! LUCKY ME!
Hugs to all…and again…THANKS TO ALL OF YOU for being so loving and supportive of me and all of TEAM ZENYATTA.
With great appreciation…
Love,
Z
Barbara Schroer
Dear Zenyatta,
Thank you so much for all the wonderful thrills that you gave us. You are no doubt Queen!!! You are so very, very special. Thank your connections for sharing us with you like no other connections have, it made the “ride” so much more fun! Can’t believe I will not see you again. Your are the greatest!! Your fans will never forget you!!
RAT
To Ann and Jerry Moss: Thank you for granting us the privilege of watching Zenyatta this year. Your decision to keep her in training has proven to be the right decision. Your courage to run her in the Breeders Cup Classic instead of the Ladies Classic, to risk everything to allow her to pursue greatness, is one of the best things to happen to horse racing in years. You were also smart enough to listen to your trainer and allow him to do what he does best. Because of your ownership we have witnessed greatness that only comes around once a generation. You are the Owners of the Year.
To John Shirreffs: Your management of Zenyatta’s career has been remarkable. You had her ready in every race. You made sure she did enough to stay sharp but beautifully spaced her races so she was always fresh. You had tremendous pressure on you to keep her on top of her game every time she ran and you did just that. I cannot imagine how hard it must have been to know that every decision you made with her would be scrutinized and if anything went wrong, you would be at fault. But you did everything right with her and allowed her greatness to shine on the track. You are the Trainer of the Year.
To Mike Smith: Zenyatta did not lose. She was one stride too late but everyone who saw the race knows she was the best horse. You made the right decisions during the race. I was there and saw how wide you would have had to go if you had swung her outside. You would have lost too much ground. I was amazed at how you were able to angle her out and get her going when I thought you were going to be blocked by the wall of horses in front of her. You made the right decisions and while I know the loss hurts, it was not your fault. You performed admirably on the biggest stage under the brightest lights. No one could have done better. You are the Jockey of the Year.
To Zenyatta: I heard people talking about Blame being Horse of the Year. They said since he beat you on the track he deserves the crown. They are wrong. If we only look at your race records, you compare favorably. You ran six times, winning five, your only loss being a diminishing head to Blame. You ran in all Grade I races. Blame ran five times winning four. His only loss was by 4 & ½ lengths to Haynesfield. Four of his five races were Grade I. So the records are fairly even. However, when you consider Blame has run over the Churchill strip numerous times and you had to ship in for the race, the scales start to tip in your favor. Then you look at all the attention and distractions you had to deal with that no other horse had. The media crush, the adoring fans taking pictures, the pressure your handlers were under, the fact that fillies aren’t supposed to beat the colts. That adds up. And yet you still performed heroically. This alone is reason you are Horse of the Year. However, there is another thing to consider. What you have done for horse racing transcends your actual races. At a dark time for horse racing you have brought in new fans. Young fans. Old fans. Female fans. Male fans. You have softened the hearts of the most hardened horse players. You even had your competition rooting for you. You have given horse racing something it hasn’t had since the seventies. A star that we could root for whose career wasn’t cut short by taking the money and running to the breeding shed. If horse racing is to survive, you have shown them how.
A quick story to illustrate the impact you have had. I was at Churchill on Saturday. And during the long, cold wait for the Classic, I got to talking to the gentlemen sitting next to me who was there with his family. His fifteen year old daughter had asked to go see Zenyatta at the Breeders Cup for her Christmas present. Her CHRISTMAS present!! So they made a 16 hour drive from Florida to the track to see you race. She was so excited and even got Mike Smith’s autograph on her Zenyatta cap. When you came down the stretch, 70,000 people all yelled at the top of their lungs urging you on. The energy in the crowd was beyond electric. And when you didn’t get their in time, everyone still knew they had witnessed greatness. That fifteen year old was devastated that you lost and cried for a good ten minutes after the race. However, she will never forget that race and will always remember you. She will be a horse racing fan for life. No horse has affected people like you have for a very long, long time. Horse of the Year? You are not only Horse of the Year, but Horse of the Decade, and Horse of the Century.
Jenifer De Locht
Thank you for all the goosebumps, the near heart attacks, the tears of joy and the giddiness of a kid on Christmas day. I’ve seen you run at Del Mar, Hollywood Park and Santa Anita. Watched the out of state races on TV — cheering like a maniac, jumping up and down in my living room. I have been very blessed by being able to meet you in person at Del Mar and Hollywood Park and can’t thank the entire team enough for the warm welcome and open arms. I will be heading up to see you soon and look forward to giving you more carrots. You ran an amazing race last Saturday and I don’t regret for a second that I traveled from San Diego, CA to Louisville, KY to see it. You are an amazingly kind and gentle soul and you’ve brought so much pleasure to so many. Words just can’t express my thanks. See you soon, Big Girl!
Lisa g
Ms Zenyatta, I do not know what my life is going to be like without you racing, I do not care if you win or not, I just love watching you before, during and after. Please keep posting, I want to know all about your life forever. I cannot believe I love someone this much that I have never personally met. I am glad you are back home, I wish I still lived there so I could meet you. Wish you could take a road trip to all the smaller tracks so we could all see you…like Lone Star Park. I love you, your spirit, your dancing, you beautiful brown eyes, and the perfect racehorse that you are. Lisa g
Shannon Robertson
Zenyatta, you have given me my modern-day Ruffian. You are gorgeous and inspiring.
Carrie Sudweeks
Thank you so much for the sparkle and excitement you have given to me and others for the past 3 years! You have provided me with the most excitement in racing since I watched Secretariat win the triple crown! I wish I could vote for Horse of the Year, for to me you are Horse of the Decade and deserve the title! I would love to sit with you and share a bottle of Guinness! Enjoy your retirement and may God bless you with many children and a long and peaceful life!
natalie
you are so beautiful and full of heart. You will always be in our hearts forever. you bring so much joy to our lives.
love
Natalie and Alejandro
i will bring you a guiness when i meet you
Donna Frederick
Please keep the site going. I fell in love with the Queen and don’t want to lose the contact and access we’ve all had with her.
For her fans – she is the best! If she doesn’t get HOTY, horse racing will lose me as a fan, but I’ll always be Zenyatta’s fan.
nancy gensch
The story of Zenyatta is inspiring and should be a great lesson for children.
“it’s okay to lose one.” She rose to greatness through pure talent, athleticism, proper training, amazing spirit, work ethic, and determination. In spite of all this success and all the admiration and accolades, she never lost her humility and her kindness towards others. She was able to keep her life in perspective. After coming in 2nd for the first time in her career, she remained gracious towards her admirers and kept her priorities in order. She was still happy and delighted to receive carrots from her fans and enjoyed every blade of grass she munched on just as much after the race as she did before. She is comfortable in her own skin. Don’t get me wrong, she knows she’s great and she might even think she won the race. But whatever the case may be, Zenyatta remains unaffected and certainly has her priorities in order. Not only for her amazing record on the track, but also for
her amazing kindness and character under
unfortunate circumstances, should she be
admired.
Amanda Cupples
I will never see another horse as good as you in my lifetime. I was there rooting you on in Kentucky wish I could have had a picture made with you but I got one with your wonderful jockey Mike Smith. ALL HAIL THE QUEEN, QUEEN Z!!
Diane
Zenyatta, thank you for showing us all what a classy, wonderful and loving mare you are! You’ve inspired me, made me smile, made me cry tears of joy — thanks for the memories! I hope you keep us updated during this next chapter of your life. xoxoxo
Chris Strawn
Please keep us (your fans) posted on what goes on in your life.
barb
Hi Z Thank You so much for what you have done for racing. There will never be another one like you in my life time. Just think no one else could have got 72,000 plus race fans to be in one place and Z you have got one special rider you two just work magic together. Thank You Z team and Mike Smith do not feel bad. Z still loves you no matter. GOD SPEED
Patti Tan
You are the one and only Queen Z……still perfect, as far as I am concerned. Blame was just lucky but you are truly THE HORSE OF THE 21ST CENTURY…….THE ONE AND ONLY!
I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!! <3 <3 <3
Catherine
You won. I don’t care that you were second, you still won.
shawn spivey
We all love you Mike, it wasn’t your fault! We all hope Big Z and all her connections decide to ran again next year
Nancy McNaul Applegate
Zeni, you will always be the star of the opera.
Elaine
You will always be the #1 Queen of my heart! It has been a thrill to watch you race. I saw your last workout at Hollywood Park and then was fortunate enough to visit with you afterward and then again in the afternoon when you were out with Mario. You are not only the Horse of the Year, but also the Horse of the Decade….and beyond! You are magnificent! I would love to see you stay in California so we can still admire and love you here. Cal-bred babies are great, too! Thank you for the special ride you have given all of us. We love you, Queen Zenyatta!
Richard Cope
To all the Zenyatta fans out there. I have petitioned the NTRA to create a new award for Zenyatta and horses like her to honor the horse that has done the most for the sport over the year, an award she richly deserves. Please, if you feel as I do that Zenyatta deserves a special award that recognizes all she has done for the sport of horse racing please let your voice be heard and maybe they will listen
Lori
I love you Zenyatta. You are an awesome superstar. I’m so glad you came out of the Classic safe and sound. I will miss watching your magnificent stretch runs. You gave us so many thrills. Thank you Zenyatta. With love always, Lori
I AM DANCING TOO
Every Zenyatta Lover has to hear this Zenyatta song!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=828F82YQG6c
I AM DANCING TOO
Lyrics to the song cause everyone will want to sing along.Written by Gary L. Hill and Carolin E.A. Hill
©2010 MountainManMusic
info@corelevelrecords.com
Faster than a yellow racer
Truer than a level laser
All the boys can do is chase her
Smarter ones don’t want to face…
Zenyatta
Zenyatta
She’s laying back and building steam
You pinch yourself it’s not a dream
It’s Zenyatta
Oh, Zenyatta
Well, she hasn’t made her move yet
Hasn’t even broke a sweat
Now she’s picking up the pace
It’s how she does it every race
Zenyatta
Zenyatta
She passes horses with a glance
She wants to do her victory dance
‘Cause she’s Zenyatta
Oh, Zenyatta
Comin’ to the backstretch
Makin’ everybody itch
Movin’ to the outside
Come on jockey, ride, ride, ride
You’re on Zenyatta
The camera’s flashing when you win
20 and 0, you’re the best that’s ever been
Zenyatta
Yeah, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, Zenyatta
Go, go, go, go, go, Zenyatta
Go, go, go go, go, Zenyatta
Ellen Zachary
You are the Queen, dear girl…thank you for every thrilling moment…
Wendy
Zen, you are magnificent. You didn’t lose Saturday, Blame lucked out with a head bob. He is nothing so special. You would have easily beat him if your trip had been smoother. You will always be Horse of the Year to me, just as you were last year. I hope you have a happy future. I love you, and will miss you dearly. Love you.
PS Mike we love you too. Zen isn’t Zen without you. It’s a team we love.
Lou Naylor
We love you Queen Zenyatta. There will never be another one like you. I’m so grateful for the kind, caring and loving connections you have around you. You are definitely treated like a Queen. We will miss seeing you dance and prance for your loving public but we all know that good things must come to an end. I know you will be treated with dignity where ever you go. Hope you will be a happy horse forever. Hopefully someone will keep your fans informed as to how you are doing and where we can come visit you. We’ll miss you soo much. Love you always big girl.
Amanda Gilliland
Thank You Lady Zenyatta for all the wonderful memories of you and Mike in all of your races. Zenyatta you are truly one of the most beautiful and magnificent racehorses of all times. At the BC your performance will be talked about for a long time. What an amazing race to come from back to front in unbelievable speed.
I’m glad you are back home safe and sound and I hope you have many wonderful days ahead of grazing and enjoying being Zenyatta, free to do what ever you want. You have given all your fans many, many wonderful memories of you. Please keep your fans updated! I love you,Zenyatta!!
barb h
Hi Z Thank You so much that you have done for racing.There will never one like you in my life time. Just think Z who else have ever bought 72,000 plus fans togather. And Z you have a very rider who should no way feel sad. Because you two work magic togather.So just keep haming it up the pleasuer you have given me will never go away. LOVE YOU Z GOD SPEED
Rachael Z.
Thank YOU, Zenyatta! And your friends John, Mike, Mario, Jerry and Ann.
Robin
We love you, beautiful and magnificant Zenyatta! PLEASE keep us informed about where she will be and how she is doing. I know that MANY OF US WOULD LOVE TO VISIT HER if possible. She is such a wonderful ambassador for the sport – especially now, when racing is facing so many challenges. She is definitely up there with the legends like Big Red. Her trainer is right…the public needs more access to the champions in order to experience more and form long term relationships and a fan base.
Dallas
Dear Queen Z,
You are by far the best! I drove from Decatur TX to KY just to see you race. Baby girl, you did not disappoint me at all. You were the best and fastest there. I would love to have a beer with you one day. God bless you and your wonderful connections…Thank you,
Your biggest TX fan,
Dallas