Good Morning,
As I mentioned to you earlier, John took some great photos of the Santa Anita Celebration on February 5th. Here is one he especially liked…Mrs. Chenery, her daughter, Kate, Ann and Dottie…all celebrating the moment!
What an honor it is to have MY ANN and DOTTIE enjoying this day and the entire experience of the Secretariat Award with Mrs. Chenery and her daughter, Kate! A moment to remember and cherish forever! I know MY TEAM will!
John also got a close photo of the trophy that has been designed for this AWARD for you to see. My Team received the first one…but it will be used from this point forward to honor the occasion. The artist is holding it.
I often think about the fact that there are LOTS of people out there doing LOTS of GREAT WORK every single day!
In this month of Valentine’s Day…I am sending a special HUG to all of you. I know sometimes things aren’t easy….and you have to really dig in to get certain things and goals accomplished…but you keep trying hard and working diligently until you get it DONE! I KNOW…I’VE HAD TO DO THIS IN MY CAREER AS WELL. In the end, one hopes the hard work and effort proves to be worth it!
So…on a personal note from ME to ALL OF YOU…KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK! People do notice! I can definitely state this from my personal experiences!
With Love,
Hugs to all~
Z
christine
Hey Zen
How about the name
ALOTOFMOMMA
Judy Sims
Hi Zenny:
Another uplifting post. You and Dottie are the greatest. John has taken some grand photos and thanks for sharing. Hope you are having fun with your posse and staying warm. Looks like you were very well “treated” yesterday by Mike. Loved watching you two do “the peppermint twist!” Ha! Ha!
Hugs & nose kisses.
Judy 8-)
Suzanne G
Zenyatta ALWAYS ran with joy. Mike Smith was part of that as was her entire team. I heard Mike comment once that he ‘had to get after her a little’ when she was coming around the far turn the noise from the grandstand was like a wall of sound and she got distracted. I personally think he only used his whip to get attention never as punishment. No way that Zenyatta does not love him! and vice-versa. It’s a relationship that we could only wish for every horse and rider in every discipline. Appreciate the opportunity to add my two cents. Thanks, SuzanneG
Stella
Dearest Queen Z,
No matter how trying and stressful my days get, I always think of you and my heart feels lighter. Your love for others and perseverance on the race track has taught us all to fiercely dig in and never look back. Thank you, dear Queen, for those lessons.
The award looks beautiful—and so do you! Hope you get to see your four legged Valentine soon! :)
Kisses and hugs,
Stel
sherry drish
LOVE ALL OF THE PICS. LIFE IS ALWAYS UNCERTAIN, BUT IF POSSIBLE KNOW YOU HAVE TRIED YOUR BEST AND BE PROUD. KEEP THE FAITH, RUN THE RACE, GOD KNOWS AND CARES. BLESS YOU. LOVE SHERRY D.
The Kennedys in San Diego
In case you missed it, Jay Hovdy wrote an entertaining column yesterday “Zenyatta side by side with Big Red.”
http://www.drf.com/news/zenyatta-picks-where-secretariat-left
Patricia
@Robbie PK– Sorry you have such a jaded outlook re: jockeys. Your inexperience shows… please don’t spout your anti- stuff here on Zenny’s diary. Zenny and Mike have a great relationship, one you probably would not understand.
Zenny, you look great in the joint portrait poster with Secretariat. What a wonderful gesture and award from Mrs. Chenery. From one great lady to another.
Stay warm, everyone.
Sharon Call
I remember reading a quote from Mike saying that he didn’t visit Z at Barn 55 that much because she would get excited when she saw him and thought they were going to do something “fun”. I’m sure that she relates him to racing and this makes her relationship with him different than it was with Mario, Carmen, John, etc. These people played different roles in her life and, just as with humman relationships, her reaction to Mike would be different than it would be to any of her barn crew. They had a different connection on the track than they did in the barn. Nothing wrong with that. Love takes many forms and differs from individual to individual. Mike loves and respects that mare and Zenyatta loves and respects Mike, just not the same way as her barn crew. Thanks for the chance to air my thoughts. Introspection is good for the soul.
EK
Zorro Don Diego would be a nice name for a colt. That was the name of a hero on a TV show many years ago. Berenice is an Italian girls name that means “bringer of victory” Zen or Zeny Berenice would be a nice filly name.
Paula R Jauch
Wish you would consider a dressage career. Could you be a working mom? You would make one spectacular dressage horse with your attitude and grace.
Mary
Zenyatta, Thanks for the memories, past, present and future! Hugs and Prayers
Debbie
great pics! love you Z!!! xo
Mary Stanford
Such a great and special photo of the strong women in racing…..strong like you Z…. they like you also all have kind hearts. Hugs to you Z…..
Cathy P
YOU ARE ONE VERY SPECIAL HORSE ZENYATTA. And thank you for the encouragement some of us need that right now. I’m so glad that your team had a wonderful day, it looks like it was a lot of fun. Have wonderful day today Zenyatta, you deserve it. With Lots of Love and Big Hugs.
Jane in Seattle
One thing I’ve always noticed about Mike Smith when he rides is how genuinely interested he seems in the horses, whether it’s Zenny or a $10000 claimer. He pets his horses, talks to them, is obviously paying close attention to what that horse is feeling. Z is obviously a very intelligent horse, and I’m sure she was aware of that. Not to mention, I think she genuinely loved the adoration she got at the track, and Mike was her partner in that, along with Mario and John. I do believe she really loves Mike, and although part of her racing was sheer competitive spirit, I think a lot of it was wanting to please Mike, because she came to know how happy he was when they won…
Ann Maree
Hi, Z-girl,
Great photos! Thanks to John for taking time to provide some great photos for us. As for staying the course and persevering, you and your team wrote the book on how to do this, with grace and with dignity. Never has an unkind or inappropriate or ungracious remark ever been uttered by any of Team Z, even when it must have been extremely difficult to keep their own counsel. Time and again, in interviews, when reporters would ask if such and so was a “Horse of the Year” accomplishment, any Team Z member would only say they would leave it to others to say…of course you deserved any honor you ever got, but they would only say how they felt about you…never anything against another party or horse. You always brought your best game every time you stepped on the track! You never took a day off, you never took a vacation, you showed up for all of your workouts and never complained! That is the only way any of us can really weather the slings and arrows of our lives and still have a semblance of happiness at the same time, but too often we forget that and live our lives in quiet desperation. Those who spoke unkindly of you or any of your connections, I always let that be about the speaker, never about Team Z….First Class all the way is Team Z…what an inspiration you all are. Thank you for setting such a great example! Hugs!!! Your friend, Ann Maree
CAM
Hard to be a dressage horse when you’re pregnant each year…
Besides, TBs don’t are not the competitive top tier dressage horses that warmbloods are. Zenyatta had far too much nervous energy to have the control and collection required of a top dressage mount. Her ‘dancing’ while fun to watch was really just her way of displaying tension.
Not sure why anyone would want her to work at another career after several years at the track anyhow. She’ll have plenty to do raising foals for many years to come.
Patricia
@Sharon Call— You have hit the nail on the head. Horses associate different people with different activities— i.e. the farrier, the groom, the owner, etc. We all saw Zenny walk right up to Mike at the fence in her paddock. She had no fear of him nor that he would suddenly start whacking her with the whip. Actually, it is NOT a whip, it is a BAT, with a leather flapper on the end (sort of like a fly swatter shape) and its action is rather a slap than a sting.
What an inspirational Diary this is!!! And what a format for educating newcomers!! I’ve been around horses for over 5 decades, and every once in a while there is a new little tidbit.
Just think, Zenny could visit Bernardini as soon as next week!!
And here’s another bit for thought: at some point in February it is entirely likely that the winners of Horse Of The Year for the last 4 times will all be on Lanes End soil — even if only for a short time — when Rachel comes to visit Curlin. She and Zenny are unlikely to even see each other in the distance— but it’s an intriguing thought.
Zenny will get to be (briefly) on the same farm as her sire Street Cry and Rachel’s sire Medaglia D’Oro. What an interesting set if coincidences. No, SC and MDO won’t get to see Zen but maybe they can send out a whinny…
Nancy L
Christine I must disagree with you. I believe that the limit setters are treated with LESS distance instead of more. I have found this to be true with my dog, my horses and the high school students that I teach. Setting limits means I interact with them and care about them. Because of this, I am closer to them and treated with more affection and respect than if there were no limits. We all like to know where we stand and what is expected.
Wendy Bratten
Thank you for sharing that wonderful photo.
Nancy L
Talk about straight from the horse’s mouth! Zenyatta, You are a super role model.
Robbie Pfeufer Kahn
To Patricia: I am sorry to have offended you. Mostly, I was quoting Sunny Boyd’s post from #80 and a comment by a woman on the Facebook comments for #80.
It is entirely possible that I am ignorant as I am not a racetrack expert by any means. I just was struck by the difference between Zenyatta’s reception of Mario Espinoza and her reception of Mike Smith. (I wrote about Zenyatta and Mario in #80.)
The issue isn’t Mike Smith’s character. He is a radiant human being and I am very fond of him. He obviously loves Zenyatta intensely.
I just was interested in what others had to say about the “professional” relationship between Mike and Zenyatta, and I added a comment of my own about prey animals.
I am mindful of Monty Roberts’ opinion on whips. He believes that they should not be used; the best horse will still win, he said.
My standard for writing on this website is that we treat one another with respect. I’m not sure that your heated words to me lived up to that standard. But again, I apologize for having offended you.
Best regards–Robbie
Jenna
Yay! Great photos. Thank you so much, Dottie, for sharing them with us. I am so grateful you take the time to include us all in Zenyatta’s and Team Z’s lives Thank you thank you thank you.
Big smile! :)
Jenna
Hey hey! Since there are so many true experts out there (I am so clueless): How good is a horse’s memory?
How long will Z remember Z and John and Mario? What if they don’t see her for months and months?
Thank you so much!
Maria
Nice pictures. Thanks for sharing them. I love you Queen Z.
Pamela Zacek
Great Pictures, and nice looking, happy faces.. I was thinking, that Queen Z, and Secretrit, could be twins, except for the color , they are so much alike. The staue, is awesome… Looks, just who its suppose to look like, but Quee Z, is right there along side, Him, so, thanks again for the pictures and the Update, My personal, part about that whip, I say, who wants to whip, anything, but that is the way it is, but notice, when the whip is out, some horses just stop, and go slower , my personal oppion on that one, My Horse would flip, everytime that whip, came around , finally thru it out , but she had been abused, in her early life, so at the time, I saw, the whip, dump it, and she finally, did her thing.. have fun, Z, with your buddies, in the fields, soon you will be the MOMmy, and no time to enjoy, got to watch the little one.
Gerrie P.
Great photos of truly remarkable women.
Thank you.
max
Congratulations on getting the award. It is very impressive looking. You deserve it. I also liked the video of you with Mike enjoying the carrots and mints. Your diary is a very welcome daily highlight.
Karey
Robbie P K: I look forward to your posts and appreciate what you write. My impression is that you live up to your standards brilliantly.
sg
@RobbiePC
–
I read your post that Patricia referred to in an earlier post. Don’t necessarily agree with your opinion/analogy but did not find it offensive. What I find offensive is Patricia’s attack on you, and implying your inexperience (if in fact you are) someone allows her to be judge and jury on what should be posted on here.
–
@Patricia: I think you too should heed Robbie’s advice:
**
“My standard for writing on this website is that we treat one another with respect. I’m not sure that your heated words to me lived up to that standard.”