Zenyatta

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Zenyatta News

Zilkha!

Zilkha, January 2021. Photo by Todd Claunch.

We are happy to officially announce the name of Zenyatta’s 2020 filly, ZILKHA. The name, Ann says, “is strong and beautiful and was inspired by a woman who was as well.”

Though it wasn’t intentional, we’re tickled to note that Zenyatta, Zellda, and Zilkha share the first and last letters of their names. 

Already the queen of her paddock, Zilkha is taller than average and loves to be scratched in all the same places as her mom. Those who work with her at Lanes End say they’re more impressed with her every day.

We can’t wait to see what Zilkha’s future holds!

Zilkha, January 2021. Photo by Todd Claunch.
Zilkha and a friend, January 2021. Photo by Todd Claunch.
Zilkha with her paddock mates at Lane’s End Farm. Photos by Jenn Laidlaw

Reader Interactions

285 Comments

  1. / Reply

    Dear Z Fans:

    Not a good day for Bezos and Mikey today at SA. He went off as the favorite, but finished out of the money. Hope he came back OK.

    Congrats to the winner, Dream Shake, ridden by Joel Rosario. His sire is Twirling Candy and his Dam is a daughter of STREET CRY. He went off at odds of 20 to 1. Never count out a Street Cry connection. That late move by Dream Shake looks familiar!

    Here’s the replay of the race. Love and Hugs, JB

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PigCwNB0lxs

  3. / Reply

    Thank You so much for the update and pictures, Team Z. Zilkha is one beautiful girl. I will be keeping up with her, just as I do with all of Zenny’s babies. I know Zenny is very proud of her baby girl.

  4. / Reply

    HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU ??
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU??
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR MARSHALL (NC BROAD) AND BRENDA (from FT ERIE)???
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU???
    Hope you both have a great day (with cake, of course??) and a good year ahead.
    Love and international hugs ????
    Sandy

    • / Reply

      My Dear Marshall and Brenda:

      Wishing both of you a Very Happy Birthday.

      Sandy, thank you for the reminder.

      Love and Hugs, JB

    • / Reply

      Dear Sandy,
      Thank you for the birthday greetings! Yes, I have had a bit of birthday cake already! Yum! ?

      HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my “birthday pal”, Brenda in Ft. Erie❣️ ? ?
      Hope you have a wonderful day and a healthy year — hope you can go to the racetrack again before too long! ? ?

      Hugs and Love

  6. / Reply

    Dear Marshall,
    Hope you had a wonderful birthday. Lots of cake. Are you enjoying your nice weather there in NC? My daughter who lives in Charlotte and her husband visited the North Carolina Zoo yesterday and were very impressed. After living in Indy and Baltimore she is enjoying the NC weather.
    Got my 2nd Covid 19 injection on Sunday. Really no side effects. Felt a little tired for one day and my arm was sore. Next day all was gone. Looking forward to going back to work at the hospital in a week or so.

    • / Reply

      Dear Shirlee,
      Thank you for the birthday greeting — yes indeed I had cake with my favorite icing of buttercream. Yum!!
      The NC Zoo is really great; although, it has been years since I visited there. I make an annual donation to it, and I have seen a couple of shows on Nat Geo Wild that feature the NC Zoo which were good. Glad your girl is enjoying our state. That’s nice to hear.
      I must admit that I miss our fourth season (winter) — all we get here anymore is a season of rain which has usurped our winters of snowy fun. Of course, summer seems to start early and stay late now.
      I am scheduled for my second Covid 19 injection on Saturday. Guess what?
      It is going to be raining — ICK! It was a lovely clear crisp morning when I got the first shot. Oh well, I’ll survive. :-)
      Hugs and Love

      • / Reply

        Wow! You folks in NC and IN must be way ahead of Ohio as far as the vaccine is concerned. I’ve been “eligible” for almost three weeks now and am just getting my first dose on Friday (which is good news, but I’ll have to miss the Mill Ridge yearling tour – at least the “live” version). It was supposed to snow, but now they’ve called that off until Saturday. However, it will be verrrry cold. A friend might take me so that I can just be dropped off at the door. Glad to know you two have not had any adverse reactions, and I’m just SO pleased to be moving forward at least.

  8. / Reply

    Two more cute babies on Bloodhorse. I swear, sometimes they look a little dazed, like “what just happened”. They are just precious.

  9. / Reply

    Hi Zsters ?
    I pray every1 is staying safe.
    Yay ? to those who were abletoget thevaccines!

    ??Happy belated bday 2 u?
    ?Happy belated bday 2 u??
    ???Happy belated dear Marshall & Brenda ??
    ?Happy bday 2? u??.

    Much luv ? HugZ ❤prayerZ ?
    Vamp?‍♀️

    • / Reply

      Oh Van, I see that you are not longer on Twitter now you’re here I guess when I told you about this blog you changed, well I’m so glad you did because in here everyone is wonderful, bless you dear friend, big hugs Ingrid.

    • / Reply

      I so adore Zenyatta too❤️ The horse that pulled me through very difficult times in bad health and into horses and horse racing forever….I support all Street Cry descendants as I believe he had some special magic in his dna. I also see the heart in his descendants even in lesser class races. Not every horse can be Zenyatta or Winx, or Street Sense, or many more, but you often see them showing class in whatever they do regardless of it’s significance to the top level thoroughbred racehorse star. There are but a handful of horses that capture our souls more than these descendants like Zenyatta, Winx, Street Sense, Street Boss, New Year’s Day, Maximum Security, Zulu Alpha, Maxfield, and so on.

    • / Reply

      Thanks, JB.
      Always an exciting time filled with lots of interesting barn routines.
      Praying for all of these beautiful babies
      that they remain safe and sound. Long road.
      Whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on! Shake it, shake it.
      Hope everyone stays safe and warm with all of the storms moving across the USA. Zenny, looks like you had ice…..stay safe!

    • / Reply

      Dear Judy,
      Thanks for the SH Derby Rankings article! Lots of potential there on his list and the “Knocking on the Door” possibilities, also.
      I agree with Ann that it is such an exciting time!
      Glad you got your 2nd vaccination! Hope there will be no weather complications in the AM to interfere with my appointment.

      Hugs and Love

    • / Reply

      Thanks Judy! I cannot pick a favorite yet. But I do like Proxy just because of his dam’s name-Panty Raid! Don’t want to be mean but I do hope someone besides Baffert wins this year.

  12. / Reply

    Happy Friday everyone. So glad to be back from the first dose of vaccine. This could only happen to me. I think they were just a tad jammed up from earlier appointments (although the whole operation is very organized), and just after I had passed the station to get my temperature checked, the power went out for the entire building. At first the volunteers were saying “no problem – we can give shots without the lights,” and that was probably true, but what would NOT work, of course, were the computers to sign one in!! Just unbelievable. Needless to say, things got very backed up, and people were closer to me in line than I would have liked. Thank goodness whatever powered the computers came back faster than the rest of the power – I was just leaving after my 15 minute observation period when the lights came back on. Hope things run more smoothly the next time.

    OK – Hovey has quite the repertoire of “colorful language” today, but as far as I can tell, he’s doing fine.

    https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/blog/hovis-friday-diary-how-does-mother-sticking-her-marigold-clad-hand-up-my-man-sausage-cave-count-as-her-essential-daily-exercise-737430

    Too bad about the racing at Oaklawn being canceled for the weekend, and the Fairgrounds track looks like a quagmire. Hope at least a few of the Derby prep races get run. Everyone stay safe – next week looks wicked all across the country!!

    • / Reply

      Dear Sandy:

      Yes, storms keep popping up everywhere. Hope all stay safe.

      Glad you got your first vaccine shot, finally. I just got my second shot this afternoon. So far, so good; just a bit sore.

      Thank you for our Friday Hovis Update. Will read it in a bit. Love and Hugs, JB

    • / Reply

      Thanks, Sandy.
      Glad to know you were able to get your shot. Great news JB on the 2nd!
      Hovis! Mum is full of herself!
      These storms just keep coming. The ice looks so bad.
      Stay cozy and warm folks…chili time.

      • / Reply

        Dear Ann:

        Yes, we were lucky here. The state did a great job getting the vaccine out to seniors. Hope you and all Z Fans get vaccinated soon. Love and Hugs, JB

    • / Reply

      Dear Sandy,
      That sounds like something I would fall victim to! Bad timing is something I am familiar with. Wow, two sentences and two dangling prepositions!! Oh the grammar of it all. ?
      Glad you were able to get the first vaccination though. I hope there will not be a problem here tomorrow morning (freezing rain possibility) so I can get my scheduled 2nd dose. Fingers crossed! ?
      Thanks bunches for our Hovis diary — very amusing as always!
      Hugs and Love

      • / Reply

        Success!
        I got my 2nd vaccination this morning — all done now.
        The small independent pharmacy where I signed up did a great job.
        After waiting the 15 minutes following the injection, I was back home in less than an hour both times. 20-30 minutes of that was spent commuting.
        Everyone stay safe, well, warm and dry❣️
        Hugs and Love

        • Thank goodness. Happy your area did not receive that bad ice.
          30 mins. north of us in Henderson and up the road the trees are down and no power.
          Stay safe!

        • Yes Neighbor,
          I grew up in Warren County which is near Henderson.
          It’s amazing the difference a short distance can make in weather conditions.
          Hope you are well and staying dry in this moldy mildewy sloppy weather❣️

          Hugs and Love

    • / Reply

      Sandy,
      Sounds like you had quite a time getting your vaccine. Hope things go better with the second. I was lucky. Everything went smoothly at the hospital where I got mine. Glad you have the shot and soon you can have some freedom.

      Thanks for our Friday Hovis. That boy is full of mischief. Always makes me laugh.
      Everyone stay safe and warm. Next week is going to be a real bear. Snow, snow and more snow along with cold and more cold. Think I will spend a lot of time in bed with my purr babies.

  14. / Reply

    Hi Z + Zsters ?
    I pray every1 has a safe/ warm weekend. Mine’s about to start in a couple mins when i get off this machine.
    Thx Sandy for Hovis update ?.
    Luv ya all. HugZ ❤ prayerZ ? Vamp?‍♀️

  15. / Reply

    Some really good racing on tv yesterday. Congrats to all the winners. Happy Happy Happy with the wins by Maxfield and Clairere! Stonestreet and Barbara won the Rachel Alexandra with a homebred! Maxfield is at last showing his real talent.

    • / Reply

      Dear Shirlee:

      Thanks for this wonderful news on Maxfield. So happy for him. Congrats to Stonestreet on their RA Stakes win too. Love and Hugs, JB

    • / Reply

      Love and hugs to everyone!
      Oh my, this weather. Stay safe everyone.
      Just got lucky spinning the wheel and have a slot for my 1st shot…plop,plop,fizz,fizz, what a relief it is.
      Zenny, enjoy your snow.

      • / Reply

        YAY!! Neighbor Ann!
        Glad you have a slot for your 1st vaccine. It is a relief, isn’t it?
        Hope you don’t need Alka-Seltzer though. ?
        That plop, plop, fizz, fizz was a favorite go-to for my grandfather, and I must admit it works pretty well — club soda works almost as well, too. Probably other than a bit of bourbon before supper, Alka-Seltzer and Vicks salve were his drugs of choice!
        Take care, stay well and dry! What icky weather!
        Hugs and Love

        • Your grandfather had the right approach!
          Enjoy our sun. More ick coming.
          Prayers for our folks in Texas.
          Love and hugs.

  19. / Reply

    Dear Marshall, Ann, Sandy, Shirlee and Z Fans:

    Glad you’re all started on your vaccine shot and some of you have received the second dose as well. Hope everyone has access soon with little side effects. Love and Hugs, JB

    • / Reply

      Dear Judy,
      Thanks for the links. Glad the Thoroughbred Makeover Program is doing so well. All the best to them!
      Best of Luck and safe racing to Javier Castellano in his return — safe running to Sexy Dream, too. So good to see Javier recovered and back in the saddle!!

      Hugs and Love

        • Dear Marshall, Ann and Z Fans:

          JC and Sexy Dream finished 4th today at Gulfstream. The race was taken off the turf. Will look for her next start and better racing luck.

          Ann, I know. Even Rachael’s Valentina, RA’s girl, has a three year old colt by Curlin named Alejandro and a two year old by Pioneer of the Nile, yet unnamed. Love and Hugs, JB

        • Oh my gosh, isn’t she gorgeous? She just took my breath away and her name is very fitting.
          Will be fun to see what she does on the turf. A little lady like that does not need flying grit hitting her.
          Thanks for that info, JB.
          Hope everyone is doing well. Stay safe.

    • / Reply

      Thanks for the news of Jess’s little girl. Sorry they did not finish better but hope she will improve back on the turf. He has several fillies racing. Haven’t seen any colts.
      Stay safe and warm and perhaps the snow will stop someday. We have more this morning and still very cold. Hope all you Zsters are well and warm.

  23. / Reply

    Good Grief! Talk about global warming, due to all the fires it was a very hot summer and once it got started this has been the second coldest winter in the 9 years I’ve lived here. There’s also been more ice. I’m supposed to be going in for my Covid shot next week. Sure hope I can make it down to the clinic.

    Good Luck to Javier and Sexy Dream and anyone and everyone who is racing today. Hope Zenyatta and all her gang are happy and well, also our dear Hovis. STAY SAFE STAY WARM.

  26. / Reply

    Hi all Zsters and her foal lovers; Thought I would stop in to see how things are going. So the vaccines have begun. I set up appointments for myself and husband and need to show up this Fri. afternoon. After careful consideration I decided we better not pass it up as I know friends that are still waiting.

    Wishing everyone to stay healthy and Zenyatta and her foals too.
    Love n hugs,
    Love you Zenyatta and all your foals,
    Sally B

  27. / Reply

    Hi Zsters + Team Z?
    Happy belated Valentine’s day!❤
    We bought some chocolate on sale ?.?
    Crazy weather we’re having.? 1st its 50° & rain. Now it barely 30° w/snow.?. Sigh?
    Plz every1 stay safe.
    HugZ ❤ prayerZ ?
    Vamp?‍♀️

    • / Reply

      Dear Vamp Sue:

      Same with weather here. Tuesday was high 50s; yesterday and today 20s and snow forecast. Love and Hugs, JB

      • / Reply

        50 degrees?? What does that feel like? We here in Indy have been down in the single digits at night and just made it to the low 20s yesterday. Was 8 when I got up this morning. Snow everywhere!

        Stay safe and warm. So happy we are all getting our vaccinations.

  29. / Reply

    Happy Friday everyone. My good intentions about getting this posted sooner were disrupted by some technicians for the electrical company who had to fix or replace (or something – it was all very technical) my outside electrical box. I had no idea there was even a problem with it. At any rate – they had to shut down the power until they got done (they couldn’t do this when the temperature was somewhere above freezing????). They seem to be gone now so I sure hope the problem is definitely fixed.
    Hovey has had another clipping which has left him greatly dismayed. There were no pictures (yet) so it’s hard to tell if he is . . . well . . . exaggerating a bit. Stay tuned – his Mum may post some as evidence.

    https://www.horseandhound.co.uk/blog/hovis-friday-diary-my-save-my-self-esteem-appeal-urgently-needs-your-help-738016

    Good luck and safe trips to all of the horses in the Saudi Cup tomorrow. Would be great if one of our entries would bring home the prize, but I’m completely in the dark about the competition. Stay safe and warm everyone. This has been one tough winter, and we’re not done yet.

    • / Reply

      Dear Sandy:

      Thanks for our Friday Hovis update. Yes, this winter is a doozy. Stay warm and safe. Love and Hugs, JB

    • / Reply

      Dear Sandy,
      Thank you for our Hovis visit! That trim job sounds frightful. Poor Hovis has to endure a lot from Mum, mini-Mum and “Barbie”.
      Hope everyone has some sunshine this weekend. Looks as though here in piedmont NC, we will have no rain — at least not until Monday!
      Take care! Prayers for those who have no heat or water; hope the situation improves soon.
      Hugs and Love

  30. / Reply

    Best wishes to all who are dealing with the extreme cold and snow. We got through ours ok. Of course, we don’t live in Texas.

    Would love to get the Covid vaccine, but it has not happened yet.

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