History was made!
Some never thought it would happen again… but it did. I’m not sure why it made me cry, but I guess they were tears of happiness and resolved anxiety. American Pharoah‘s biggest historical impact will be that millions of people will spell Pharoah incorrectly from here on. Nonetheless, it was truly exciting to be at Belmont when the Triple Crown was won for the first time in 37 years!
We bet enough Superfectas, so we won some money, which may not have made up for earlier losses but left us about breakeven for the day. So, his win made us whole financially and psychologically. We had to put up with some frustrations.
It started early when we went to see our two fillies who had arrived on Wednesday. Unfortunately, only one FlatteryWillGetYou was in her stall. Hay Field could only be found in the Ruffian Clinic, just outside the Belmont property. When they couldn’t diagnose her successfully, she was sent to Patty Hogan’s facility in NJ. Patty believes that Hay Field has a tibial stress fracture of the R proximal tibia. If correct, Hay Field won’t be racing at Saratoga this year. The earliest she could return to training would be September… boo!
FlatteryWillGetYou looked beautiful. She really filled out in the 6 months, since we last saw her. She was docile and friendly but didn’t care for the treats we brought her. When we went to say good-bye after the races, she was loath to snuggle with me. We hope she WILL race in Saratoga.
Happily, we were with Larry and Jennifer, which made the experience more pleasant as well as meaningful. You see between the New York Racing Association personnel and those of the caterer, Centerplate, it could have been a disaster. Those people only seemed to want to say, “NO!” No, you can’t have fish. No, you can’t bring in your 2014 Belmont Bag sent to us by NYRA. No, you can’t go into other rooms. Yes, these people would have not even made good jailers! But being with Rhoda, Jennifer and Larry eased the pain… and being with fellow horse people made the history of American Pharoah‘s Triple Crown victory, even more meaningful.
We’re looking forward to choosing a farm soon and seeing Ahvee’s Destiny and her little filly before too long. In the meantime, we saw Blitzer Too and Another Genius breeze with fast times at the Ocala Sale. Candy for Kisses breezes on Thursday. then, we’ll have to make final decisions on whom to sell and what reserves we put on those being sold. It’s always something!
