Tag Archives: horse racing

Ambition, or Insanity?

October 28th, 2008 | By Linda Shantz

The pretty part of fall is coming to an end now, as what leaves are left on the trees have lost most of their colour, and we’ve started into rain - sometimes flurries - and mud. The horses are all getting fuzzy and feeling fresh in the mornings. The last “horse swap” of the season happened on Friday - Maria left to start her career path at the training centre, and Mute arrived for a well-deserved rest.

I’m working hard on that-painting-we’re-not-really-talking-about and it’s actually getting close to completion. I’m trying to make myself finish it before moving onto the other pieces I have in progress, but at the same time, I’ve got a few projects I’m considering. The problem is, they might all have to happen at once!

A few of you may know I’m a bit of a closet novelist. I’ve only recently become aware of an event, I guess you’d call it, called NaNoWriMo - National Novel Writing Month. The goal is to write 50,000 words (about 175 pages) in the month of November. The last few weeks, I’ve been thinking about signing on for this, to see if I can pull it off. The idea is to just write for fun, and not stress over making it “perfect.” Might be worth a go. Of course I’ll still be writing in the closet, so don’t expect me to share any of it here!

Next up for consideration is another idea I gleaned from an EAG friend, Sue Steiner - painting a horse a day, for 30 days. Check out Sue’s blog to see what she’s been working on so far. I was thinking this might be a good winter project, say, for January when those blahs are going strong! But that leads me to the third thing…

Little did I know, but there is a NaBloPoMo! That’s National Blog Posting Month! And, well, it’s also for the month of November - a post a day, for thirty days. Now this one would be the most effortless of the three. I could easily post something to the blog every day - whether or not anyone wants to read it, is another story! The natural thing to do, in my mind, would be to combine the Horse a Day with the Blog a Day. But would I be completely crazy to try all three? I’ve got a few days left to decide! Guess you’d better stay tuned!

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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Horse Racing Art - Whoa!

October 24th, 2008 | By Carrie Lewis

Whoa!
18×24
Oil on Stretched Canvas

Today is it! The first day of two days now known as the Breeder’s Cup. This year’s Cup is being held at historic and beautiful Santa Anita Race Track in Arcadia, California.

Today is Ladies’ Day. Races today are the Filly & Mare Sprint, Juvenile Filly Turf, Juvenile Filly, Filly & Mare Turf and the Ladies Classic.

The rest of the Breeder’s Cup schedule follows on Saturday.

I haven’t seen a Breeder’s Cup Race live in several years due first to a Saturday working schedule and, more recently, to the fact that coverage has moved off network TV and onto cable and we have never had cable. (Before you start feeling too badly for me, I’ll tell you that’s by choice. We already have so much going on that there is no time for TV of any kind. Our TV is pushed into a corner and has not been watched, turned on or even dusted in many, many weeks. No great loss, let me tell you!).

I will be monitoring the races online, however. My favorite site for doing so is The Blood-Horse.com, but there are also other places to read about the races and to watch them. The really neat thing is that I can watch the part I really want to see (the races) without wading through all the wagering information (about which I don’t care a fig) or the inane interviews (which quite frequently make me long for the Good Ol’ Days when indepth profiles of the people AND horses involved were among my favorite parts of racing coverage).

In honor of today’s events, I’m presenting Whoa! to you. It is the fourth of four oil paintings featuring horse racing that I currently have.

The theme of this painting is not the race itself, but the challenge of bringing hot-blooded race horses to a stop afterward. My subjects for this painting are Quarter Horses, but any race horse will do.

These horses have just run the fastest 350 yards of their lives. Adrenaline is pumping, they are not ready to give up the race just yet. Especially not with competitors still eyeball to eyeball!

But the finish line has been reached and after that, well, the horses have to stop. Whether they want to or not.

During my years in Michigan, I tried to visit Mt. Pleasant Meadows. I liked to photograph racing action near the wire. At the small track in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan where I took most of my hundreds of racing reference photos, positioning myself near the wire also allowed me to photograph stretch runs, the run around the first turn, post parades and unsaddling without moving more than a few yards. If I walked a little further, I could also see the saddling paddock and the walk from the backstretch.

I always enjoy reviewing shots of the action at this track, but the photographs that led to this painting were a surprise. The tension between the horses’ forward momentum and the backward pull of the jockeys as they throw their weight against the reins and into the stirrups is part of the dynamics and drama that immediately attracted me. The dual between forward momentum and sudden, unyielding restraint was also too much to ignore. It is a part of the sport.

The fact that I also have shots of these three as they pounded toward the wire and almost from the start of the race only add dimension. For me, at least.

And I can look back at those photographs, taken in 1995, and know that the three horses were, foreground to background, Kentucky Boy Floyd, Pacific Teddy Bear and Easy Azer Repete. The six images I have show them battling tooth and nail for almost the entire stretch. There are, I think, some energetic paintings among those other shots, too.

Whoa! is available unframed for $1,050 or framed for $1,300 to the first buyer. Custom framing is also available upon request.

All of my horse racing art can be seen on my web site by clicking on the links to Horse Racing Art or Michigan Harness Horse Art.

©Copyright 2008 by Carrie Lewis. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Carrie Lewis’s website.

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Horse Racing Art - Morning Dreams

October 22nd, 2008 | By Carrie Lewis

Morning Dreams
16×20
Oil on Stretched Canvas

When most people think of horse racing, they think of those seconds on the track. The color and ceremony of the post parade. The clang of the starting gates being closed behind the horses and the shouts of jockeys, assistants and the starter in the seconds prior to the start. The sound and explosive energy of the start and then, of course, the race and the winner’s circle.

But that is only the final act. There is an entire ‘other’ world to horse racing that is as appealing to me as the racing itself. The barns where horses in training spend their off-track time and all the sights, sounds and smells that go with that.

Mornings (sometimes pre-dawn mornings) on the track in morning workouts, building strength, stamina, speed and discipline.

Hope is the Fountain of Youth in the Sport of Kings. The hopes of owners rest on the new foals every spring. The hopes of horsemen rest on the energy and speed of those youngsters during training. Stamina and speed in the morning inspire “morning dreams” of afternoon successes.

Morning Dreams is my most recent attempt to capture in oils the determination and focus of those early morning hours. It is set at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky; my absolute favorite racing facility in the world (at least of those I’ve visited).

The morning I took the photograph that is the starting point for this painting, I spent the better part of an hour sitting in the stands watching countless horses and riders circling the track. I could have sat there all day but my sister and most frequent traveling companion was with me and wasn’t quite as enamored with the setting as I was!

I have been to Keeneland twice to watch and photograph morning work outs and each time, a painting has resulted. The quiet time between horse and rider is what captures my imagination each time. It doesn’t seem to matter whether or not there are other horses and riders on the track. There is a certain solitude that seems to envelope a pair when they are in the middle of a workout.

I still have pages of photographs from both visits, however, and expect more paintings in the future. There is just something about that place that draws my attention…

Morning Dreams is available unframed for $900 or framed for $1,100 to the first buyer. Custom framing is also available upon request.

All of my horse racing art can be seen on my web site by clicking on the links to Horse Racing Art or Michigan Harness Horse Art.

©Copyright 2008 by Carrie Lewis. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Carrie Lewis’s website.

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Horse Racing Paintings - Flight

October 20th, 2008 | By Carrie Lewis

Flight
18×14
Oil on Stretched Canvas

This is the second of four oil paintings featuring a horse racing theme.

Like most of my horse racing art, it is based on a combination of personal experience and photographs I’ve taken. In this case, the photographs were the result of a visit to the small, local track near where I grew up in Michigan, Mt. Pleasant Meadows in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.

Mt. Pleasant Meadows features live racing throughout the summer for Quarter Horses, American Paint Horses, Arabians and Thoroughbreds. The beauty of this track (to me as a horse lover and artist) is that it’s small enough to allow me to stand at the outside rail and be almost close enough to have dirt fly over me when the horses thunder past. How cool is that?

I spent many sunny afternoons (and some not so sunny afternoons) shooting photographs, sketching and otherwise soaking up the atmosphere of that small track. I even had a live television interview in the stable area one crispy, misty morning many years ago.

Flight is a direct result of one of those visits. The photograph upon which it is based caught my eye the moment I saw it, but it was several years before anything was done with it. It seemed like there was always a portrait to work on or some other obligation to meet.

Even now, with Flight finished and framed, the photograph still calls. What else might I do with it?

Flight portrait of racing competitors. Two horses and riders matching strides. They have reached that level of engagement in which all else ceases to exist. They are the only horses on the track.

The only ones that matter, at any rate.

This is the sort of racing that memories are made of. The all out struggle to be the best, the fastest.

It takes place at every track around the world. These two horses could be any horse. The race could be any race.

It is that intangible ’something’ inside every good race horse. That intangible spirit that gives them the look of eagles and lets them take flight on the track.

Flight is available unframed for $650 or framed in cherry for $950 to the first buyer. Custom framing is also available upon request.

All of my horse racing art can be seen on my web site by clicking on the links to Horse Racing Art or Michigan Harness Horse Art.

©Copyright 2008 by Carrie Lewis. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Carrie Lewis’s website.

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Horse Racing Art - Don’t Look Now!

October 17th, 2008 | By Carrie Lewis

Don’t Look Now
16×20
Oil on Stretched Canvas

With the Breeder’s Cup World Championships approaching (the first races are next Friday, October 24), I thought I’d get us all in the proper mood with some horse racing paintings.

I love horse racing. The colors. The sounds. The smells (if you’re close enough to the track to actually be able to smell the horses).

The action.

Horse racing is fast and furious. The horses break from the starting gate like an explosion. Races can be won or lost in the first dozen strides, even in the longer races. Or even in the first strides.

And even if you get to the lead first and early, there’s no guarantee you will stay there. You have to watch those horses that close strong, that have a powerful closing kick. It is not at all uncommon for a handful very good and very evenly matched horses to finish within yards of each other. That’s called a blanket finish.

It’s also called a whole lot of fun to watch!

But in a charge like that, if you let your guard down, if you’re not careful, you will suddenly find yourself in a crowd of rush hour traffic that will take your breath away.

And quite possibly cost you the winner’s purse.

Don’t look now! The winner just passed you!

Don’t Look Now is available unframed for $900 or framed for $1,100 to the first buyer. Custom framing is also available upon request.

All of my horse racing art can be seen on my web site by clicking on the links to Horse Racing Art or Michigan Harness Horse Art.

©Copyright 2008 by Carrie Lewis. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Carrie Lewis’s website.

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There And Back Again

September 16th, 2008 | By Linda Shantz


Home again, after an enjoyable trip to New Jersey. My friend and I talked about how most people think of New Jersey as what they see off the Turnpike – industry, basically – but Sheri lives in South Jersey, closer to Atlantic City, in the Pine Barrens. I understand completely why she loves it there. It’s beautiful and peaceful and exactly opposite to what everyone thinks of New Jersey.

Big Brown at Monmouth, copyright Linda Shantz, all rights reserved.
When I arrived Friday, Sheri told me Big Brown was running at Monmouth on Saturday…did I want to go? I laughed. Do you have to ask? I responded. So Saturday we went to the races! It was a great day – the home-town crowd was friendly and excited to have the Big Horse there again. BB didn’t disappoint, though both Sheri and I agreed that BB should probably stand for “Big Baby”! It’s too bad this horse won’t run at four, because he still seems so immature. He got the job done, regardless.


Sunday was the opening of the NJEAA Fall Showcase. It was a great collection of artwork, and I was pleasantly surprised to learn “Man on a Mission” was awarded an honourable mention! The EAG was well represented. It’s so nice to see original artwork in person – it always gives me an even greater appreciation for the artists. Nothing compares to it!


Monday it was time to head home, but not before a photo shoot of the Arcadia gang, and lunch at Marcello’s. If you’re ever in Hammonton, New Jersey, it comes highly recommended! Great pizza (we had takeout Friday night and couldn’t help going back, apparently!). After all these years, not much has changed when the two of us get together. Lots of horses, Haagen Dazs and catching up on a few movies! What more could you ask for?

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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Up Close and Personal on Plate Day

August 31st, 2008 | By Linda Shantz

Oil painting of a Thoroughbred horse in the paddock copyright Linda Shantz, all rights reserved.
If this painting I finished last night looks familiar, it’s because it’s from one of the paddock shots I took before the Queen’s Plate. I think this is a love it or hate it kind of painting - it’s a little unconventional, but I have to admit I’m drawn to that sort of thing. I do the more typical scenes, but sometimes it’s kind of fun to push it a bit.

This painting is 14 x 18 oil on canvas, and I’m going to call it “Outside Chance.”

So, after a series of smaller paintings, two larger ones are done. Guess what? Have to fill that void…I started a couple of new ones today. Have to keep things moving around here!

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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Curlin, 6 x 8 Oil on Raymar Linen Panel

July 25th, 2008 | By Linda Shantz

Oil painting of Curlin copyright Linda Shantz, all rights reserved.
This week’s been a blur - I couldn’t tell you where the time has gone. I’ve got a couple of recently finished paintings to show off, and this is just one of them. This is the little oil I started the day Curlin won the Dubai World Cup. The big horse hit a bit of a snag in his first turf race a little while ago, but I think after the way he’s been romping in his last few starts, we just kept expecting him to keep on rolling – dirt, turf, whatever – kind of like another Big Red Machine a few decades ago. Like pretty much everything you see around here, this little painting is for sale, so don’t be afraid to email me if you’re interested. I’ll be getting it framed next time I visit the framer!

This weekend I’ve got a whirlwind roadtrip planned. I’m meeting my friend, photographer Juliet Harrison, in none other than Saratoga. Rest assured we’ll both have a few hundred photos to sort through after our visit to the Spa! Stay tuned!

I’ll have some news on upcoming shows next week, as well as an announcement about a new project I’ve been working on. Could be kind of busy around here!

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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Queen’s Plate ‘08

June 27th, 2008 | By Linda Shantz

Not Bourbon and Ginger Brew at the finish of the 2008 Queen's Plate. Photo copyright Linda Shantz.
I want to be sure everyone knows that little Billy called it, and Gracie wasn’t far off! Not Bourbon held off Ginger Brew to win the 2008 Queen’s Plate in an exciting finish. Unfortunately, thanks to what I’ll call a two-minute rule, I didn’t get very great shots of the race itself. Apparently, for the duration of the Queen’s Plate, and the Plate only…and this year’s Plate only, for that matter…standing at the base of the stairs to the second floor seating is a fire hazard. I’m not sure why it wasn’t for the race before the Plate, or last year’s Plate, or the year before. What can I say!


The LongRun fundraiser auctioning off the saddle cloths of the Plate field is happening now on eBay. By pure coincidence I ended up with some pretty cool shots of the horses in the walking ring. Be sure to check out the auction. A couple of the cloths still have no bids, including the winner’s! His connections better step up!


Here in the studio, the painting goes on. The purple panel is on its way to Edmonton to rejoin its other mosaic pieces for a grand reunion. Stay posted for information on the unveiling! And keep track of the progress on the Mural Mosaic website!

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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The Horse Gift panel update

June 25th, 2008 | By Bethany Caskey

Ruffian

Basic colors have been added except for the bottom of the whip, the eye, and the bridle. Palette has added Mars Brown, Ultramarine Blue, Burnt Umber. I am quickly running out of time to complete the painting and get it shipped. You can check on the mural as panels arrive at:

http://muralmosaic.com/Cadeau.html

©Copyright 2008 by Bethany Caskey. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Bethany Caskey’s website.

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The Morning Line

June 22nd, 2008 | By Linda Shantz

Ginger Brew copyright Linda Shantz

Plate morning! There’s always a special feel around the backstretch, whether you’re running in the big race or not. I remember we always made sure the shed was leveled and raked even more carefully than on normal days, and the apron and lawn outside was particularly clean. We even polished the brass on the halters. Being stabled close to the receiving barn, we witnessed the arrival of the horse guards first-hand, something that was sure to set my dear girl Petunia over the edge! Not her favourite morning, that’s for sure.

Colt bucking photo copyright Linda Shantz
When I turned the foals out this morning, they spent the first five minutes running and playing. It was probably inspired by the cool, damp air, but I entertained that they just know it’s Plate Day! Gracie is backing Ginger Brew, because, of course, chestnut fillies rule. Billy’s dad Mobil ran second in the Plate, and Gracie pointed out that it was a chestnut that beat him (stablemate Wando, 2003). Billy kind of likes Not Bourbon today, being Ontario-sired and all, but he let on that he’ll be rooting for Uncle Jerry and Deputiformer. Nothing wrong with picking a longshot! Just ask Monster…her dad Tejabo sired a whopper in TJ’s Lucky Moon back in 2002.

Filly bucking photo copyright Linda Shantz


Woodbine Entertainment and LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement are having a neat fundraiser after this year’s Plate. The saddle cloths of all the starters will be auctioned on eBay this week to raise money for LongRun. I’ll post a link to the auctions as soon as I have it so you can check it out.

Painting in progress of Mike Fox by artist Linda Shantz
Okay, so I’m hoping I’ve distracted you from asking about the Mike Fox painting. All right, I admit it, it’s not done. So I came up short. It’s getting very close though. At this stage I’m working on a lot of nit-picky stuff, so progress is a lot slower. Won’t be long now! And maybe I’ll start on this year’s winner a little earlier! Hope that grey sky brightens a little by post time!

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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Royal Ascot-the one racing date I won’t forget.

June 21st, 2008 | By Sheona Hamilton-Grant

Graphite drawing of a jockey by Sheona Hamitlon Grant

I cannot and will not let another year pass without mentioning a great British tradition: Royal Ascot.
I missed Ladies’ Day yesterday and do not plan on missing the big day tomorrow.
Founded by Queen Anne in 1711, Royal Ascot is 5 days of great horse racing.
Dreams of going to Ascot have been in my mind since I can remember. Even as a wee girl the smell of the scones and the frivolity of wearing extra nice dresses as of course the sight and sound stunning thoroughbreds zoom past totaly mesmerized me…

The closest I got to this dream was to have seen youngsters training for the event very early one morning in Newmarket…an unforgetable visit I must add.
Well, I watched two races today - the Albany Stakes (six furlong race won by a 2 year old Irish filly Cuis Ghaire) and the King Edward VII - 1&1/2 mile  race won by Franke Detori (his 40th Ascot win) on the stunning Campanologist.
They are sooooo beautifullllllllll (I’m referring to the horses of course … the hats and the chaps are not bad but the equines are way superior.)
Why is it that of the 60 established racecourses in Great Britain and the 2 in Northern Ireland Royal Ascot is the most viewed and visited?
Fashion and style, glamour and tradition can only be a part of it .
The horses, the quality of the horses has to be and remain the main reason.
306.00 visitors agree with me and go to Royal Ascot to have a flutter on the horses ( a milestone was reached in 2006 with 1/2 million visitors).
Maybe the 3.5 million Pounds Sterling in  prize money (making it the most valuable race meeting in Europe) also has a role to play.

These impressive figures also mean that once a year, the hat manufacturers become the happiest hatters and milliners, selling there wildest creations at the wildest prices.
Champagne is happily sipped (185.000 bottles consumed in 5 days) with a nibble on a strawberry (5 tones consumed) wine is more or less just looked at with only 15.000 bottles consumed.
11.000 lobsters and 100.00 scones are savoured.
Over the years, it has not only grown in tradition and excellence but has also moved into the 21 century with style, aplomb and as fast as the horses race.  There is a Royal Ascot website with a great deal more than racing info and results, there is a blog, a magazine, a fashion show and next year there will the “Face of Ascot 2009″…  All these elements allow everyone to witness and understand just how spectacular Royal Ascot is and will remain for quite a while.
SO where does this fantastic race meeting fit into my art world?
How does Royal Ascot affect my art?
Quite simply, when watching the races, I am reliving my childhood dream. I remember senses and emotions that help keep my thoughts young.
A child can pin point the simplicity of beauty so well and this clarity of vision is crucial in keeping ones work honest and true…

Who knows how my next action equine drawing will end up, especially  if I back a winner tomorrow!

©Copyright 2008 by Sheona Hamilton Grant. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Sheona Hamilton Grant’s website.

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Mural Mosaic Panel 193: Dance Smartly, Canadian Queen

June 18th, 2008 | By Linda Shantz

Oil painting of Dance Smartly for the Le Cadeau du Cheval mural mosaic project by Linda Shantz
As promised, here is the completed panel. It’s now up on the grid on the Mural Mosaic Le Cadeau du Cheval site, where the mosaic is coming together, piece by piece! Below is the accompanying text for the panel.

The Queen’s Plate: the longest continuously-run sporting event in North America, and Canada’s most prestigious race. In 1991, a royally-bred filly named Dance Smartly was victorious. Bred and raced by Sam-Son Farms, Dance Smartly went on to win the Canadian Triple Crown, and followed that accomplishment by becoming the first Canadian-bred to win a Breeders’ Cup race. She was voted Canadian Horse of the Year and top three-year old filly in North America after remaining undefeated in eight races that season.

Not only was Dance Smartly a brilliant racehorse – inducted into both the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, NY, and the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame – her success continued after retirement as she went on to produce two Queen’s Plate winners. Sadly, Dance Smartly died in 2007 at Sam-Son Farms, but her legacy remains.

In 2008, Sam-Son Farms and the racing community lost both Elizabeth Samuel, wife of founder Ernie Samuel, and daughter Tammy Samuel-Balaz. This panel is a tribute not only to one of the best horses to come out of Canada, but to the role of these two women in Canadian racing history.

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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We Need a Hero

June 7th, 2008 | By Linda Shantz

I’ve been staying pretty quiet on the whole American Triple Crown this year. I’ve watched each race, and silently held my breath. Now Belmont Day is here - The Test, when the racing world and several others will watch to see if Big Brown can do it.

Racing has been through a rough time lately, and perhaps for good reason. While I don’t believe it’s all as dramatic as PETA would have us believe, there are things that should be looked at in the industry. There’s no single fix. It’s all too easy to sit on the outside and judge, and the amount of misinformation that’s been flying around in the last few weeks, since the tragic Derby, is astounding.

Big Brown is an imperfect hero. Nobody really likes his connections (do they?) and it can be hard to overlook them sometimes, though BB did a pretty good job as he exploded to the lead in the Preakness. His foot issues have been widely publicized - and with irony, this morning, the horse cited as having the best chance to foil his bid has been scratched with a stone bruise. A victory by Casino Drive would have been monumental in its own right - his mother has produced the last two Belmont winners. Three, let alone three in a row, would have been huge; some say more significant that a Triple Crown winner after thirty years. One of the biggest criticisms about BB is that he’s running against a weak crop of three-year olds. I’m not sure that would take away from a win today, when it comes right down to it.

I’m not making any predictions. This is horse racing after all, and anything can happen. My own horses will come in early so that I can make the trek to a friend’s to watch the big race. I did consider how cool it might be to be at Belmont today, but with the way summer seems to have shown up with this hot, humid weather, I’ll admit I’m just as happy to be watching on TV. With a bunch of others out there, I’ll still be holding my breath till post time.

©Copyright 2008 by Linda Shantz. See original post here.
To learn more about this artist, visit Linda Shantz’s website.

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A Painting and a Heartache

May 25th, 2008 | By Carole Rodrigue

Untitled

11 x 14 original acrylic

Here’s an unplanned painting that I’d started a couple of days ago and finished tonight. It’s the same Egyptian colt I’d painted in Age of Innocence. Isn’t he such a beauty? There are a couple of finishing touches that I need to add tomorrow, then that’s it.

Now for the heartache. I’m sure most of you have either heard, seen, or read about Eight Belles. What a tragedy, and hours later, my eyes still get teary just thinking about it. My heart goes out to Belles’ owners, trainer, and everyone who was close to her. One always hates it when a horse gets injured and has to be put down, but with two broken ankles, there was just no hope for this amazing filly who’d shown so much heart. I also can’t help wondering if perhaps she would’ve won the Derby. Speculation is useless at this point, but I keep wondering if perhaps she was already experiencing pain and just kept pushing on and pushing on, giving all her heart and still coming in second. I just wonder . . .

Big Brown sure didn’t disapoint and gave the crowd what they expected. Seemed he just came out of nowhere and plunged ahead to first in the blink of an eye. Congratulations Big Brown!

Okay, I need to get off and stop thinking about Eight Belles. And of course, getting on the net tonight, I came across pictures I didn’t want to see, and shouldn’t have seen. I hate when they show that stuff, and I commend NBC and other news reports that didn’t show it. They didn’t show it during the Derby programming. Nobody needs to see that; we get the unwanted mental picture already. So, my heart and prayers go to all of Belles’ people. You had one fine horse there, and she’ll always be remembered fondly.

©Copyright 2008 by Carole Rodrigue. See original post here.

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