August 29, 2010
Dear Diary,
The time has come to formally introduce Rachel Alexandra to Curlin. There is nothing else to prove. All that there was to prove was proven last year.
That proof resulted in a Horse of the Year title. That honor is hers in perpetuity.
The time for guessing what‘s next, or what‘s wrong, is over. There are no more excuses.
In three of her five starts this year, the fire that burned so intently last year was absent. That fire now is more of a slow ember.
What remains is the memory of her singularly ferocious passion to run, the kind of passion that only the great ones have.
Her disappointing defeat in today’s Personal Ensign came over the same track 51 weeks after the greatest triumph of her life, the one that earned the sport‘s highest honor.
Rachel Alexandra can win more races, but she can’t be Rachel anymore. For the pleasure she gave her connections, and her handlers, and her fans, she deserves to be just horse now.
As if Rachel Alexandra could ever be just a horse.
So was it the solid Personal Ensign pace she set, hounded all the way by a Grade 1 winner of six consecutive races?
Was it the distance that was her undoing, a sixteenth of a mile farther than she had ever raced before?
Was it the speed duel?
Does any of this matter?
Rachel Alexandra disposed of Life At Ten, opened a 3-length advantage with an eighth of a mile to go, the same place on the racetrack where she beat back Macho Again.
That Grade 1 winner was the third older male to seriously test her in last year’s Woodward. Her courage raised the rafters. The old Spa nearly shook itself apart.
When Persistently--brilliantly prepared by Hall of Famer Shug McGaughey to win a race named for the best mare McGaughey ever trained--came to her, Rachel offered nothing.
There was nothing left to give; she had given her all. Not just yesterday but on all the other yesterdays that began at Oaklawn Park last February.
Rachel’s Horse of the Year fight was gone, just as it has been for the majority of her starts at 4. It happens.
Last year Rachel Alexandra gave everything she had and it was always, always enough. Now she can’t deliver all the time anymore.
What’s the point in watching the shell of a former unbeatable champion perform? For what she’s given the sport, and her fans, and her people, she deserves more respect than that.
A repeat of what we saw on the racetrack today would be unseemly.
Of course, Rachel Alexandra could be freshened. She could return to the scene of two of her most impressive triumphs and win a Ladies Classic.
Providing that Zenyatta runs in the Classic that’s held 24 hours later.
Lovers of the game, lovers of the filly, must ask themselves now is winning another race that important? Does it add to her legend? Would not doing so prevent her from becoming a first ballot Hall of Famer?
Rachel Alexandra the three-year-old absolutely loved to run. Even while being rated, she ran with a reckless abandon, willing her way to finish ahead of everybody else.
She’ll continue to run if that what’s asked of her. That’s what Thoroughbreds do. But does anyone really believe they will see the real Rachel again?
Watching the final sixteenth of a mile of the Personal Ensign was painful for fans who remember one of the greatest three-year-old filly campaigns over waged.
Rachel Alexandra’s plaque eventually will reside in the pantheon, in a place reserved only for the greatest of the greats.
In a race that was supposed to determine her future campaign, she looked very much like a Thoroughbred that tried her heart out, but less than an immortal, which is what she is.
What was missing in the Personal Ensign was fire and intensity. What was missing was the old Rachel. We will never see that one again. The time has come.
Rachel Alexandra has done more than enough. The slate reads (19) 13-5-0. The time has come to send her home.
29 Aug 2010 at 05:48 pm | #
God, John. Please stop it.
Your blabbering on about Rachel Alexandra is sickening.
Just admit it. She was waaaay overrated by you and others other of your same ilk that denied Zenyatta her rightful 2009 HOY Award.
She beat just eight winners of Grade 1 races last year. Just eight. And for that she gets the trophy.
Zenyatta beat the winners of 26 Grade 1 races.
Sorry, John but your bias has come home to you.
She was never that good and deep down you know it.
She ducked the Travers, she ducked the Breeders’ Cup Classic, and she ducked the Apple Blossom.
In turn, she really hasn’t proven anything but how biased some members of the east coast media really are.
29 Aug 2010 at 09:37 pm | #
Rachel was the the most overrated over-hyped eastern-based press horse that I have seen since Easy Goer.
She beat “inferior” horse flesh last year (Macho Again and Mine That Bird). Macho Again is so bad, that the Lexington, KY breeding farms wanted no part of him. Macho Again is currently breeding in Venezuela.
Mine That Bird will never win another Grade I event in his lifetime.
30 Aug 2010 at 01:07 am | #
JRP,
Back in my previous life when I ran a business I had an employee who used to say about critics, “The more they whine, the more you need to keep putting the spurs to them and make them squirm.”
So keep the accelerator to the floor and make ‘em whine.
30 Aug 2010 at 02:21 am | #
Rachel who? Zen who?
There’s a little race at big sandy called the Beldame anyone want to join me?
30 Aug 2010 at 03:13 am | #
Very sad that Jess Jackson wasn’t at Rachel’s race yesterday--I guess that speaks volumes about his state of health.
Also kinda sad that Asmussen tried to shift the blame for Rachel’s loss to track maintenance due to all the turf races run before the Personal Ensign which purportedly resulted in underattention to conditioning the dirt track. Calvin Borel--the class act and straight-shooter that he is-knocked the stuffing out of that theory and said Rachel like the track just fine.
The reality is that 1 1/8 mile is Rachel’s optimal distance which is why she had never run 1 1/4 mile until yesterday. Rachel would have been the winner if the Personal Ensign was 1 1/8 mile --or even the 1 3/16 mile that she ran in the Preakness.
30 Aug 2010 at 03:36 am | #
JP,
I agree with John.
Please stop. Enough about Zenyatta, enough about Rachael.
One ducks strong competition, the other isn’t that good. That’s obvious.
BTW-I’m not the only one bored. 23,000 showed up yesterday. Not much of a crowd for a Sunday at the Spa. I’m guessing Rachael didn’t put an extra fanny in the seats. Can’t fool the masses.
30 Aug 2010 at 03:42 am | #
The Rachel of 2009, the filly, proved herself time and time again. Her record says it all.... she gave her all. The Rachel of 2010, the mare, is still a champion in my eyes, even though she has not been able to replicate her racing career of the previous year. With that said, my prayer for Miss Rachel Alexandra is that if she races again, may she cruise the track with the grace, tenacity and the love of running that she did in 2009. And if they chose not to race her again, may the rest of her life be one of happiness and joy in just being Rachel, the beautiful champion, HOY 2009.
30 Aug 2010 at 04:12 am | #
Thank you John for expressing a viewpoint I could not have stated so kindly. Watching Rachel consistently running with such passion in the spring&summer;of 2009 was a reflection of the magnetism of great horses that bring fans and owners into the sport. So sadly, the adage from old timers to: “Never take the bottom out of a horse.” was disregarded. Going to the well over and over doused that flame of passion finally extinguished in the 09 Woodward. Rachel has continued to run as all Thoroughbreds do, but the fire is gone. It’s no longer fun for Rachel or her fans, but the disappointment comes not from losing races, but the failure to recognize the desire is gone.
IMHO, I think SA made an important statement in saying we need to evaluate who we are. Even the public has been asking that question for sometime. Let’s hope the answer is Rachel is getting her well deserved retirement.
30 Aug 2010 at 04:15 am | #
LoveTheGreys put it beautifully. John? The “Truth”? What kind of person takes pleasure in a situation like this? Your crowing about Rachel’s defeat is disgusting.
30 Aug 2010 at 04:18 am | #
Rachel can’t get 10 furlongs? Where does that analysis leave Life at Ten, who was beaten more than 10 lenghts? Oh yea, she already won the 10F Del’Cap.
30 Aug 2010 at 04:27 am | #
Everyone’s entitled to an opinion, of course. But thanks to those that expressed compassion.
Sadly, Chuck, you may be right relative to Mr. Jackson’s health.
Susan, clearly I respect your horsemanship. I never worked with anyone with such a command of equine body language.
I thought long and hard about writing the above, but to me the conclusion, relative to the 2009 Woodward and her future, appeared inescapable.
Knowing that you agree reenforces what my mind and heart tell me.
Thanks all.
JP
30 Aug 2010 at 04:31 am | #
John,
Perfectly said.
Cheryl
30 Aug 2010 at 06:14 am | #
I respectfully disagree with this article.
Pace scenario and extra distance are the reason she got beat. It’s called horse racing and it happens all the time, even to greats.
To the bitter Zenyatta fans; Get over it. Seriously.
I think there is nothing wrong with Rachel. If they aim for the Ladies Classic, she will be in her comfort zone. I say if the horse comes out of the race in good order, she should still race. She still enjoys running.
Oh, BTW, Rachel is still a filly. She won’t be a mare until next year. lol.
30 Aug 2010 at 06:48 am | #
You’re accurate on all of your points. However if the race was an eighth or a sixteenth mile shorter a different essay would have been penned. Common knowledge on the backside is that you never ask a horse to do what it’s never done before and expect positive results. Certainly their are exceptions but in this case you could see it comming as soon as the overnite came out. I say on to the Beldame and the Ladies BC. Forget about “Z”, win your last two and go out the Champion that you are!!!
30 Aug 2010 at 07:13 am | #
Exactly Mousse! I feel the same way.
30 Aug 2010 at 07:28 am | #
For God’s sake, get ahold of yourself. Just because your favorite horse got beat a length is no reason to start publicly weeping into your “Dear Diary”. And I bet you wonder why people say all of Rachel’s fans are little girls.
And BTW, it didn’t matter if it was this year or last year, Rachel was getting beat at 10 furlongs. If you haven’t figured that out yet, then you must’ve missed the part where Macho Again and Mine That Bird almost caught her. A few more jumps and they both would’ve passed her.
30 Aug 2010 at 07:46 am | #
2010 has exposed her for “what she really was”.
I thank her connections for running her as a 4yr old. This allowed us “the public” to see how weak her 2009 opponents were.
I love your diary Mr. Pricci. Keep crying in them. In fact...cry me a river.
30 Aug 2010 at 07:52 am | #
JRP,
I respectfully disagree re: Rachel Alexandra being a factor in the Breeders’Cup Ladies Classic. She is not in form (at least right now) to pose a threat to Blind Luck or Evening Jewel (or even Devil May Care, if she regains her form).
Also, Andrew Beyer made a good point today (for once): if Zenyatta runs in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, it would be undignified for Rachel Alexandra to run in the Ladies’ Classic.
30 Aug 2010 at 01:57 pm | #
Rachel can win at 10f under the right conditions. Why did she and Borel return to the old 9f strategy of sprinting at the start? Bad, bad idea.
She was the best three year old of either sex. At four she’s not dominant against F&M;. If she had connections that didn’t know her past they’d happily race her and hope for a big score, although they would not likely consider the Classic.
That’s horse racing.
30 Aug 2010 at 02:20 pm | #
In reference to the 26 Grade 1 winners that Zenyatta beat, how many of them were on synthetic? Just looking at the Classic last year I see 3...3. Steve Crist had it right in his column, most people including ardent Rachel fans would admit that Zenyatta would win a head-up match-up even last year. Rachel won the Horse of the Year honor by going 8 for 8 with the most ambitious campaign ever by a 3-year old filly while Zenyatta never left California. I too was hopeful they would meet on the track but alas it wont happen. And its for the best because it would not be a contest. 2010 is a different year and the connections of Zenyatta could have showcased their champion to the entire US, but again they take the conservative route. Thats fine but what happens if it rains again Breeders Cup Saturday and they scratch like last year when they ventured to Kentucky? Horse of the Year is now between Zenyatta and Blame, hopefully this year it gets settled on the track. Of course I can see the argument now...the Classic is run in the slop neither Zenyatta or Blame win and the games begin again...ugh!! I hope I am wrong.
30 Aug 2010 at 03:04 pm | #
..."the most ambitious campaign ever by a 3 year old filly...”
How does that compare with Winning Colors of 1988?
She ran nine times, eight of which were Grade 1 races.
She won a Grade 2 first at Santa Anita, then finished second in the Grade 1 Las Virgenes, she then won the Grade 1 Santa Anita Oaks, won the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby, won the Kentucky Derby, was driven out of the Preakness by Forty Niner at the start from the instructions of Woody Stephens but still finished third and perhaps could of won the Preakness, ran in the Belmont Stakes, race second to Personal Ensign in the Grade 1 Maskette, and lost by a nose to Personal Ensign in the Breeders’ Cup Distaff.
Among her victims were the two year old American colt of the year for 1987 Forty Niner (twice) and the three year old colt of the year for 1988 Risen Star. She also beat Seeking The Gold, and came within a nose of beating Personal Ensign.
30 Aug 2010 at 03:22 pm | #
JRP:
I listened to the first hour of Steve Byk’s radio show today. He said your column about Rachel Alexandra is “moronic.” For what it’s worth, while I do not always agree with you, I have far more respect for your knowledge of the Sport than Byk’s.
Listen to the first hour here:
http://www.thoroughbredracingradionetwork.com/index.php?option=com_events&task=view_detail&agid=815&year=2010&month=08&day=30&Itemid=35
30 Aug 2010 at 04:47 pm | #
In last year’s HOTY debate, you and many other biased easterners kept saying, “I’m voting for Rachel because it’s her ‘WHOLE BODY OF WORK’” Now suddenly, it’s not her “WHOLE BODY OF WORK”, it’s just her spendubias 3 year old season. Zenyatta has performed and Rachel hasn’t. Look at Rachel’s “WHOLE BODY OF WORK” and then look at Zenyatta’s “WHOLE BODY OF WORK” Is there any debate which horse is better. Rachel hasn’t beat much during her over-hyped career. But you easterners will keep saying, “OH, THAT CAN’T TAKE AWAY HER 3YO SEASON; RACHEL IS ONE OF THE GREATS!”
GIVE US ALL A BREAK!!
30 Aug 2010 at 05:28 pm | #
The only difference between the Woodward Rachel and the Personal Ensign Rachel is an eigth of a mile.
30 Aug 2010 at 05:58 pm | #
Oh, I forgot. Winning Colors also beat a nice filly trained by Charlie Whittingham called Goodbye Halo.
She won six Grade 1 races.
30 Aug 2010 at 06:27 pm | #
Serena’s Song 3yo campaign was just as great as Rachel’s! IF Lukas runs her in the Oaks would you have liked her chances! Same running style---Serena’s Song beat the boys twice, easily, beat Heavenly Prize on her home track at level weights 3yo v. 4yo! 13 race campaign muddy BC and Derby were the 2 poor efforts! This was after a 10 race juvenile campaign and a gut wretching stretch v. Flanders! I’m not a Beyer fig guy but take a look. After a 23 race 2yo, 3yo seasons----what a 4yo campaign! Bailey couldn’t get her home from the 9 post in the Whitney while giving weight to an older colt, not on scale but actual weight and she lost to Smart Strike @ MTH. Again look at the Beyers and when she lost to whom! John, I recognize the love affair with RA but at the end of the day, I think after a quality 2yo season, a 3yo season similar to others(Winning Colors and Serena’s Song) neither WC or RA could come close to the 3yo and 4yo race record of the tremendous career @ 2,3,4 of the GREAT Serena’s Song! Also, in her 38th and final start almost throws a Beyer career best @ WO only to lose to Jewel Princess who was much, much better than Persistently
30 Aug 2010 at 06:29 pm | #
One quick follow up the BC race @ WO was her 37th and second to last race! I hate lazy mistakes!
31 Aug 2010 at 02:05 am | #
Markinsac, its a yearly award so its what a horse does in that year. It seems as Zenyatta supporters throw out the entire body of work argument. The 2009 voting reflected that year’s body of work. I would like to hear from ANY Zenyatta fan that after the Woodward last year, looking at 2009 that Rachel wasnt the universal choice for HOY. Its all about the Breeders Cup Plastic, I mean Classic to you. Fine you won a race where most of the field was either turf horses or dirt horses spinning their wheels. Lets see this year, the second place finisher in that great race has won one race beating a $35 claimer. And before you say it, Rachel has avoided competition all this year, thats a given. And to stop the madness for the person who acutely selected Trappe Shot in the Travers, lets call Rachels campaign one of the most ambitious UNDEFEATED campaigns for a 3-YO filly.
31 Aug 2010 at 02:16 am | #
And before the attacks come, I am a horse racing fan. I hope Zenyatta wins the BC Classic this year, retires undefeated and takes her place as one of the greats in the history of horse racing. It would not only be a fairy tale ending to an amazing career, it would hopefully silence the vitriol as she would rightly be named HOY. Well it would stop the yelling for five years until Rachel and Zenyatta enter the Hall of Fame together...unless they change the entrance guidelines again…
31 Aug 2010 at 05:39 am | #
Anthony & John: The phrase was “ONE OF the greatest campaigns ever waged.....
Markinsac: That’s “whole body of work” as in “2009 whole body of work,” It’s about horse of the YEAR!
Jim C: Thanks for your confidence, it’s very much appreciated. But opinions from self-promoting Glenn Beck wannabes aren’t all that upsetting. Had it came from someone whose work I respect I’m sure I would feel differently. My record is out there every day for all to see; I make no apologies.
Thanks all!
JP
31 Aug 2010 at 07:21 am | #
It’s time for all of the Rachel’ nitwits to go home along with Rachel.
You are still drunk and stuck in the 20th century if you think Rachel Alexandra has ever waged “ONE OF the greatest campaigns ever waged...”.
Prudent research at the conclusion of 2009 would have revealed to those with any common sense that Rachel’ was facing the weakest sophomores (and older horses, on one occasion) that could have lined-up against her in such big-name races.
Just because you have seen all of those big names denoting important stakes races of the past, for so many years, does not mean that modern renditions of same are composed of anything near to similar quality horse flesh.
We’re going on a year since the 2009 Woodward and yet just one of the also rans has since won another race.
Summer Bird, though he deserved the “champion” label, was perhaps the weakest 3yo male champion in many decades.
Indeed Rachel Alexandra topped the male champion of her generation, but the 54 vanquished stakes foes which got him that championship title could only see fit to win exactly 3 races among them during the rest of 2009!!!
Rachel Alexandra’s most impressive performance in 2009 happened in a 3-horse race during which the other pair, each running for 2nd money, were kind enough to duel through 6 furlongs in 1:08 4/5 (going 1 1/8 miles) with Rachel Alexandra the only “closer” in the field.
The Horse of the Year balloting was never supposed to be about which distaffer would completely dismantle the other had they faced one another last year. When assessed properly and fairly, with due diligence given to just who either candidate was beating, the title should rightfully have gone to Zenyatta, based on the Breeders’ Cup Classic win and the fact that another runner she toyed with all year romped easily in the most important distaff race in the land.
The third-string waterboy in that camp eventually went east and throttled Rachel Alexandra on the natural “dirt” over which Rachel’ appeared to glide in the eyes of so many (so many who chose only to assess winning triumphs based on the names of the races themselves and not on the quality of the horseflesh in them.)
Now there are others in the media who are far more myopic than you are (see Crist, Beyer, etc.) but now would be a good time for all of you to bow out on the subject for good, as you only further underscore how far you’ve deviated from reality with each additional word you put in print.
31 Aug 2010 at 07:23 am | #
Will you and your RA cohorts quit moving the bar; you’re making me dizzy. John, you have written previously that RA “waged the most ambitious campaign of any three year old filly in the modern era.” Others in the wake of the Personal Ensign wondered why some horse always runs the best race of its life against RA and dismissed defeat saying “Well, she beat her main rival by a city block.” So we’ve gone from giving her the HOTY trophy to rewarding her the way we do Little League participation.
And for those who say it was all race/pace dynamics: A confident rider on a great horse with positional speed would have broke, let his rival come clear and have stalked from the outside. He certainly would not have found it necessary to race ride into the first turn.
Finally, don’t insult Glenn Beck with comparisons to Steve Byk.
31 Aug 2010 at 07:31 am | #
The comment has been deleted due to inappropriate language
31 Aug 2010 at 11:29 am | #
You are correct Kyle. The steer was abysmal. Borel obviously thought it was a match race. The best Rachel has ever run but gift wrapped for a late runner, unfortunately. As for retirement, the Vin Man is still stuck $8 million and the shed is not going to get him out. Rachel proved sunday she can compete in the Classic. Book Joel; cover her up; no preps; CD is home; fillies in the fall. Everything to gain; makes all the sense in the world from any perspective.
02 Sep 2010 at 11:39 am | #
Zen will still attract a crowd. I agree that Rachel might be much better off producing future Rachels. The fire and the attraction are both gone.
Nough said.
On to more current news. The article below just came out today. Cali owners and powers that be have only the Gov and CHRB to approve the takeout for all exotics in Cali (2% & 3%)…
This news was applauded and welcomed by the greedy powers-that-be. And they booed the part that players applauded. Exchange wagering was passed, sorta of…
For the greedy set, the takeout increases will be effective by Dec 2010…
Also for the same folks and bending hopeful players over the table again, the implementation of exchange wagering is delayed until May 2012.
The delay will give the California Horse Racing Board, potential exchange wagering licensees, tracks, and owners the opportunity to work out details of the new betting scheme, which would not be subject to traditional takeout rates, said Kirk Breed, the CHRB’s executive director.
THEY WANT TIME to figure out how to rob this, too. Make it exotic and apply 25% take to the gross maybe.
AND it comes with an expiration date. The Legislature also approved a companion bill that establishes a May 1, 2016 expiration date for exchange wagering unless further action is taken to prolong it.
Cali racing may not last till May 1, 2016. The huge boost in revenue they expect from higher takeout is a pipe dream. As it the expected increase in field sizes. Both will continue their current trends, shrinking. Who will be blamed? You got it, Exchange Wagering. Lol
Read the entire article at:
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/58675/calif-oks-exchange-wagering-takeout-hike?&utm_source=DailyNewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20100902
03 Sep 2010 at 12:09 pm | #
Rachel was a good horse not great! Hopefully they retire her per John. The competition out there is just too tough for her.