Monday, June 09, 2014

Off Topic

The owner of California Chrome is a really bad loser.

51 comments:

sandybrook said...

No shit Sherlock.

timebob said...

While his analogies were awful, he did have a point about other owners leaving their horses out of big races to be fresh for the Derby.

Poor chrome was just pooped out.

Riven said...

I guess those nasal strips weren't all that necessary eh?

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

What I would like to hear is if the conditions now are different than 30 years ago when several won the triple crown? Is it a recent phenomena that belmont winners are horses that did not run in all three triple crown races? If so then I think he has a good point. If not then he should shut up and lose graciously.

Kristin Wigs said...

Umm what? Who is this? Sandybrook, it's sports, isn't it?

Riven said...

@Kristin No it's animal cruelty.

Seven of Eleven said...

I thought California Chrome was Courtney Stodden's stage name.

Kelly said...

Ha!

sandybrook said...

Yes the owner of California Chrome who lost his Triple Crown attempt Saturday was interviewed right after the race was lost and wasn't gracious.

Texas the race series is always run under the same conditions however these days horses are bred differently and not raced as harxif they are valuable so they are not used to running 3 tough races in 6 weeks like other generations did.



NJ FireFighter said...

@texas From what I understand, this is the system that has always been in place but training methods and other horse-related things have changed over the past 30 years. Perhaps a nice compromise would be to space the races out a little further than they are now. The funniest thing about the whole outburst was how his wife was tugging on his arm telling him to shut his yap and he totally blew her off. I'll bet the heard about THAT later on!

sandybrook said...

And I cant remember any time where the field for all 3 races were exactly the same. Horses drop out horses are raced up to a certain raceand there are horses for courses and distances.

rajahcat said...

yeah but he isn't a polished public figure and they stuck a mic in his face at a emotional moment-give him a break-he is a decent guy

I'll bet many share his opinion

it does seem somewhat an uneven system even though the rules have always been the same. I believe decades past more of the horses were in all 3 races than now making it much more difficult

rajahcat said...

an

Hammer_Girl said...

Save a horse, ride a cowboy!

NJ FireFighter said...

Good point @rajahcat. I think we are all so used to polished public figures speaking guardedly and not saying much of anything that when we are presented with someone with raw emotion who is not parsing every word, it really sticks out.

Unknown said...

Perfectly stated NJ Fireman.

Steampunk Jazz said...

If his horse had won the Triple Crown, his breeding fees would have set him up for life. He chose to take that risk. The other breeders (with deeper pockets or only the one hope for their stable) chose not to risk it.
.... and Hell, YEAH! If my dreams went Kablooey on National Television and you stuck a mike in my face;I would be in court a minute later for Slander. EVERYBODY involved in that race would Own my ass from the turf raker to the owners. lol

Jessi said...

I'm with HammerGirl.

__-__=__ said...

I think they have better drug testing now which probably protects horses from going full on Lance Armstrong to win.

Additionally -- hockey!! Second game of Calder Cup tonight. Hoping for a better show than last night 6-3, 3-0 and 4-1 into second period. Go hockey!!!!

sandybrook said...

Yeah GO RANGERS!!

Rolf said...

Why is he a sore loser? Did he shoot the horse?

Krystie Rachelle said...

I hung out with baby race horses, colts if you will, the other day. They have a rough life. I mean their hay was prepared on a granite count top and they had heated cement floors. It was crazy. Those little things were born divas too. I want to be a racehorse in another life I think.

Unknown said...

It was Belmont, not the Derby.

8====D KermitGossnellKnobjob said...

I thought this was about the web browser, and it seems to be some American crap only followed by those who think that soccer is boring (I thing that too, but that horse thing is even worse, baseball level).

Riven said...

Obligatory HOCKEY!! Go Rangers, go Dom Moore, go little Marty leaping!

Amartel said...

Bad loser? Nah. We're conditioned to think that way, to not say anything controversial, not rock the boat, go along get along. Smile! Losing with grace is good to a point but there's also a lot, especially in this phony day and age, to be said for saying what you mean. The owner just spoke his mind, truthfully. Shocking! Honestly, I was thinking the same thing when I saw the race. There's a reason why so few horses win the triple crown; it's grueling. Chrome battled but just didn't have it in him. Secretariat was a fluke of nature. Literally. Heart much bigger (literally) than any other horse. Anyone concerned about the welfare of the horses should agree with not bringing in fresh spoilers to compete against horses who have been through the wringer already.

Jaiden_S said...

I thought the owner had some excellent points. If it were me, I'd cry foul, too.

TV Junkie said...

I agree, Raja. He didn't say anything that a LOT of people in the racing community have been thinking for years. He just doesn't have that PR thing down!

Count Jerkula said...

If you want a great horse, you gotta you gotta have a horse that does great things. If the Belmont wasn't so difficult then Triple Crown winners would be a dime a dozen.

Baseball went 45 years w/o a Triple Crown winner.

Steampunk Jazz said...

Even if they changed the rules, they would always be compared to the past winners in a "Yeah, but..."

SugarTitz said...

I thought that was one of the Willis girls stage names. Because they been buff and polished so much and still no real prize.

SugarTitz said...

Give him time. There will be an accident after insurance kicks in.

SugarTitz said...

Was one of them named mimi or Klondike

Unknown said...

In the old days, owners wouldn't dream of skipping ANY of the three races... It's more of an endurance thing. Now by keeping a horse out of the first 2 races, their horse is fresh compared to the ones that have run the first two. If the trend stays this way, there will never be a triple crown winner, b/c of it... A fresh horse will always win.

HudsonJoe said...

Poor loser no! Just the reaction of someone who has been riding an incredible wave heart broken when the dream ends. Further he is not a man schooled in moderating his choice of words for the press.

@8=====D aka Lil Tool. KermitGosnellKnobJockey

Soccer is boring! As long ago as 20 years ago European writers were complaining to many teams had given up the attack in hopes of drawing a penalty kick. Rugby is a much better game than soccer or football.

cece said...

It's weird - it's always older white men that just lose their shit. And their wives always take the brunt of it.

Sis said...

Sore loser, not in my opinion, he has a point, it also didn't help that he got injured coming out of the gate and still tied for fourth, out of the eleven horses only four ran in the other two races. In horse racing it's all about the money and paying the fees to get their horse in particular races, some have to qualify but not here. His stud fees will still be in the hundreds of thousands, much like Zenyatta's, whose foals are worth millions, and she's had three so far.

I have a love hate relationship with horse racing and have had racing quarter horses and thoroughbreds. My very first horse was a great grand daughter of Seabiscuit, and we bought her at an auction for $190, this was in the 1970's.

On a sad note, sometimes the great race horses will end up not cared for or put to slaughter and some eaten (in China), ugh. There is a wonderful organization called Old Friends in Kentucky, they take on the old race horses where they are retired and go to their final resting place.

Sis said...

Sore loser, not in my opinion, he has a point, it also didn't help that he got injured coming out of the gate and still tied for fourth, out of the eleven horses only four ran in the other two races. In horse racing it's all about the money and paying the fees to get their horse in particular races, some have to qualify but not here. His stud fees will still be in the hundreds of thousands, much like Zenyatta's, whose foals are worth millions, and she's had three so far.

I have a love hate relationship with horse racing and have had racing quarter horses and thoroughbreds. My very first horse was a great grand daughter of Seabiscuit, and we bought her at an auction for $190, this was in the 1970's.

On a sad note, sometimes the great race horses will end up not cared for or put to slaughter and some eaten (in China), ugh. There is a wonderful organization called Old Friends in Kentucky, they take on the old race horses where they are retired and go to their final resting place.

Krystie Rachelle said...

Those thoroughbreds would never have such basic bitch names. Nothing but "mornings light whisper tail" and "grand duchess of lake Champlain" for these beauties.

Anonymous said...

i was really disappointed that his opinion was criticized to the point of him HAVING to apologize, its how he felt, ffs. he does have a point. it hink he understands that that is life, but must still sting. he should b allowed to express himself.

kit said...

Meh, sounds like whining.

There is no relation between those races - each has developed its own style, culture, history, length and training success requirements.

That's why the marketing of the idea of the Triple Crown is that it's a tough challenge. You train for a certain distance, type, style, but in this case, you need to have a horse that frankly, doesn't care. It can shorter and mid distance, doesn't get tired in a quicker turnaround, and isn't ruffled much.

But to arbitrarily link 3 different events (hell, why not link Peter Pan Stakes? oh it's less famous to the general public, and doesn't have that established regional/cultural/track history that most know.) and force each on each other? That's not the point.

The goal of a marketing exercise is to find the legendary 3 year old horse that doesn't care and strong enough to overcome the difference in racing history.

Not to find the good horse that can manage the races that are forced to be exactly the same. There's nothing special about that. At that point, it's just three races.

ItsCourtneyD said...

He showed some personality which is a rare thing these days. Everyone spends so much damn time tiptoeing around and being all demure. Screw that. Gimme someone who's got some piss and vinegar running in their veins. Heat of the moment, huge disappointment and heartbreak, damn right he's gonna be hot. And I see his point. I don't find it fair really. I think it's a shame he was essentially brow beaten into giving an apology. So we have to apologize now if we show some anger or passion? How pathetic.

Dexamyl said...

Another vote for the owner of Chrome. It was an ignoble win for Tonalist.

Bbbeeewww said...

He was so real! And he had a point. Did you see the look on the face of the owner of the winning horse??He looked less proud and more guilty.

Bravura said...

Oh please! Every single horse that wins well has a target on their back. That's why they have things like handicaps on them to even the fields in other races. No infamous racehorse in the history of horse racing has escaped being persecuted or targeted by other breeders and owners in this field. California Chrome isn't an endurance horse. The Belmont is a grueling race abd he pulled a crap place in the gate. He hates getting mud in his face, was stuck in the pack after the last bend and exhausted a lot of energy trying to move around the pack. Three other horses ran the same three races he did and didn't perform well either.

In the history of racing this isn't anything new. There are always new competitors in the field if they qualify for that race because, if not, the triple crown would have been run by four horses only. That's it.

Should they give the horses more down tukee between races? Absolutely. But these horses are absolutely coddled now in comparison to how they used to be run. The endurance of past racers was phenomenal in comparison to horses today because they didn't live in air conditioned stables or have fancy trailers to haul them. And many infamous ex racers raced in lots of conditions unfazed without nose strips, shadow rolls, or hoods.

Look, I know that in comparison to the past, racehorses have it much better than the horrible conditions they endured before. But these are NOT the same horses of yore. If your horse is that amazing and that fantastic, they should be able to mimic the Affirmed and Secretariats of this world by racing fresh contestants - like they did - in the Preakness and Belmont. If they can't, then either you don't have a triple crown winner on your hands or you extend the down time between races. Because seriously, what is a triple crown when you have the same four contestants running all three races and that's it?

Bravura said...

Down time, not down tukee. Stupid phone.

Maria said...

Whoever said above they are breeding them differently now than in the past is to some degree correct. They've always bred for speed but we are many generations beyond those old winners and the consequences of breeding for one thing only shows more each generation. Light bone, no toughness, loss of endurance. I don't know if Chrome has the X factor (the large heart) like Secretariat did. His dam line carries it, but more comes into play in a grueling trial like chasing the Triple Crown. Endurance, recovery, toughness, not getting injured out of the start gate.

I understand his owner's rant. I don't believe he's a sore loser. I am hopeful I will get to see Chrome in person next year at Del Mar - he is an outstanding horse and it would be something to see him in person. I think his daughters will be great broodmares.

KittensRUs said...

He was an ass.

It's not unusual for a horse not to win the third race, which is the longest distance. Horses tend to either be sprinters (fast over a short distance) or stayers (able to maintain speed over a longer distance).

Count is right - there's a reason a TC winner doesn't happen often. Changing the rules is bullshit. Breed better horses. As a friend said on Facebook, stop whining like a little bitch.

mzmarymac said...

I actually thought he was curmudgeonly adorable! And his wife so cute trying to get him to shut up. They remind me of my parents. REAL people are full of perfect imperfections. And by the way, who hasn't felt this way? My son lost to a team in a tournament that was 3rd best in state in a division 2 levels above ours, yet still felt it necessary to only bat 9 guys, even though they knew they would slaughter us. And then had to hear jokes from the other parents about our boys making errors. What's the point? Sure they obeyed the rules, but certainly not the spirit of the rules and one has a right to be upset when they feel someone comes in just to play spoiler.

mzmarymac said...
This comment has been removed by the author.

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