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She Runs Like A Girl Open Thread

By Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy on May 17, 2009 at 11:45 PM in Current Affairs, Gender Bias, Sexism

Rachel Alexandra, that is. Here is her performance in the Kentucky Oaks this year (the big filly race the day before the Derby):

The jockey, Calvin Borel, never had to do a thing – she just ran, but never into her top gear. Even still, she won by twenty lengths. Her breeder and co-owner at the time of the Kentucky Oaks, when asked if he had considered running her in the Derby said:

“No sir, the Triple Crown races are to showcase the future stallions of our industry and fillies should run with fillies and stallions with stallions.”

Ah, yes – sexism is most definitely alive and well in the sport of horse-racing. No doubt about that.

Well, on Saturday, at Pimlico, in the running of the Preakness, Rachel Alexandra ran with the boys. There was a lot of debate about her doing so, and a couple of the owners, including one of Mind That Bird’s, wanted her excluded on a technicality, even considering running another one of his horses to keep her out.

But another owner, a woman, Marylou Whitney, stepped in to clear the way (basically, she said she would pull her horse to let Rachel Alexandra take his place). She was allowed to run, and run she did. For the first time since 1924, a filly won the Preakness, the first horse EVER to win from the 13th position, and only the 11th filly ever to win a Triple Crown event. Oh, her jockey, Calvin Borel, chose HER over riding the Kentucky Derby winner, Mind That Bird, again, even though Borel was the one who guided him to that win. Why? As he sad after winning the Oaks:

“She’s probably the greatest horse I’ve ever been on in my life. There are other things down the road for her and she’ll prove it, I promise it. This filly she breaks out of the gate and she’s like ‘Bring it on, let’s go!’”

The Kentucky Oaks was Borel’s 900th win – I think he knows a thing or two about horses. And was he ever right. He called it, too, before the race – he said she would do this. Here she is proving him right:

After the race, which she won by a length, her jockey said she did not like the track surface, and was having problems with it. But she STILL won. That pretty much says it all.

Well, actually, maybe this does: Simply The Best (Tina Turner’s original video of the song. Click it and see how appropriate this really is! Sorry the embed has been disabled.)

http://www.sonicninjakitty.wordpress.com Sonic Ninja Kitty

Oh yeah–don’t ever count the filly out

Alicee

This is insanity. Who gives a fuck if it’s a female or male horse?

Animal Control

I’m with you
http://www.sonicninjakitty.wordpress.com Sonic Ninja Kitty

Lighten up, Alicee. And read the post. Apparently it is a big deal in horse racing circles.
mary

Alicee
my
dear
Boy

It’s the connection, sweetie…wake up! the mammals….Know lots of stallions who can’t hold a candle to a fillie of any breed….
FranSC

NO BIG DEAL??!! I think Rachel Alexandra being the first filly to win the Preakness title since 1924 when she was *allowed* to run with the boys is a VERY big deal! But….. it would be nice if it didn’t have to be a big deal, but was just a commonplace thing that a female wins as often as the males. Thanks, Rev Amy for sharing this very exciting race as well as Tina Turner’s “Simply The Best”. Very apropos`.
Ellen D

This is insanity. Who gives a fuck if it’s a female or male horse?

Only other horses.

Elder Jane

Are we all proud of our female Speaker? Were we always so proud of HER? She is a FIRST. Wow how fucking exciting.

Firlight2012

I have mixed feelings about Pelosi. You know, it’s tough when you want to support more women in the public sphere/political leadership, but you don’t want to promote women that would use their position to attack other women and actually help limit the presence of women in political leadership.

FranSC

I have mixed feelings about Pelosi. You know, it’s tough when you want to support more women…..

Why would a woman like Pelosi create mixed feelings? Why would you be concerned about a woman who not only does not promote or mentor other women, but, in fact, blocks the participation of women? What good can come of supporting a woman like this? Pelosi wants to be the only woman at the table. Why do you think she worked feverishly against Hillary? How could a woman ever admire what Nancy Pelosi did in the 2008 election cycle – the corruption and fraud she allowed and participated in to get her selected candidate nominated and elected.

It’s not just about electing or supporting a person with ovaries. We need them there to work on our issues and concerns, to mentor other women and bring them along as well. There are plenty of men who are much more supportive of women than Pelosi and who deserve our vote and support. Pelosi is not a woman. She is a member of the good ol’e boys system.

FLDemFem

First of all, it is a FACT that most fillies mature later than colts. Having bred and raced horses for a few decades, this is something I have observed as a fact, not sexism. At the age of 3, when the Triple Crown races take place, most fillies are less mature than the colts. By fall, they have caught up. This is not sexism, it’s Mother Nature. Rachel Alexandra is either the exception to that rule, or she is so much better than the rest of this year’s crop that it doesn’t matter. So stop applying political crap to why fillies don’t run with the colts more. It doesn’t fit. And it diminishes the sport of horse racing. In Nature, few fillies are as tough as colts at this age. Later on, yes, they do catch up, but its not sexism, it’s nature. And horsemen know it. That is why some are reluctant to run fillies against colts at this stage of the game. In the Breeder’s Cup races, which occur in October, the fillies often run against, and beat, the colts. By then they have caught up in growth and maturity. So please, leave the “political correct” crap in the human sports, and let the horsemen decide when their horses are ready to run at that level.

That being said, if Mine that Bird hadn’t gotten blocked at the top of the turn and had to go out and around horses, he would have caught her at the wire. The Belmont will be a really good race. His pedigree stretches that far, his sire won the Belmont. And he has classic winners on both sides of his pedigree. Her sire finished second in the Belmont, and her pedigree has a lot more sprinting blood than distance. But she is very well bred, as is Mine that Bird. The Belmont will be a great race, providing both of them are in it. The nice thing about Mine that Bird is that he is a gelding and won’t be retired to stud as soon as he wins some prestigious races. He is a race horse, and will keep on racing until his legs say, “no more”. And FYI, he isn’t out of nowhere, he was last year’s two year old champion in Canada. So he earned his way to the big time, he wasn’t just dropped in it.

Please, do not call it sexism when people don’t want to run their fillies against colts. The chances are they know more about horses than you do.

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

I appreciate your opinion, FLDemFem, especially because youhave been in this business for years, but it was the attitude of the owners abt her running, and trying to keep her out, that was one of the big issues. I contend THEY applied the sexism in this case, especially since, as the announcers noted, fillies routinely run against colts in other countries. Were they leaving out part of the story, meaning, did they leave out that they might be in a different age class?

There seems to have been a conflated story abt Mind That Bird – it is true he was purchased AT ONE POINT for $9,500, but his CURRENT owners paid $400,000 for him, which is a TON of change for a horse who won’t have stud fees down the road. As I noted below, Chantal Sutherland, Mike Smith’s girlfriend and fellow jockey, rode Mind That Bird in Canada. But the Cinderella story abt him seems to leave out that big huge gap of his career – he didn’t just get to the Derby on a whim, after all.

Rachel Alexandra won the race fair and square – it was the distance it was, and she was first across the line. That’s not politics, that’s reality. I sure don’t know much, but I know that. Like I said at the end, she was simply the best on that day in that race. It will be interesting to see where she goes from here, whether they run her in the Belmont or not (and she has been mighty impressive in her other races, too).

FLDemFem

The owners of the Derby horses were miffed for two reason, neither having to do with her being a filly. First, she was NOT nominated to the Triple Crown races, and had to be supplemented to get in. That means that she took a shortcut to get to the race, at least by racing standards. And they were scared of her, for good reason. Which again had nothing to do with her being a filly. It had to do with her speed and ability. It is the media, and some silly owners, who are making this a sexist cause. The trainers didn’t want Rachel Alexandra in the race because they didn’t think they could beat her, and they were right.

Firlight2012

But didn’t the owners, at the time of the Kentucky Derby, not want to race their star filly against colts because they thought that fillies shouldn’t rack against colts, for whatever reason?

My understanding is the owners paid the supplemental fee to get her into the race, which is according to the rules and not a shortcut. Why not race the best against the best?

This is why it is symbolic, to me, of what human females have faced…being kept out of many things when they’re actually quite capable.

FLDemFem

Some owners don’t run fillies against colts because they don’t want the fillies to get beaten. And in the animal kingdom, females are, for the most part, smaller and somewhat weaker than the males. That matters in horse racing. Also, winning the filly Triple Tiara is a huge plus for a broodmare prospect. It adds considerably to the value of her foals. Of course, winning any of the Triple Crown races is too, but the fillies don’t win them that often. So they stick to the filly and mare races. It’s not sexism in the sense that you see it, it’s good business if you are a breeder. Run the horse where it can win. Simple, really. This particular filly holds her own with the big boys. The huge amount of hoopla over her win in the Preakness should tell you how rare that is. But the fact is, most of them don’t and her former owner didn’t want her record blemished by a possible loss against colts. I don’t blame him. She will probably get beaten in the Belmont, especially if she takes the lead again. I am not sure she can go that distance, and that has nothing to do with her being a filly, it has to do with having more sprinters in her pedigree than distance horses. Mine that Bird does have the distance pedigree. Again, nothing about what sex they are, but strictly on their pedigrees.
http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

And just to be clear, Firlight2012, Rachel Alexandra was sold AFTER she won the Derby. Her new owners wanted her in the Preakness, and followed the supplemental rules for her to be in there.

The Preakness only takes 14 horses, maximum, btw. And as I mentioned in the post, NO ONE has ever won from the 13th position.

FLDemFem

She won the KY OAKS, not the Derby.

FLDemFem

Sorry to post again, left this out of the other one. The yearling price is mentioned because it is a gauge of what the market thinks the horse will do based on his breeding. The second sale price, $400,000, is based on what he has already done. Seattle Slew sold as a yearling for $17,500. He won the Triple Crown, and was undefeated going into it. You will note that the $9,500 yearling beat several horses that were sold for over $1 million as yearlings. That is why the yearling price is mentioned. It is an indication of what was expected of the horse, not what he has accomplished since he hadn’t been backed yet, and certainly hadn’t raced.

http://deleted Betsy Buzz Ross Latte

So now the race will be between the filly and the stallion at Belmont, if they both enter. Too bad there aren’t two Calvin Borels to keep it even if that’s the case.

However, the first filly to win in 85 years is wonderful as was Mine that Bird’s unexpected win at the Derby. The pay-out was huge on Mine that Bird.

Belmont should prove interesting.

indigogrrl

umm ~ not that it matters much but Mine That Bird is a gelding not a stallion.

FLDemFem

He isn’t a stallion, but his daddy is. And I would bet money that his sire’s fee will go up, and his book will be full, if it isn’t already.

http://www.lesstalkmoreactivism.blogspot.com whoframedrudy

Jeez, the power to go right to the rail from 13th. Before the race, the handicapper on NBC called Rachel Alexandra a ‘man among boys.’

Eastan McNeal

Hey 10-K. I just went over and read your blog. Your last post, it seems, was last fall. You are great. Are you going to write more?
Cindy

10-K,
I agree with Eastan. Just read your post from August…It’s terrific….you’re really a fine writer. keep it up.
CG

WhoFramedRudy, Hope you don’t mind, but upon the recommendations above, I took a peek at your website too. It’s a haunting and uncanny read, that last post. You’re creative on all fronts…

CG

So beautiful, such a heartwarming triumph. Thanks for the videos RRRAmy. When she won the Preakness I thought exactly the same as your tittle… “She Runs Like a Girl,” smart, powerful and what a stride.
Cindy

Great post, Rev Amy.
Speaking of horses, that rear end of one, Maureen Dowd, has just admitted to plagiarism!
(one of her paragraphs in her column today was “lifted” from Josh Marshall)

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

I saw that abt Md. Dowd. I guess she figured it worked for Obama – no one seemed to mind that, so what’s the big deal?! Ahem…

And thanks, Cindy!

firlight2012

Some folks, I’ve read, seem to qualify her win a bit because Mine That Bird was gaining on her at the end.

It was pointed out that other horses were blocking Mine That Bird from getting ahead in the Preakness, but isn’t that normal in a horse race? A horse race is not just speed, it’s also running with other horses in close proximity. Obviously, horses and riders do not want to be passed by horses behind them. Mine That Bird was lucky in the Kentucky Derby to find so many holes to run through…and of course he had amazing speed. Cheers to Rachel Alexandra for getting out in front early, not getting boxed in and holding on to win.

I also think it’s really unclear whether Mine That Bird could have caught Rachel Alexandra coming up the stretch as the race was essentially over by the time he got close enough (i.e., Borel and Rachel Alexandra were slowing down already at the finish line….as was Mine That Bird.)

Anyway, to me, there is no qualification on Rachel Alexanra’s win. She was amazing!

indiedogg

NO HORSE, filly or not, has EVER won the Preakness from the 13th position.

She was in front and Mine That Bird was gaining on her? Well, she was in front for a reason. And she finished first for a reason. She covered the distance in the shortest time. Uh, who doesn’t get that?

This reminds me of some of the politics out there today. Uh, she won. There is no “Well, she didn’t really win because the other horse was running “faster” than her when she crossed the finish line IN FRONT OF HIM. What does it take these days for people to show you some respect and have some class and say, “Hats off, you earned it.”

Some folks didn’t like those rules in the Democratic primary this time around, so they changed them.

Thank goodness, on a horse track, the one who gets to the finish line first wins.

What a concept.

Hey, boy horse fans and sore losers. Live with it.

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

I agree – the length of the race was the length of the race – that’s how long the Preakness is! She won by a length – that’s pretty impressive, ESPECIALLY coming from the 13th position (Mind That Bird had a much better spot). Yes, Mike Smith had difficulty finding the same kind of holes, but that’s horse (or any other kind of) racing. Rachel Alexandra pretty much led for most of the race on a surface she didn’t like, and crossed the finish line first with no fouls or violations. That’s a win. Period.

Oh, if only that’s how politics worked!

Great comments, y’all!

Eastan McNeal

Has any jockey every won all three legs of the Triple Crown, on three different horses – sort of the jockey triple ride? Considering what he said about her, Borel will probably ride Rachel Alexanra in the Belmont. However, if he gets a distance horse for the longer Belmont track, and wins, he could make history.

http://deleted Betsy Buzz Ross Latte

Steve Cauthen was the first in the 1970′s? and Borel could be the second if he rides a different horse.

Eastan McNeal

Cauthen rode Affirmed in all three races. He was, however, the youngest jockey to ever win.

Why don’t we have girl jockeys?

http://deleted Betsy Buzz Ross Latte

We did in 1993.

http://deleted Betsy Buzz Ross Latte

Right on Cauthen. But what about Seattle Slew and the triple crown, different jockeys?

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

We do have them – it’s just harder for them to get mounts. When the announcers said they weren’t sure who should ride Mind That Bird, I immediately thought of Chantal Sutherland, Mike Smith’s girlfriend. Come to find out, she DID ride Mind That Bird in Canada! She has won a TON of races in Canada. So they are out there, but like I said horse racing is a sexist business…

brodie

And what business in the US is NOT a sexist business? Rachel Alexandra rocks- and so does Calvin!

Tricia Spiegel

What a beautiful horse. Wow.
indiedogg

NO HORSE, filly or not, has EVER won the Preakness from the 13th position.

She was in front and Mine That Bird was gaining on her? Well, she was in front for a reason. And she finished first for a reason. She covered the distance in the shortest time. Uh, who doesn’t get that?

This reminds me of some of the politics out there today. Uh, she won. There is no “Well, she didn’t really win because the other horse was running “faster” than her when she crossed the finish line IN FRONT OF HIM. What does it take these days for people to show you some respect and have some class and say, “Hats off, you earned it.”

Some folks didn’t like those rules in the Democratic primary this time around, so they changed them.

Thank goodness, on a horse track, the one who gets to the finish line first wins.

What a concept.

Hey, boy horse fans and sore losers. Live with it.
Diana

Now this would have been right up my grandparents alley. They loved to go to the races even if it was just to watch the horses race without betting. I could never get into it. I prefer just trotting along. My great grandparents (really it was my great-grandfather, my great grandmother prefered to stay in their apt. in Cinti)were the ones with the horses on their farm in Indiana. We sometimes still go out riding, but not very often. I think I prefer to ride females though. I know it’s in my head, but they seem more gentle to me.
Tom Cat “wodiej” Jefferson Esq

A female DJ on one of our local radio stations had this to say about it yesterday “you go girl” and then played “I Am Woman” by Helen Reddy….LOL, I loved it.

Cripes, pathetic that a female can’t be elevated to anything significant without males getting their knickers in a knot. Cripes, the lady won fair and square, give her the glory she so well deserves.

I don’t watch horse racing, I don’t enjoy activities where animals are used for entertainment such as the circus, zoo, etc.
NomNomNom

I quit watching horse racing when Ruffian died. I made the mistake of making an exception for the Eight Belles Derby race. jmo, they’d better watch out for this horse if they run her in the Belmont because somebody will kill Rachel Alexandra.

jbjd

Cheer up. Maybe they’ll just try to force her to drop out of the race. And, if that doesn’t work, and it looks like she’s going to win, at the last minute, they’ll just change the rules.

CG

funny…

why does it have to be true?

BARB

From the PETA website:

The Horseracing Industry: Drugs, Deception and Death

They weigh at least 1,000 pounds, they have legs that are supported by ankles the size of a human’s, and they’re forced to run around dirt tracks at speeds of more than 30 miles per hour while carrying people on their backs.(1) Racehorses are the victims of a multibillion-dollar industry that is rife with drug abuse, injuries, and race fixing, and many horses’ careers end in slaughterhouses. A New York Daily News reporter remarked, “The thoroughbred race horse is a genetic mistake. It runs too fast, its frame is too large, and its legs are far too small. As long as mankind demands that it run at high speeds under stressful conditions, horses will die at racetracks.”(2)

(snip)

Racing to the Grave

Horses begin training or are already racing when their skeletal systems are still growing and are unprepared to handle the pressures of running on a hard track at high speeds.(5) Improved medical treatment and technological advancements have done little to remedy the plight of the racehorse. One study on injuries at racetracks concluded that one horse in every 22 races suffered an injury that prevented him or her from finishing a race, while another estimates that 800 thoroughbreds die each year in North America because of injuries.(6) Strained tendons or hairline fractures can be tough for veterinarians to diagnose, and the damage may go from minor to irreversible at the next race or workout. Horses do not handle surgery well, as they tend to be disoriented when coming out of anesthesia, and they may fight casts or slings, possibly causing further injury. Many are euthanized in order to save the owners further veterinary fees and other expenses on horses who can’t race again.

FLDemFem

First of all, PETA is crap. When they do “rescues” they end up palming the care off on others, at the others expense. When they do take in animals, they are put to sleep because PETA claims not to have the funds to feed them. They have funds to run all over the country doing protests, run a website, etc., but none to take care of the animals they “liberate”.

FYI, it is now against the rules of racing for any race horse trainer to sell a horse for slaughter. They can permanently lose their training licenses if they do so. CANTER is a program, among others, where race horses are re-homed and retrained for other disciplines. http://www.canterusa.org/ Check out their web site, it’s interesting. The Thoroughbred racing industry also funds, through donations and automatic deduction from winnings, the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation. This foundation provides retirement farms for any ex-race horse, be they retiring from their second career or from the track. I can look out my own window and see several retired race horses, six of them, grazing away in lush FL pastures. Two of them raced for me, the rest were retraining projects who did some showing and lessons with my students in days past. Now they just hang out, eat, play and have pasture races. I know literally thousands of people who take and retrain horses for other disciplines. I have been doing it since 1977. That’s a lot of horses. So, if I were you, I would find out the actual facts, and not depend on PETA’s propaganda for your information.

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

THANK YOU, FLDemFem! When I read this this morning, I was HOPING you would come in and say something abt it. I figured you would know the story – thank you so much for clearing up the record on this, and for the additional information (I knew it was illegal to sell horses for slaughter in this country now, and I knew that they ware now testing for drugs, but thanks for the CANTOR info)!

FLDemFem

You can still sell a horse to slaughter in the US, they take them to Canada or Mexico. But if a race horse trainer does that, he is done. And if you know people who want a good and classy horse for just about any discipline, CANTER is the place to get one. And if you are not experienced with race horse retraining, go to http://equichat.com I post there regularly, and there are lots of owners of OTTBs on the board who will help with retraining and rehabbing OTTBs, Off Track ThorougBreds.

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

Quite right – people can, and sadly, do, take them to either of those countries, but as I understand it, it is illegal to do do. Is that right?

HARP

New York Times Finally Admits It Spiked Obama/ACORN Corruption Story.

Acknowledging what the blogosphere has known for weeks, the New York Times finally went on record to admit that just before last Election Day it killed a politically sensitive news story involving corruption allegations that might have made the Obama campaign look bad.

http://spectator.org/blog/2009/05/18/new-york-times-finally-admits

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

THANK YOU for the article, HARP! I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that they did it in a snarky, condescending manner…

Texas Playwright

Well done, Rachel A. and Calvin B.! I do fret about training and racing horses before their skeletons, rest of body fully develop. I do fret about humans using animals for sport–rodeos in the USA and Mexico (have seen horrible documentaries on animal abuse south of our border). Greed colors judgement in all things.

I’m glad the girl ran like a girl and won. If a boy won, would folks be saying it was “only” by a length?

Still, rest the wonder filly and make sound decisions about her racing again. Eight Belles came in second last year, cracked her ankles as I understand and had to be put down on the track. When such has happened to the boys, we can bet they were glorified for coming in second even when hurt and were declared heroes upon their deaths. Look how the horrifically misogynist folks across this land compared that lovely horse who people killed to Hillary.

R.A. doesn’t have anything to prove. Treat her well, trainers and owners, and let the chickens*** misogynists flap their gums. The first horse ever to win from the 13th position. Yee hah.

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

This was the first year there was mandatory testing for drugs in the racehorses. Like many sports, drugs can be a problem, and the racing industry is finally taking steps to correct that.

Horses run – they just do. They love to run. I agree that there are problems running them that hard so young (especially the two year olds), but they are going to run regardless. That’s what they do.

Horses at this level are like any premiere athletes. They have EXCEPTIONAL medical care, better than most people, that’s for sure. The lower tier horses, especially at the bottom of the racing levels, not so much, which is a big issue.

These horses, and jockeys, are athletes. They train to do this. And they are taking more precautions to make sure horrible events, like Eight Belle’s death (which was disturbing to say the LEAST), don’t happen, like changing the track surfaces.

I am no apologist for the horse racing industry – it does have a lot of problems, but I DO love to watch horses run. This was one helluva race, and one helluva horse (the same size as my Jordan, btw!).

FLDemFem

Mandatory drug testing has been around for years. Usually, it’s the winner and one other horse out of the race chosen at random. If a horse has run “off form”, way too badly or way too well, then they are tested too. This is the first year they are testing everyone for steroids, which have just become illegal to run on.

But every winner of every race and one random horse from the field have been tested for drugs after the race for decades. How do think that Dancer’s Image got disqualified after winning the Derby in 1968? He was found to have Bute in his blood, which was illegal to race on at that time. Drug testing has been going on in racing for a very long time.

Do get your facts straight before you sound off on an industry you obviously know little about. Thank you.

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

FLDemFem, you’re being just a tad harsh – and it if I got my facts wrong, it is because of the ANNOUNCERS at the Preakness who said that Mind That Bird was pronounced clean, first time ever in Derby history, because this was the first year for mandatory drug.steroid testing. Sheesh – lighten up already.

And for many of us, this was a big deal for a whole HOST of reasons, which I know you know already – why can’t you just be happy for us and let us enjoy this incredible victory of this gorgeous horse?

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

Mandatory testing for STEROIDS: http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/sports/derby-97608-year-churchill.html in the “Jones Upbeat” section. If I did not include steroids SPECIFICALLY before, I apologize – in my head, I include them with DRUGS.

Animal Control

Boy Horse, Girl Horse

You gota be kidding me!
JRD

AS a thoroughbred horse owner I cringe every time they run the fillies against the colts. The best thoroughbreds will kill themselves to win. That`s what Ruffian did. If the owner is smart he will not run her in the Belmont. She has already proven this bunch of colts is inferior and she has nothing to gain and everything to lose. Usually the ego of the owner does them in. If he really cares about the welfare of the filly he will race her against her own class in the future. Fillies can beat colts when they are younger but as they age the colts usually are victorious. This is a fact and has nothing to do with equality of the sexes. I am a women and hate it when women get into this equality argument with horses. If you care about the welfare of an animal you treat them with respect. GROW UP!

http://www.rabblerouserruminations.blogspot.com/ Rabble Rouser Reverend Amy

Thank you for your unque perspective on this issue.

But it isn’t just women who get into this “equality of the sexes” issue with horses. No doubt this race was more ramped up because of the sexist comments by the male owners.

Of course animals should be treated with respect – I think everyone here concurs with that statement. Don’t know how the “grow up” piece fits with that, but hey – it’s an open thread.

CG

I admit to not regularly following horse racing first off, and I would never want to push a horse to its death running a race, but looking at both videos, it doesn’t seem like she pushed herself unhealthily, seems like she had a lot more to give but remained relatively refrained and calm. Maybe she would be okay for another race while in this condition??

Portia Elizabeth

I agree. Rachel A has nothing else to prove. She’s an exceptional filly and a champion racehorse. I cried last year when Eight Belles was lost. I don’t want to see that happen to Rachel Alexandra.

Boxer Mum 06

I agree! She has NOTHING to prove and should not run in the Belmont.

I cried as well at what happened to Eight Belles. I will never forget it! The next day, I had to catch an early flight and was waiting in the airport.

All morning, all they played over and over on every channel was the Derby and Eight Belles. The discussions about how a filly shouldn’t have run in the race.

I could not bare to watch the Preakness with RA running. I was so worried she would suffer the same fate as Eight Belles. I thought if it turns out that all went well (no one died) and she won, I would watch a replay.

Until this morning, I could not find a replay to watch. No discussions on TV yesterday or this morning about it – other than brief recaps.

I wonder, had RA not won the Preakness, would it have made bigger news?

FLDemFem

Ruffian didn’t kill herself trying to win against a colt, she was in front when she had her accident. And it had nothing to do with the effort. It was more likely due to this.

Just as the starting bell sounded and the race began, Ruffian hit her shoulder extremely hard on the starting gate. She recovered quickly, but was obviously in pain and leaning more heavily on her right foreleg compensating for the pain.

If she had been pulled up, she would not have taken that bad step that ended her career, and her life. It had nothing to do with running against the colts, it had to do with taking weight off her sore shoulder and putting it on the other leg. When I saw that break-down, I got up and walked out of the room, saying “She’s a dead horse.” I knew her people, and had heard about her personality, and I knew that if she had surgery, she would fight it, and she did. Her own will to win killed her in the end. She wouldn’t stop fighting.

Portia Elizabeth

FLDemFem –Ruffian’s story makes me want to cry, too. That she would literally run herself to death just breaks my heart. And reminds me of Hillary…

College Educated for Hillary

I wonder if the former owner’s 13 year old granddaughter that Rachel Alexandra is named after is ticked off at him for not entering her in the Kentucky Derby only because she is a filly and then selling her after her magnificent run at Kentucky Oaks. Thanksgiving at their house might be interesting this year.
http://deleted Betsy Buzz Ross Latte

Open thread so:

Rahm Emannuel and Blagojevich connection made through phone records.

Apparently there were a flurry of phone calls between those two during the days before the Nov. election. Duh…

Portia Elizabeth

Yep. A real news scoop there.

Texas Playwright

Good,keep commenting, everybody. NQ team lets up carry our conversations further and hopefully, to newer points of discussion, than some other blogs I’ve seen.

I appreciate all the comments, including Rev. Amy’s knowledge, insights and compassion for horses and other animals. I still say Brava, Rachel A.; you’ve nothing else to prove–you’re the first HORSE to win from the 13th position just like our Hillary was the first CANDIDATE to win the most primary votes ever. Herstory has been made clean and clear.

I concur that horses run–that’s what they do. My worry is people pushing these animals past what they CAN do and forcing them into what they MUST do, thereby endangering their healthy, normal lifespans, just to make money or win trophies.
HC123

LOL I love how the commentator keeps saying the filly is barely hanging on. She has a sign on her butt saying “eat my dirt” and the entire field got to see it the entire time. From the 11. Typical. Its the humans that are the problem, not the fillies.

There are fillies out there that run just fine, and male thoroughbreds run themselves to injury too, it aint just Eight Belles. Genuine Risk was a tremendous competitor and died at 31, eating grass in Virginia.

I can understand that from a business perspective its more profitable to sell horse stud services than breeding mares, so you want the boys out there strutting it.

Its a business and thats fine, but when a qualified filly shows up she should run and win if she can, taking the same risk and gaining the same rewards as the colts. This should apply to humans too, by the way.
creeper

Love that horse.

Hate that I’m reduced to taking satisfaction in a female victory at a horse race.
vmorris

Good for Rachel!

And in 2007, another awesome horse proved that a filly can win the Belmont even if she:

1. Is at the outside gate.
2. Stumbles coming out of the gate.
3. Runs wide all the way in the longest leg of he Triple Crown.
4. Runs against the Horse of the Year who got a smooth trip on the inside rail all the way.

Here is the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URl70KylKZg

Other footnotes:

1. Rags was the first filly to win the Belmont in 102 years.
2.She was the first filly to win a the longer distance of 1 and 1/2 miles.
3. Her win was the first win ever in a Triple Crown race for her jockey, John Velazquez.
4. Her win was the first win ever in a Triple Crown race for her trainer, Todd Pletcher.
5. Rags also won the Kentuck Oaks about about 5 or 6 lengths, compared to Rachel’s 20 length win this year.

Other thoughts on horse racing:

1. I am not a fan.

2. I agree PETA may be a bunch of crap but they are right that 2 and 3 year old horses should not be raced like this due to under developed skeletal systems.

3. The ASPCA is not a bunch of crap. Its stand is:

“The sport of horse racing is no different than other forms of entertainment where animals are forced to perform, often times in stressful and inhumane conditions. These include being raced too young before reaching physical maturity, being raced excessively, being forced to run on hard or slippery surfaces, or being injected with drugs to enhance performance.”
“The ASPCA is opposed to any use of animals for the purpose of entertainment if it involves inhumane practices.”

Below is a link to an offical statement about horse racing:

http://www.aspca.org/pressroom/press-releases/050508.html

4. The Humane Society is not a bunch a crap. It is not opposed to all horse racing, but it advocates

“reforms that would make the sport safer for its equine participants during their racing careers, including prohibitions on the racing of two-year-olds”

Link:
http://www.hsus.org/horses_equines/issues/horse_racing.html

5. While I agree that many horses love to run, they are not stock cars and that is how the industry races them. Nothing anybody can say will ever convince me that the sport exisits primarily for the benefit of the horses.

6. Breeding practices have bred less robust versions of the great race horses of yester-year. Huge horse, tiny legs. Spells disaster. A horse hasn’t won the triple crown for a very long, long time. Part of it has to do with the durability of the horses as a result of poor breeding practices.

7. I think it is really dumb to project all the sexism, boy versus girl, battle of the sexes, blah,blah onto horse racing.
S

all i can say is…one hell of a race…i was screaming for Rachel the whole way, however I must also say that Mine That Bird is some horse…he did it again, came from last and just went into fast forward and left the other horses in slow motion…he was on her heels, no doubt about it…the jockey said Rachel did not take to the track and it wasn’t at her best…

I cannot wait for the Belmont and pray all the horses will be safe and well…

I will be screaming for Rachel but also love the spirit of Mine that Bird…

amazing race…
http://! stodgie

that was one beautiful sight. what a gorgeous horse! i love to watch her go. such a spunky horse!

please pray for the 30+ minature horses the spca took in waller county texas. many were starving. it is very sad. the good news is the spca has them now and can help them.