WayAfterThoughts on the Belmont

WELL DONE OR TOASTED?:

WELL DONE

TIM ICE: May the horses come into your barn. A cool, quiet and intense young man, Mr. Ice arrived at Belmont Park at 34 years of age _ and left two weeks later at 35 after winning the Belmont Stakes with Summer Bird. He did a masterful training job _ putting blinkers on (he saw that his Bird wasn't focused in the stretch at the Derby, although 6th place wasn't bad for a fourth career start) and bringing him here for nearly two weeks to become familiar with the track.
Payoff should be big time for Mr. Ice, who already has a few interested owners knocking on his barn door (Hey, Rick Porter, ya listening?). Looks like Mr. Ice -- an Ohio boy currently based at Louisiana Downs -- could get to like the New York racing scene. Betting he'll spend his summer at Saratoga, with Summer Bird being pointed to the Jim Dandy on Aug. 1 and the Travers on Aug. 29. Welcome to New York.

MINE THAT BIRD & CO: Just love this little gelding and his crew of cowpokes from the Land of Enchantment; Broken leg trainer Chip Woolley (12 pins and a metal plate from knee to ankle in right leg), racing manager Kelly Denninton and owners Mark Allen and Dr. Leonard Blach showed racing nogoodnicks how to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime moment and share it with others.
Ol' Chipper enjoyed his New York experience, and look for his Bird to resurface in Saratoga as well. Mine That Bird went 1-2-3 in the Derby, Preakness and Belmont and earned over $1.5 million for his connections! And this gelding will keep on going!

KENT DESORMEAUX: What can we say Kent? You deserved it.
Worst beat ever in the 1998 Belmont aboard Derby-Preakness winner Real Quiet (2nd by a nose); and biggest disappointment ever last year with Derby-Preakness winner Big Brown (last after being pulled up). You rode a perfect race, finally, and we think you have this one figured out.



TOASTED

CALVIN BOREL: Calvin, your new marketing/sponsor guy, gave you bad advice. Why in the wide wide world of jockey sense would you spend a week in Manhattan, ignore the racetrack, show up on Letterman, at MSG, the stock exchange, etc., etc., and expect to make good your guarantee of victory?
OK, so Joe Namath can party all night and lead the Jets to a Super Bowl win over the Colts, but Calvin, you lost to the Colts in this one. Your rail ride in the Derby was glorious, your effort in the Belmont was godawful.



MIKE SMITH: Short story shorter, Mikey boy coulda been aboard Mine That Bird in the Belmont, but even before all the histrionics surrounding Borel/Rachel Alexandra/Mine That Bird he begged off due to loyalty to owners Jerry and Ann Moss and trainer John Shirreffs. Instead of riding in the Belmont, Mikey hopped on Madeo for the Charlie Whittingham Memorial Handicap at Hollywood and finished fourth. Hmm. Pass up a Belmont in favor of a Whittinghan. Wait 'til next year!

JESS JACKSON: Just because I'm not certain what his motives are with the filly. Hooray for winning the Preakness, but something just doesn't seem right about the way you shelled out however many millions to buy Rachel Alexandra in a plan to `revitalize'' the sport.
People were all over Baffert for buying a Derby winner (and Preakness winner as well)a few weeks before the race, but you go out and buy a Preakness winner 9 days before? Why didn't you speak up before the Oaks? And buy her then and run her in the Derby? She'd won four stakes in a row to that point. And the owners said they wouldn't run her against the boys.