afleet alex
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afleet alex
Afleet Alex, the No. 1 ranked colt on Daily Racing Form's Derby Watch who after the race was found to have a lung infection, according to a spokesperson for owner Cash is King Stable.
A great man cannot help himself," "He can see things that other men cannot see themselves, and his greatness lies in doing whatever is necessary to make his vision real
Ya who wouldn't love this horse. But Zito never would have gotten him here, do you have any idea how many good horses he ruins trying to find a derby winner? Ritchey has not only made this colt great but he hand picked him and bought him at a sale for 75 thousand where he was overlooked by baffert, lukas, and zito. Only one other person bid on this colt. The only reason AA didn't win 2 yo of the year was the low profile this trainer keeps, ahd he been running for any of the afformentioned "trainers" he would have won hands down. And I say "trainers" because they aren't really, do you think they spend over 10 hours a week with thier horses? If so you are sorely mistaken. So don't say to late for a trainer change because I would take that trainer over those businessmen any day of the week and twice on sunday.
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wilf
- Breeder's Cup Contender
- Posts: 1882
- Joined: Sat Dec 25, 2004 10:50 am
- Location: Ocala, Florida.
Joe I dont think a trainer change is a good call to be frank. Ritchey paid his dues tenfold and galloped his own horses through the 90s. When I think of Lukas and his dictionary of replies to simple question I want to puke.I have no problem with his hall of fame induction but now and again I just pray that he will be humble and acknowledge the hundreds of horses he sacrificed to get to the mountaintop.As for Baffert , nowadays he is just a pretty boy who has lost the fire in his belly........new wife.....new life, now that Eoin Harty has gone he seems unconcerned. Zito ....well he rose through the ranks to one day being a Hall of Famer but did he really need to run poor Birdstone in the B.C. Classic covered in ringworm and underweight?....I dont think so. No ....Alex is right where he belongs, I just hope the owners can refocus on a sensible program for the little scrapper.
Wayne is over criticized for his breakdowns. He won a lot of big races and you don't do that with broken horses. He did have a few big ones, but a lot of them were Storm Cats, who break down in anybodies barn. He if often criticised for not racing older horses, but most of his good ones were retired. Criminal Type ran well for him after 4.
I've talked with him quite a few times and find him to be very honest and decent. I talked with him one night at Saratoga and mentioned to him about the "long toe-short heel" thing and he invited me to his barn the next day and said if I could find a bad foot he'd take me to dinner anywhere. I didn't go to dinner, he said that was in the old Quarter Horse days and was just a "knock" on him.
He got a lot of big horses to win a lot of big races. He is the first trainer to successfully create a bi-coastal "operation" and do it well. His past assistants are now the tops in the country. He revolutionized Thoroughbred training in it's approach and his effects will be felt for the rest of our lives.
Plus, I think he's a darn nice guy. I hope you get the chance to meet him someday.
I've talked with him quite a few times and find him to be very honest and decent. I talked with him one night at Saratoga and mentioned to him about the "long toe-short heel" thing and he invited me to his barn the next day and said if I could find a bad foot he'd take me to dinner anywhere. I didn't go to dinner, he said that was in the old Quarter Horse days and was just a "knock" on him.
He got a lot of big horses to win a lot of big races. He is the first trainer to successfully create a bi-coastal "operation" and do it well. His past assistants are now the tops in the country. He revolutionized Thoroughbred training in it's approach and his effects will be felt for the rest of our lives.
Plus, I think he's a darn nice guy. I hope you get the chance to meet him someday.
I agree that Wayne Lukas is a nice guy, a true ambassador of the game. However, he is hard on his young horses (as are many trainers these days, like Baffert and Biancone), and he attracts bad press for it, whether warranted or not.
I just wanted to say that Wayne Lukas (and many other trainers) break down plenty of horses without any help from Storm Cat. No one can argue that Lukas has had numerous catastrophic injuries, and of those horses, I can only think of the following, out of all the Storm Cats he's trained, that were catastrophic- Country Cat, Swift Attraction and Gold Trader (the latter two full siblings and sons of the unsound Golden Attraction).
All sires sire individuals that break down, and Storm Cat is no exception; however, Storm Cat's "unsoundness" is largely due to the fact that his offspring are whisked off to stud if anything goes awry. These Storm Cat sons who were retired early or after limited starts seem to be siring offspring with greater longevity than themselves, which suggests (at least to me) that a) either the farms are doing a great job of breeding them to sounder mares or b) those Storm Cat sons were more valuable as stud prospects than they were particularly unsound.
as always, just my two cents,
ef
I just wanted to say that Wayne Lukas (and many other trainers) break down plenty of horses without any help from Storm Cat. No one can argue that Lukas has had numerous catastrophic injuries, and of those horses, I can only think of the following, out of all the Storm Cats he's trained, that were catastrophic- Country Cat, Swift Attraction and Gold Trader (the latter two full siblings and sons of the unsound Golden Attraction).
All sires sire individuals that break down, and Storm Cat is no exception; however, Storm Cat's "unsoundness" is largely due to the fact that his offspring are whisked off to stud if anything goes awry. These Storm Cat sons who were retired early or after limited starts seem to be siring offspring with greater longevity than themselves, which suggests (at least to me) that a) either the farms are doing a great job of breeding them to sounder mares or b) those Storm Cat sons were more valuable as stud prospects than they were particularly unsound.
as always, just my two cents,
ef
Yes, I think your right on with the valuableness (Is that a word?, maybe I made a new one) of the Storm Cat sons at stud. He is definitely a sire of sires and he can have SW's sired by a never raced sire or almost.
Lukas training pattern is clearly seen over the years in the form. He does 4F works, usually about 47 and 5 at about a minute. He tries to get a horse sharp. He told me he tries to keep every horse he has as healthy as it can be. He told me every horse is worth something and if they aren't at the level he wants, he tries to get them to the level they need. He's sent horses here to Philly Park, usually they are claimed, but more often than not they turn out to be decent at the lower levels. They are usually gelded, because they are Overbrook horses. that's a whole different story as to never letting one of your "culls" be a stallion.
Lukas training pattern is clearly seen over the years in the form. He does 4F works, usually about 47 and 5 at about a minute. He tries to get a horse sharp. He told me he tries to keep every horse he has as healthy as it can be. He told me every horse is worth something and if they aren't at the level he wants, he tries to get them to the level they need. He's sent horses here to Philly Park, usually they are claimed, but more often than not they turn out to be decent at the lower levels. They are usually gelded, because they are Overbrook horses. that's a whole different story as to never letting one of your "culls" be a stallion.
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Laurierace
- Grade II Winner
- Posts: 1277
- Joined: Tue Dec 07, 2004 10:14 am
Racerx wrote:Ya who wouldn't love this horse. But Zito never would have gotten him here, do you have any idea how many good horses he ruins trying to find a derby winner? Ritchey has not only made this colt great but he hand picked him and bought him at a sale for 75 thousand where he was overlooked by baffert, lukas, and zito. Only one other person bid on this colt. The only reason AA didn't win 2 yo of the year was the low profile this trainer keeps, ahd he been running for any of the afformentioned "trainers" he would have won hands down. And I say "trainers" because they aren't really, do you think they spend over 10 hours a week with thier horses? If so you are sorely mistaken. So don't say to late for a trainer change because I would take that trainer over those businessmen any day of the week and twice on sunday.
I don't know who the one other person that you are referring to is but I know my friend and his partners were in on him through to $45,000. Someone else must have been in there too otherwise the bidding would have stopped at $46,000. That said, I don't think that he needs a trainer switch either.
