I had to laugh a little when he won (or when I heard… I was at work) The only coverage I got to see was on my “lunch” break when the NBC people were comparing the favorites to A-Rod and some other big MLB person because they were bought for $X mil as yearlings. They then had the gall to snootily compare MTB to the Marlins and Royals because of his yearling price tag. I was so happy that MTB stuck it to them just a little bit. Nah nah boo boo and all that 
[QUOTE=bnthomsn;4065459]
Mine that Bird trainer interview
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqvPm3WWYg8[/QUOTE]
This was the only interview I saw. He seemed like a genuine person, who is not used to being in the national spotlight (like most of us would be I think!). 
He seemed to really know his horse, and seemed to be really proud of what he (MTB) had done. But seems to know too, that a horse doesn’t know/care that he just won the Kentucky Derby. He likes his routine, and that is what they will go back to.
I did notice too, that the jockey DID give the horse a BIG pat on the neck… To which the horse reacted strongly, and kind of negatively! The ONLY time the horse appeared affected by anything.
Just my impressions, for what it is worth. I love stories like this, as an ottb adopter.
Of New Mexico Racing and The Cowboy Way
Maybe Chip himself was so surprised, he forgot to be his usual charming self. Besides petting your horse isn’t part of the manly cowboy way. And anyway, the horse was IN a trailer, not a stock rack on the back of the pickup. What is everybody going on about?
Great ride by Calvin Borel, I was in Kentucky last week and got to watch him ride, maybe a Cajun celebration, but the class of this act.
On the bright side, there was no Rick Dutrow and IEAH!
2boys I saw that too after the race when Calvin gave a nice pat on the side of the neck which resulted in quite the strong reaction and head flip/twist. After that he just did the crest and mane rub. I think some of the positives said about the horse from both Calvin & the trainer got overshadowed by the yearling price tag and hauling questions by the interviewers. At the start of the interview with the trainer he did acknowledge the talent of MTB and that he knew how special he would be. After that it was back to price tag and hauling questions… it was also the trainer who gave kudos to the Canadian trainer. In the winners circle, after the trainer hugged Calvin, he also did have his arm resting over MTBs wither… his hand wasn’t in view so he very well could have given a little pat or scritch on the opposite side of the neck. Just playing devils advocate here. The previous NM performance of MTB makes me wonder if they just didn’t find the “right” jockey who meshed with MTB. Ya know?
I love it for Calvin! Even my husband, a decidedly non-horse person, became a Calvin fan 2 years ago and was thrilled for him. About the only person who thinks Calvin isn’t deserving of all the attention and accolades is Calvin himself. A very humble guy.
I LOVED seeing jeans in the Kentucky Derby winner’s circle! Apparently Woolley is just recently making the switch from Quarterhorse racing - I saw where he’s been 1-for-32 for TB starters before today?
I really hope this isn’t Mine That Bird’s crowded hour. I’m hoping he goes on for at least two or three more years and just covers himself in glory. After all, no stud farm awaits.
Oh I wish you could have seen the faces of the people in the sports bar in Malibu –
everybody had money on Larry Jones’ horse — but the ol Cajon out foxed them You
could have heard a pin drop when Mine that Bird shot out like a cork to win. It was
like WHO? HUH?
It was great !!! Only problem was I didn’t have a bet on him 
Congratulations to a lovely win for Calvin & MTB!!!
So my (very) small degree of connection is that Mine That Bird’s groom broke some horses for a friend of mine about 8 years ago, including a horse that I was in on breeding. I think we were cheering for Charlie today more than the owners or the trainer. It’s a very small world.
And how impressive was that come from behind run? I got up and put my finger on the screen when he started it going, “Who the hell is that???!!”
Gotta love Calvin Bo-RAIL - one of the nicest guys in racing. Just a delight to see him win and celebrate it.
Methinks Birdstone’s stud fee just went up a tad…
[QUOTE=Drvmb1ggl3;4065229]
Yes he was sold for $9500 as a yearling, but he was resold after his wins in Canada last year for six figures, so not exactly a rags to riches story.
As to why he was a longshot, well he hadn’t shown much of any form since leaving Canada. He finished last in the BC Juve and then went to New Mexico and couldn’t win there either, finished 2nd in a stakes at Sunland in Feb and 4th in the Sunland Derby (non-graded) in Mar.
He was a justifiable 50/1 shot.
Lets see what he does from here out. He could very well be a one hit wonder, but he sure looked impressive today.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, after he proved himself not to be a 9500 cheap unfashionable pedigree horse everyone is always complaining about. So it is kind of a Rags to Riches stories which I know are unpopular with those who think you should only breed from group and graded mares. :winkgrin:
Terri
It was a brilliant ride. That’s all there is to it. He saved his horse, and he slipped by on the rail.
I am really not sure I have EVER seen such a brilliant ride in such a big derby field. Stunning.
Actually it looks like the horse doesn’t like to get touched on part of his neck. The jockey was doing that after the race, and at one point the horse looked like he was trying to get him off his neck, doesn’t seem to like it at all.
Most of the horses barely tolerate getting grabbed, hugged and all that any way. I am not sure horses really like that, and after a race, I’m sure they just want to go back to their stall, like any horse.
Also you aren’t going to see a big cowboy-motorcycle type guy hugging and kissing his horse, so I would not even look for that. I think of that type as showing they care about the horse by being very particular about his care, being meticulous in the training, being sure he has the best jockey, staff, feed, tack, etc.
The comment ‘maybe now someone will talk about something other than the drive down’, I thought wasn’t rude at all. The media guys didn’t do their homework, and didn’t have accurate information about this horse, and they deserved that comment because they just repeated over and over ad naseum about the guy’s ‘pick up truck’, which I can wager is not some rattly old 1987 Ford, and is probably a little bigger, newer and a little more tricked out than my ‘pick up truck’. The horse did not ‘sell for 9500’, he sold for close to half a million (400,000 something) last time.
It would have been better to say, ‘due to his dam being unraced, he sold light as a yearling, but he got people’s attention in a very short time, and this isn’t really a rags-to-riches story’.
Plus, is this guy REALLY broke his leg, and I think recently. It’s full of hardware. He was probably in a ton of pain trying to get around the track and the media was making him stand there and that hurts. It was probably killing him by that point, it probably didn’t feel too great to drive down there either. Anytime you don’t have something like that elevated, it gets very painful.
It was an amazing run from so far back. A brilliant race. Amazing. For those who bet big on him, it was a rags to riches story for others as well.
[QUOTE=slc2;4065886]
Plus, is this guy REALLY broke his leg. It’s full of hardware. He was probably in a ton of pain trying to get around the track and the media was making him stand there and that hurts. It was probably killing him by that point, it probably didn’t feel too great to drive down there either. Anytime you don’t have something like that elevated, it gets very painful.[/QUOTE]
And just think what his armpits felt like having to walk the mudding track on crutches. My own were hurting just watching that!
Congratulations to MTB and especially Calvin Bo-Rail! How can anyone not love this guy? His enthusiasm is so honest and refreshing!
[QUOTE=dcm;4065093]
Great race! Yeah for Calvin!
Who else had a “who’s that horse” moment when Mine That Bird broke through? In those few quick seconds I do not remember the announcers even mentioning who he was. It was like it took them by surprise, too.[/QUOTE]
They didn’t! They kept saying every other horse’s name they thought was in the lead. It wasn’t until he had broken into the lead that one of them corrected himself and said Mine That Bird.
That dash from last to first place was supernatural. It was just amazing how he danced past all the others so quickly!
[QUOTE=Indy-lou;4065864]
Methinks Birdstone’s stud fee just went up a tad…[/QUOTE]
If only he wasn’t a gelding 
[QUOTE=slc2;4065886]
Plus, is this guy REALLY broke his leg, and I think recently. It’s full of hardware. He was probably in a ton of pain trying to get around the track and the media was making him stand there and that hurts. It was probably killing him by that point, it probably didn’t feel too great to drive down there either. Anytime you don’t have something like that elevated, it gets very painful.[/QUOTE]
My mom broke her lower leg very badly a while back, and for nearly three years AFTER she broke it, she couldn’t drive herself on car trips longer than about an hour because she couldn’t put it up and it’d start swelling and hurting. She had to have the option of someone else driving so she could ride in the back with it up on the seat or between the front seats. So yeah, I’m quite happy to give the guy some slack 'cause I can well imagine that’s not a fun time. (Particularly because he may well have chosen to cut back on his pain killers a little to keep a clearer head on the day in case he needed to make any quick decisions - a lot of pain killers have a side effect of making you a bit fuzzy feeling in the head even if they don’t make you properly sleepy.)
[QUOTE=ASB Stars;4065575]
You know, there is the perspective that this horse was simply over looked, and under rated. He WAS the Canadian Champ- he had a bad Breeder’s Cup, and he goes to NM. This certainly doesn’t make him poorly bred- there is some nifty stuff there- or a baaad horsie.
I like Baffert’s comment- “the Cowboys brought a nice horse.”
That 'bought sums it up, don’t it? :lol:[/QUOTE]
it sure does.
As others have said, MTB was Sovereign Award Champion 2 yr old Male in Canada, so not exactly “Casey’s Shadow”.
To the best of my knowlege that wasn’t mentioned at all in the pre-race warmup. He was simply overlooked, and the researchers just didn’t do their job.
But that good little horse didn’t know that!
I’m STILL smiling.
What I couldn’t get over was the tacky question Donna Brothers asked Calvin immediately his win…something along the lines of “you said Rachel Alexandra was the best horse you had ever ridden. How do you feel now?”
Give me a break. What is the comparison crap all about??? Made me furious. Let each horse enjoy their moments will you???
I am so happy for Calvin! What a weekend this has been. He is such a down to earth guy, very humble and what a horseman! I cannot wait to see him again, I love hanging out with him…what a character!
Awesome race, what a horse!
Did anyone besides me feel like it was not a well called race? As in announcer? Alot of tripping over names, and certainly missing who Mine That Bird was for quite some time. Kind of surprising.
