I am so sad about Victory Gallop leaving the US…
I hope that Anak Nakal wins even more now.
oh and I can’t possibly root for a horse named Crown of Thorns…
ON a quasi related note to the Whirlaway-I thought HRTV was showing NYRA races now? Did I miss something? I was sadly disappointed last night. I did see the race online (and was disappointed with Caves Valley of course). I noticed the horse that finished 3rd Texas Wildchatter closed very nicely for 3rd.
Hey, if you can’t root for a horse named Crown of Thorns, do you think Meal Penalty will have many fans 
Added: I just went to the NTRA webpage of race schedules and where only last week most of the races were listed as being shown on HRTV, now there are NO HRTV races listed for the whole year. They only have ESPN and TVG up. Weird.
Woot woot Crown of Thorns!
Oh how I wish that race wasn’t run at Santa Anita, though…
I’m kinda bummed I can’t find the Whirlaway anywhere online. I really wanted to see the race. Although I have to say, I didn’t expect Cave’s Valley to do anything. I was hoping Texas Wildcatter would do more, but I haven’t seen the race.
You can see it through NYRA replays for free.
Worth citing again that it really sucks as to how horse racing is broken up over the various networks. TVG is showing the NYRA racing but not always live and all racing from Santa Anita is on tape delay. They keep mentioning the opening meet for Golden Gate Fields so maybe they have exclusive access to those races. They never air anything from Gulfstream so the only live FL racing is Tampa … which I guess is fine as I don’t need to see warm, sunny weather while freezing in Chicago 
List of all the early TC nominations - 448 - down for the first time since 2005
Another possible horse on the hunt from Maryland:
Washington Post 2-3-08 “Once a Colt Nobody Wanted, Vanderkaay Wins Dancing Count Stakes”
At Laurel Park yesterday, Vanderkaay the horse came down the lane that opened along the rail and did his namesake proud, launched out of eighth place to victory by jockey Anna Rose Napravnik in the $70,000 Dancing Count Stakes for 3-year-olds.
[QUOTE=Glimmerglass;2982624]
Worth citing again that it really sucks as to how horse racing is broken up over the various networks. …
They keep mentioning the opening meet for Golden Gate Fields so maybe they have exclusive access to those races. [/QUOTE]
fyi-HRTV shows Golden Gate Fields . Yesterday they showed only the last race at Tampa on tape delay, which was weird. And yeah it sucks. What sucks even more is inconsitancy of locations and networks. Some have one, some have none.
[QUOTE=miss_critic;2982592]
You can see it through NYRA replays for free.[/QUOTE]
Haha, duh, I had forgotten that. Thanks!
[QUOTE=miss_critic;2982875]
fyi-HRTV shows Golden Gate Fields.[/QUOTE]
My mistake - TVG has been hyping Bay Meadows opening and did not show any GGF racing in this last meet.
“TVG will have live coverage of opening day at Bay Meadows (WED), and will air onsite reports from the track on weekends during the meeting.”
I’m rooting for Majestic Warrior. A dear friend is Mott’s assistant trainer and is very high on him.
Although a bit earlier then normal, these types of articles tend to pop up in spring
FORBES Feb 4, 2008 “You Can’t Buy The Kentucky Derby”
Slide show: (US) Horse racing’s most expensive studs - top stud fee, unadjusted for inflation
Obviously folks can poke holes through the listing
Tomcito?
Is 2008 going to be like 1971 with a little known entry from out of nowhere going to Churchill Downs for the Derby? Who knows but it has been a long time coming since a Canonero II type entry
ESPN/Bill Finley 2-5-08 “Mystery horse Tomcito among Triple Crown noms”
excerpt
Tomcito was the champion 2-year-old of 2007 in Peru, which, by itself, probably isn’t that big of a deal. Horses race for modest purses in Peru and there has never been a horse to come out of that country and succeed at a high level in the U.S. But this one may be different – very different.
Tomcito is American bred and is by Street Cry, the sire of 2007 Kentucky Derby winner Street Sense. Despite his pedigree, he slipped through the cracks at the Keeneland September 2006 sale, where Peruvian owners bought him for just $7,500.
Though only a 2-year-old, Tomcito had to race against 3-year-olds.
“I have seen Tomcito run in Peru and he is the likes I have not seen around South America,” said Michael Burns, a journalist who covers South American racing. “He may be the only 2-year-old on the globe to beat 3-year-olds at a mile-and-a-quarter in October. A 2-year-old that beats older horses at the Derby distance in October is a little out of the norm.”
Two of his races on youtube.com
From Nov 17, 2007: Grade-1 Derby Nacional 2007; 2:59
From Oct 10, 2007: Grade-1 ‘Ricardo Ortiz de Zevallos’ ; 2:31
My hat goes off to anyone who put him in their “Take 10” stable 
Worth pointing out that Tomcito is still just 2-yrs old (b. 02/13/2005) and is now training at Palm Meadows.
So Linny you bumped Crown of Thorns into 10th place?
No fear of him being just a synthetic runner? Linny’s picks 2-4-08 (pdf file)
His Derby Nacional win was actually at 2400m, which is 1½m (12f). Not often you see 2yos run at that distance, let alone beat older horses at level weights.
Don’t know about the KY Derby, I think he lacks speed, but would be worth a look as an ante-post bet for the Belmont.
According to the DRF article on him that workout on Monday was conducted by none other then Edgar Prado:
Prado, who was in Peru on the day Tomcito suffered his only defeat last October, drove up to the Palm Meadows training center to work the mystery horse a half-mile in 50.60 seconds on Monday.
“He’s got a beautiful stride,” said Prado, the winner of the 2006 Kentucky Derby aboard Barbaro. “Distance certainly won’t be a problem for him. I saw the race he got beat, and he was in all sorts of trouble, then came flying at the end. Obviously, the competition will be a lot different once he runs over here, and right now it’s probably a little hard for me to predict where he’ll fit.”
Zanelli said Tomcito’s connections are weighing a couple of options for the colt’s 3-year-old debut, either the Florida Derby here on March 29 or the UAE Derby in Dubai the same day.
1½ miles, I believe you mean?
Yeah, thanks for catching that.
Regarding Cave’s Valley:DRF 2-7-08
Meanwhile, Trombetta said Cave’s Valley came out of his seventh-place finish in the Whirlaway in good order. Trombetta said Cave’s Valley was taken out of his game by breaking slowly and being further off the pace than he prefers.
Trombetta said if the colt trains well he would likely make his next start in the $70,000 Miracle Wood Stakes at Laurel Park on March 1.
I suppose if he bounces back and does fantastic at Laurel they might try something like the Wood in NY to gain graded earnings but I think he’s off the Derby trail.
