This is now becoming really interesting . . .
http://news.bloodhorse.com/viewstory.asp?id=27593
Sneaking horses on and off the track was something they were supposedly cracking down on this meet.
As I noted in a post quite a while back, hyperbaric chambers can be performance enhancing as well as therapeutic (i.e., \"increased tissue oxygenation\" means increased stamina and the residual effects of such treatment have been used to enhance performance in human athletes for quite a while). Makes you wonder how many other \"ponies\" have been sneaking off in the dead of night to that same clinic for similar treatments...
Chris
California racing becomes more and more like the WWF every day. Soon bookies will not take action on it.
Sentimental fool that I am, I find it deplorable that a champion filly is \"disguised\" as a pony and smuggled out of the barn area at 3:15 am. I would like to know if Wygod was aware of these \"night moves\". Trainers complain that they don\'t want detention, that constant scrutiny is
distracting and insulting, and then they pull crap like this.
I have some other questions about the Sweet Cat incident. First, if the CHRB knew she had been removed under the circumstances alleged, if they knew of this before Saturday, she should have been scratched.
I would also like to know if Wygod wanted to scratch SC and was dissuaded from doing so by Santa Anita Magnagement.
Everyone who reads my posts knows that I believe that Frank Stronach is Robert Brennan without the helicopter. I would put nothing past him or his minions
>Soon bookies will not take action on it.
They have barely been getting any of mine because I felt like I never won. Now I know why.
>I would like to know if Wygod was aware of these \"night moves\".
I get the feeling he drove the van himself.
Calif Racing appears to me to be largely run by an influential group of insiders who think there needs to be rules, but just not any that apply to themselves.
What used to be the best Racing in the World has turned into a TOTAL DISGRACE.
Richie Bee
\"Frank Stronach is Robert Brennan without the helicopter\". Easily the best comment I\'ve ever seen on this board.
This controversy aside, who thinks the filly belonged in the race in the first place? Note that Tim Sullivan refers to blinkers as \"blinders\" usually indicative of a person not knowledgable about racing.
Tim Sullivan is a general sports columnist (and a pretty good one in my opinion), not a racing writer. The principal racing writer for the Union-Tribune wouldn\'t think of writing something like this. As Delmar Deb suggested in her original post, that\'s part of the problem.
One has to suspect that Sweet Cat\'s problems may have been an open secret on the backside. Hence, the full field of horses opting to run against her.
It\'s interesting that Canani is not named in the CHRB complaint.
I think Wygod\'s biggest sin was not keeping his mouth shut. California racing wants either slots or some form of compensation for competition from the Indian casinos. Bad PR doesn\'t help their cause. If they were really concerned about informing the betting public, they wouldn\'t have kept the results of milkshake testing secret for so long.
Post Edited (04-12-05 08:24)
( It\'s interesting that Canani is not named in the CHRB complaint.)
Very Interesting!!!!!
I re-read all available materials and Wygod was right in the middle of all this. His animals should be barred entry nationwide for a set period of time.
I keep thinking of the old Robert Palmer song \"Sneakin Sally Through the Alley\". An Eclipse award winning filly, with unlimited potential value as a broodmare, being driven around in the middle of the night. What kind of idiot is this? Another example of \"Owners Gone Wild\" under the influence of Derby fever.
Canani almost comes off as a sympathetic figure here, except for the fact that no one could have stopped him from scratching the filly Saturday morning-- except maybe Magna. Why don\'t I believe Ron Charles when he says he told Wygod to do what was best for the horse?
It is interesting, because one of the offenses detailed in the complaint is that Wygod publicly stated that Sweet Catomine was fit to run, but in fact she needed to be in the hyperbaric chamber a few days before the race, had a foot problem of some sort, came into season that week, etc. Canani also made similar public statements, according to the article on the DRF website. This article states that during an NTRA teleconference on April 5th, Canani said Sweet Catomine was \"doing great\" and \"training super.\" So you would think Canani is in the soup with Wygod on that one, right?
Now, according to the L.A. Times article today, Wygod is in full spin. He was assured by Canani and his vets that Sweet Catomine was fine. If that\'s true, why make the statement to NBC that \"she isn\'t quite right\" (Wygod\'s own characterization)? Why make the statements about her condition to Tim Layden, the Sports Illustrated reporter?
Most incredibly, Wygod now blames the van driver for the false statements made about Sweet Catomine\'s identity to track personnel. The quote for the year so far might be this one: \"I think he [the van driver] did what was done on his own. We had said that there would be a lot of curiosity seekers, and we wanted everything done low-profile . . . but never did we want him to do what he did.\"
Right, all those reporters and curiosity-seekers hanging around the Santa Anita backstretch gate at 3:15 a.m.
The rule Wygod is charged with violating is the same one Mullins was charged with for his bettors are idiots comments. Why not consolidate the two cases, so someone can bring up the fact that Buzzards Bay is co-owned by Bill Bianco, who also happens to be a CHRB commish. That\'s something I\'m sure a number of people would also have liked to have seen disclosed before the race.
P.S. The sports bar is indeed on the 2nd floor, fairly close to the finish line for the 8.5f races.
In case anyone missed it, the stewards ruled yesterday and dismissed the complaint against Wygod.
http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/todaysnews/newsview.asp?recno=54237&subsec=1
Caradoc,
Thanks for posting. I would\'ve missed it. Pretty short shrift for such an article. raz
Raz: This entire episode has been a disgrace, and it is now a \"farce\" as Mota\'s lawyer put it. Whatever Wygod did, the CHRB has no excuse for not interviewing him. I hope that the van driver and/or Canani don\'t take the fall for the embarassment that resulted from all this, but I wouldn\'t bet against it at this point. All you need to know about this episode is the chief complainant -- the executive director of the CHRB and a former steward herself -- didn\'t bother to show up, even though she had been subpoenaed.
But there\'s something I don\'t understand about what happened yesterday. The charges against Wygod weren\'t limited to whether Wygod ordered false statements to be made to the stable gate guard. From the April 11th Blood Horse article: \"The complaint further alleges Wygod violated CHRB Rule 1902 (Conduct Detrimental to Horse Racing) in connection with statements he made before and after Saturday\'s Santa Anita Derby (gr. I) concerning the health of Sweet Catomine, who finished fifth in the race as the even-money favorite. The owner was widely quoted in newspapers, magazines, and on Web sites as saying after the race that the filly had physical problems, such as internal bleeding after she exercised on April 3, and providing details that were not made public before the race.\" What happened to that part of the complaint? I\'m not sure it would have been a good idea for the stewards to determine that Wygod violated that rule, but it sure would have been a good place to start an important dialogue about these episodes, their detriment to racing, and what to do about them.
Caradoc,
You and Mall have provided details about this incident which go far beyond my exposure(which is limited to whatever articles are cited here). I hope you will both forward these posts to tim.sullivan@uniontrib.com.
You raised the questions which any reasonable investigation would raise, Caradoc. Without federal oversight(ugh) or someone(a large bettor who can show harm) bringing a civil suit, I suppose the \"farce\" will continue. Having racings regulatory bodies charged with protecting the \"image of racing\"(as they seem to be) is as useless as gooseshit on a pump handle... raz
>>is as useless as goose$%^@ on a pump handle
\"the pump don\'t work \'cause the vandals took the handle\" bd
This from the DRF tonight. Apparently the issue the CHRB thinks most worthy of its attention now is its defective investigation into the Wygod matter. The quote from the executive director of the CHRB is priceless, inasmuch as she ordered the investigation, ordered it to be expedited, supervises the investigator, and then didn\'t appear at the Wygod hearing where the investigator\'s findings were detailed, pleading that she was very busy at a convention in Kentucky.
http://www.drf.com/news/article/64445.html
\"During a three-hour hearing on Saturday, Wygod was cleared of CHRB charges...regarding Sweet Catomine\'s condition before the race and knowingly falsifying paperwork related to her departure from Santa Anita five days before the race\"
\"During the hearing, CHRB investigator Christopher Loop said he did not interview Wygod during a hasty investigation on April 10, a decision he said he regretted
In a one-page statement released Sunday by the CHRB, Ingrid Fermin, the board\'s executive director, said she was \"disappointed\" that Wygod was not interviewed.\"
\"Saturday, Hollywood Park stewards Dennis Nevin, Pete Pedersen, and Tom Ward dismissed the case against Wygod after Kendall argued that the CHRB did not have evidence that Wygod was responsible for falsifying documents. \"
You mean to tell me, that with an allegation that a horse was moved they did not interview the owner? My god, this CHRB is as corrupt as the fixers.
\"Wygod, a member of the board of directors at Del Mar, said last Saturday that he might end his involvement in racing because of the allegations.\"-Good Riddance
Its not over yet Marty. The CHRB may not have questioned you as thoroughly as the public expected but you can bet that deposition on behalf of the handicappers isn\'t gonna be as easy to evade.
Caradoc,
Required training in Spin Doctor 101:
In a one-page statement released Sunday by the CHRB, Ingrid Fermin, the board\'s executive director, said she was \"disappointed\" that Wygod was not interviewed.
\"I intend to evaluate our investigative procedures from start to finish,\" she said. \"In that way, licensees and the public will be reassured that cases have been fully investigated and evaluated before any accusations are filed.\"
Okay class, does anyone feel reassured? Anyone?
Why, I think Ms Fermin has made our frog go deaf. raz
Raz: Actually, it would be hard to top Wygod's spinning throughout this episode, including his statements immediately after the Santa Anita Derby that \"Sweet Catomine will probably wind up at Belmont Park, with a leading trainer back there\" to point for the Alabama, to speculating that prior to the Santa Anita Derby Sweet Catomine "was sedated. Leading up to the race, she was given three legal medications, including Lasix . . . I think those three medications put her to sleep\" to all the nonsense about the van driver concocting the lie, etc.
One of my personal favorites is the following. Now, keep in mind that Sweet Catomine's condition coming up to the Santa Anita Derby and immediately afterwards is still a very relevant, important issue for a number of reasons, including 1) Mota's (the bettor's) suit, 2) any claim Wygod makes against the CHRB relating to their investigation against him, and 3) any action any regulatory body considers about disclosure of health and treatment matters. Also keep in mind that one of the most important sources for any information about her condition is the vets who treated her leading up to that race. And finally, remember THAT THOSE VETS WORK FOR WYGOD AND THAT HE CAN AUTHORIZE THEM TO SAY ANYTHING HE WANTS ABOUT HER CONDITION. So, with all that in mind, a reporter challenged Wygod about her condition after Wygod announced her retirement. I'll give you Wygod's response, as quoted in the DRF on 4/21, and let you judge for yourself. I add emphasis for humor, to underline how large a farce this episode has become:
\"[Her retirement] was totally based on doing the best thing for the filly,\" Wygod said. Wygod declined to provide specific details and said information could be provided later \"WHEN THE VETS WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT.\"
Post Edited (04-26-05 00:27)