I just had lunch with a longtime TG customer and we spent some time chuckling about how similarly TGJB and I (Ragozin customer) felt about Peace Rules (a lock on Saturday, we concurred), and how much more Midway Road\'s Ragozin line looked like a Thoro-Graph line (in his last, a perfect pair up of his 2-yr-old top on Ragozin), and how much debatable(more typical of Ragozin lines) the top looked on T-graph-- a 3 point top, or so I\'ve been told. Probably an easier use on Ragozin, but a must-use on either, for certain.
I was with Ragozin customers in Baltimore who hit the race nicely, and the T-graph customer I lunched with today hit it, too, as I suspect many other T-graph customers did. Kudos to those who were less stubborn than I about beating the Derby winner.
Despite my strong negative feelings about some of TGJB\'s marketing efforts on his competitor\'s website (and I\'m well aware of his defenses of them), I gotta say, I feel compelled to offer up kudos when they are overdue, and in one way they are overdue in this suddenly very enjoyable season of Triple Crown pursuit--
I was reading Bloodhorse\'s post-KY Derby coverage (print edition, I don\'t think they have this piece on their website) last week, and the lengthy piece on Distorted Humor featured WinStar\'s Rich Decker giving Jerry B. some serious credit for tagging Distorted H. as a future stallion prospect for them, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Now, I\'m sure many future stallions are purchased using a wide variety of methodologies that you or I might find questionable, but in this case, what happened was simple and beautiful. TGJB saw a horse who was fast on his numbers with the sort of breeding that he thought made him intriguing. Flash forward a few years later, and this stallion has become one of a very few to sire a KY Derby winner in his first crop, and now Funny Cide has a reasonable shot of closing the deal (not with my money on him, mind you, but he\'s certainly got a shot).
As one who has attended the last 10 Triple Crown races consecutively, as well as the last dozen KY Derbies consecutively, I know how much these events mean to me-- the shimmering beauty of 150,000 in the house at Churchill Downs makes the Derby and the intoxicating hour that precedes it incredibly compelling, so much so that I vow to never miss it. The Preakness is more of a down and dirty affair, but it\'s a legitimate jewel nonetheless, especially for those of us who value spacing between efforts and are amazed when a Derby winner can put back to back efforts like those together. It\'s a nice time if you value crabcakes and Camden Yards, too.
And so I attend these races, glad to be associated just by being there. But in TGJB\'s case this year, the association is stronger than just being there-- by tagging Distorted Humor for WinStar, he\'s a little piece of the puzzle that is turning into a gorgeous piece of racing history. I\'m sure you\'re proud, Jerry, and you damn well should be. Congratulations.
Great post Marc,
I almost got run off this Board a few weeks ago for this kind of partisanship so I\'m glad you said it first.
Belmont Day should have some kind of electric buzz--lets all pray for good weather.
Congrats to TGJB and the entire operation.
Thank you, Marc. A few years ago, a few of us got together for dinner before the Belmont, and Alan Gutterman (head of marketing for Hollywood) asked me if I was rooting for a Triple Crown. I said no, that 1) it was better for racing for horses to come close and not get it, since as soon as one did it wouldn\'t be that big a deal any more, and 2) I wanted to be the one who finally did it (I know it\'s selfish, but I\'m human). This isn\'t quite that, and I would much prefer it was a son of Victory Gallop, whom I love more than most members of my family, but it is something.
Much more importantly, as I said in a post- Derby post, I was really glad to see Rich get the credit he deserved. As a rule most Kentucky farm managers don\'t want anyone but themselves advising their clients, but Rich saw I could be an asset, and he and Elliot became two of my closest friends in the industry. Rich, as the article made clear, was pretty much the guy responsible for Funny Cide\'s existence-- he made the decision to buy the mare, and to breed her to Distorted Humor. Win Star inherited her and DS when they bought the farm and everything on it, and is listed as the breeder-- but this was a Prestonwood production, meaning Rich Decker.
FC probably won\'t be carrying my money in the Belmont either, which makes my involvment with his dad work as something of a hedge for me-- not financially (I\'m no longer involved), but personally.
Were you at the press party at the ballpark?
Other than that, down and dirty is right.
Did you or the TG guy pick up the lunch check? (Which brings up one of the great Richie Schwartz stories-- Richie made about $60k one day at the track, the guy he was sitting with in the Belmont dining room broke even. When the check came, Richie said \"I had a good day. I\'ll pay two thirds\").
Thanks again.
>Were you at the press party at the ballpark?
My group of pals who I attend the TC races with (only one of whom currently works in racing) far pre-dates my involvement in the business. I separate the Crown and work as much as possible, so unless I could have gotten a dozen guys into the press party, I wasn\'t going.
>Did you or the TG guy pick up the lunch check?
I did. But I\'m angling for him to buy me dinner at Sperry\'s next out.
Sperry\'s does as good a job with soft shell crabs as I have ever tasted, and I eat a lot of soft shell crabs.
I met a trainer of mine (who shall remain nameless for obvious reasons) for the first time face to face at Sperry\'s, and 15 minutes later he passed out cold under the bar. It\'s funnier now than it was then.
Spoken like a scholar and a gentleman.
\"I was reading Bloodhorse\'s post-KY Derby coverage (print edition, I don\'t think they have this piece on their website)\"