Asmussen gets 6 months

[miff]

Long one of my suspects, Asmussen gets six months(see Mary Rampenelli,today DRF). This is the second jurisdiction finding Stevie Wonder in violation of the drug rules.

On Saturday morning I was having a conversation about juice guys with two NY trainers who told me they felt that many of their fellow trainers go past the \"edge\" of what is legal, no proof though.

Mike

[shanahan]

get to see quite a few of SA\'s horses in these parts...I guess I was dead wrong as he struck me as an honest guy...but 6 months tells me otherwise.

[TGJB]

Asmussen trains a bunch of horses that I bought for Parra and help manage, but we\'re not really friendly-- only met him twice, I work with Parra directly. Have to say, though,the stuff they got as a positive is a local anesthetic and does not move horses up. Also, it can only be a screw-up, since it\'s something everybody knows they test for. There are serious things going on out there, this is not one of them.

[rangers94]

Hey JB
When Asmussen got suspended three or four years ago what was that for?
I can\'t remember off hand,but i remember his fill in i think it was Scott Blasi
really didn\'t miss a beat.

[marcus]

will the present situation in so cal continue to get worse  ?  rhetorically speaking , a lack of serious commitment by cal racing officials on this issue is evident - i\'m one of those who belive a \" federal  receivership \" has come into it\'s own time by now and has eclipsed the notion of local / state / \"standards\" .  

[Boscar Obarra]

  Yeah, Jerry, you\'ve seen this before. You\'re a pattern guy.

  They love to catch them for spitting on the .sidewalk, when the dead body is just around the corner, in the dumpster.

 Better for everyone, not as much taint on the game.

[BitPlayer]

It\'s interesting that the drug involved, Mepivacaine, has also been involved in positives for Dutrow and Pletcher.  

[manning]

TGJB Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Asmussen trains a bunch of horses that I bought
> for Parra and help manage, but we\'re not really
> friendly-- only met him twice, I work with Parra
> directly. Have to say, though,the stuff they got
> as a positive is a local anesthetic and does not
> move horses up. Also, it can only be a screw-up,
> since it\'s something everybody knows they test
> for. There are serious things going on out there,
> this is not one of them.


It is (or, at least, could be) serious enough.  Mepivacaine and other related LA\'s can be & are used as nerve blocks.  The easy excuse here (and in the Dutrow/Pletcher cases for the same drug positive) is that stitches were given for some minor cut and a dosage mistake was made.  That may or may not be the case, and if it\'s not....

Stating that this type of drug doesn\'t move horses up isn\'t quite correct though.  It may not be EPO (or similar blood-doping type stuff that is the real problem - my opinion) but this stuff, in larger doses, is used for major spinal surgery, not to mention epidurals, on humans.  In horse racing, it\'s (sometimes) used to block pain in one or more limbs & allow lame horse\'s to run right thru it.

[TGJB]

Manning-- if you knew they were going to test for it, would you try to get away with it? And, only once? Doesn\'t figure.

The whole drug issue needs to be seriously addressed. Right now they are not even trying to do the things necessary to stop the move-ups (like freezing samples, which is relatively cheap), while treating offenses like this one as major crimes.

[manning]

TGJB Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Manning-- if you knew they were going to test for
> it, would you try to get away with it? And, only
> once? Doesn\'t figure.
>

I believe these guys know they are going to test for it, and try to get away with it - all the time.  I also believe they usually do get away with it.  Just because he got caught this time (and in the past) doesn\'t mean it was an honest mistake.  

You\'re 100% correct in that there is a lot more that can & should be done.  But nerve-blocking racehorses is serious in it\'s own right, and is not a throw-away offense.

[TGJB]

Asmussen starts 2,500 horses a year, has an awful lot to lose, and would only have to get caught once. It makes no sense that he would try to get away with something they are testing for. Whatever is being used by the move-up guys, it\'s not something that can be caught the way things are done right now, and they know it.

By the way, Santa Anita did stop the move-up guys at their meet-- the ones who were using milkshake in a pill. Wonder if anyone else is making an effort like Ron Charles and Rick Arthur did.

[miff]

JB said:

\"Asmussen starts 2,500 horses a year, has an awful lot to lose, and would only have to get caught once\"



Jerry,

Thats a kinda weak argument. Plecther, Dutrow,Frankel, Mullins et al have an awful lot to lose too, no? Like I said the other day,these guys are walking a tightrope and getting away with it for the most part.

Also, most of these guys have stables at a few different tracks and may not have first hand knowledge of each and every legal med given by a vet.I agree that it makes no sense to use something they know will be detected.Sometimes a drug which is permitted days out, stays longer than usual in a horses system which creates positives.

The magic bullet, however, is alive, well and still undetected.

Mike

[TGJB]

Miff-- I said it was a reason NOT TO USE SOMETHING YOU KNOW THEY ARE TESTING FOR, like the stuff that Asmussen got the positive for.

[Michael D.]

got caught with this stuff while appealing a suspension from getting caught with this other stuff a few months ago:

Acepromazine: a very useful tranquilizer that depresses the central nervous system, causing sedation, relaxation, and a reduction in involuntary movements.
.....

i think he has a few other positives on his resume as well.

quite a character we have here.

quarter horse guys with drugs. can\'t beat em. what a great addition they made to our wonderful sport.

good thing shug and those stupid hay and oats animals don\'t wind up in the winner\'s circle anymore. that wasn\'t any fun watching.

[marcus]

the ruling should be contested , the penalties seem out of balance with recent rulings handed down for comprable drug violations . i don\'t understand how the drug would be useful for players and horsemen - wouldn\'t that type of medication have it\'s best value when a horse is shipping and not when racing ? .

 basically the ruling artificially boosts public relations and profile for an already troubled and beleaugered racing industry , and thats about all -  as was the case w/ the ny trainer who just got nailed for pain killers that he had borrowed for a back problem ...

i don\'t want come off as one of these \" jerimiah \" or \" jesse jackson \" types but , the level arrogence and complacentcy involved in the asmussen ruling is not only failing to serve racing\'s ( or anyones ) best interest - it\'s counter productive  ...