Lies and nonviolent felonies

[magicnight]

For someone who says he didn\'t do it, Ahmed Zayat sure seems to lie a lot.

http://around2turns.com/2015/05/31/the-smell-of-victory/

[Tavasco]

Your writing is such a treat. Your reporting also shines. Thanks!

[toppled]

Record of New Jersey raised the fact that Harvard had no record of his ever having attended

Zayat must be the inspiration for USA Cable TV\'s Suits.

[richiebee]

Magic I as always love the presentation but do not understand the infatuation
with the subject matter here, especially the Drape NYT article. If the NYT was
going to have a full time racing writer who would cover racing regularly (and
you know who my nominee for this position is), it would be OK that a couple of
articles per year would be dedicated to the dark underbelly of the racing
game, its roguish heritage, the Runyonesque characters.

If racing is only going to be covered sporadically, let me read about horses
and jockeys and the glorious history of racing.

I think Drape also neglected to mention that the owner of the last Triple
Crown winner, Affirmed, endured his own share of legal problems.

So Zayat doesn\'t place great value on honesty. He has a reputation in the
thoroughbred business for not placing a great value on paying people in a
timely manner. He associates with some folks who might be unsavory. He likes
to gamble. He has declared bankruptcy. All in all it might be said that he
represents a composite .. albeit a wealthy one... of many of the people one
might meet on the backstretch on any given day at any given American racetrack.

So I keep reading these things about Zayat and waiting to read something that
surprises or angers me. I have no problem that when Zayat does business with
Egyptians he portrays himself as an Egyptian who happens to be Jewish, and
when he does business with Jews he portrays himself as a Jew who happens to be
Egyptian.

I am not going to hold it against Zayat -- or his Triple Crown candidate --
that he will never be mistaken for Mrs. Genter.

[Fairmount1]

Many will disagree, but under today\'s laws, I look upon those that file for bankruptcy with far more disdain than a convicted felon depending on the offense.  

It\'s a felony to say \"Yeah, I kept the cash...that\'s what I\'m doing\" when you allegedly commit another ridiculous \"felonious offense\" of withdrawing money in increments to avoid notices being sent to government authorities....just one example from last week.  

Curious if Zayat ever really did start paying back 100 percent of its debts.  

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2010-07-16/zayat-stables-exits-bankruptcy-with-undertaking-to-repay-debts-in-full

Poor guy, and this article alludes to another instance that the facts were all reported wrong.  $200k a weekend and 9 million bucks total?  Impressive for 2013 especially depending on whether his company had re-paid 100 percent of its debts.

http://www.drf.com/news/new-jersey-extended-ahmed-zayat-betting-credit-report-claims

Great writing magicnight but I\'d still like to see the horse succeed!

[Fairmount1]

richiebee wrote:  \"let me read about horses
and jockeys and the glorious history of racing.\"


richiebee,

I tried to get through your recommended Wink, but just couldn\'t do it after several hundred pages of droning on of histroy beyond Wink.  Just finished Duel for the Crown with much detail on Affirmed and Alydar and I am almost finished with The Saratoga Race Course:  The August Place to Be by Kimberly Gatto.  My bet is you have read it already but if not, check it out.

[richiebee]

Fairmount:

I\'m sure you have read \"Wild Ride\", the story of the looting of Calumet and the
mysterious death of Alydar; ties right in with the subject matter currently being
discussed.

RM Hernandez, the Fairmount kid, looked good winning Saturday\'s feature at Belmont
and rides a couple for Wesley Ward on Friday.

[Silver Charm]

Great story Magic and poetically written as always.

Ritchie I tend agree with you on the nothing really surprises me part. Whether it was Pittsburgh Phil, Jules Fink or even Grand Daddy Rooney who made his money doing Book on the Clubhouse turn at old Hialeah Park in the winter then later formed the Pittsburgh Steelers with his $25,000, your right racing is filled with these types.

Lets not leave out Manuel Noriega the former dictator of Panama who lost Manila to Bradley Shannon as he was too busy fleeing Panama when overtaken in a coup. Peter Brandt, Gary Tanaka, Mike Lasky (Warren) or even Edi Labutti who inherited Devil His Due when the real owner was Noriega style hiding from the law.

You were saying the track Backstretch, how about the Turf Club, Grandstand bar or local OTB. Most of these characters are part of the track ambiance. So Zayat gambles on credit, buys horses on credit and doesn\'t pay. That makes him a bad guy. Lets bring back Steve Colburn.....

[richiebee]

Thanks for the memories. I\'d forgotten about the Labutti/Devil His Due story.

DHD was a brilliantly fast horse trained by HA Jerkens. I seem to recall that the
story involved a tax cheat who \"parked\" DHD with his daughter.

Lots of lovable rogues. My favorite might be Nelson Bunker Hunt, who I met in the
CD clubhouse on the day Genuine Risk won the Derby, before the silver market
collapsed on him. I asked one of Hunt\'s daughters whether it was difficult to
shop for gifts for such a wealthy man; she replied that \"Daddy loves McDonald\'s
gift certificates.\"

One of the not so lovable ones was Ernie Paragallo, for years a leading owner and
breeder at the NYRA tracks who was convicted and imprisoned for neglecting horses.

[magicnight]

Hey Richie (and this is also my thanks for people reading and the nice comments!), rest assured I have no designs on being Drape Jr. I would love to write funnier and more generally pleasant pieces and will aim to do more (OK, some) of that. Don\'t want to be just a scold. But I also couldn\'t let this pass with AP sitting on the verge of history and this two-faced bum getting a pass.

I agree it is not a surprise that there are guys like this in racing, but I have a problem when he screws little guys like Rubinsky just because he can, and then goes off as some kind of holy man because he names a $4 million horse after Maimonides to advance peace in the Middle East. I think this story also shows how racing authorities selectively enforce the rules, especially when it could be construed as being bad for business.

Besides, I hate when liars like Zayat get to coast unscathed through these types of events because no one want to be a Debbie Downer. I\'m of the camp where you should kick them when they are up and offer a hand when they are down. Afflict the comfortable and all that.

Enough for now. Thanks as always ...

Bob

[Fairmount1]

Hernandez\'s turf riding skills are improving fast.  A few rides last weekend really impressed me.  Obviously he won on Derby Day and yesterday for Bradley but Ward and others (including Tagg at Gulf I think) have given him chances.  He is still better on dirt but a rising star I hope.  

Quick story from FP.  A few years ago, Fairmount hosted a quarter horse stakes race.  Guys from out of town that were only quarter horse guys showed up.  Rafael was riding for a local trainer who remains un-named b/c the trainer was in Name Only.  In the paddock, the Mexican owner and his family that live on the backside of Fairmount were dressed to the nines and the owner saddled the horse.  The kids were wearing the dressiest clothes you could imagine....it was shocking.  The horse\'s mane was braided.  Hernandez walked out and hugged every single one of the family members like they were his family.  I couldn\'t understand a word of conversation between the family elder giving instructions to Rafael but it was all business.  After he hoisted Hernandez, I followed this real trainer of the horse to the window.  He placed an enormous wager on the horse given his \"station in life\" and I did as well after standing right behind him in line.  Rafael broke the horse faster than all the quarter horse jocks and zipped him to the wire at 5-1.  I stood about 25 feet from where the family watched the race.  Their excitement was infectious.  Rafael\'s ride and their joy brought a smile to my face as much as the winning ticket I held.  

Maybe you saw this story and video long ago but the video gives you a sense of what a likeable jockey he is to be around.  My favorite local trainer Michael Nance used him in his early days in Collinsville and always said he was an outstanding jockey.  

http://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/horses/2014/11/24/jockey-rafael-hernandez-plucked-obscurity-brings-winning-ways-churchill-downs/70056176/
_________________

Wild Ride is the best horse racing book I\'ve ever read including previous favorites Diary of a Dream, Horse of a Different Color, Seabiscuit, and Rick B.\'s likely favorite Horseplayers.  One fascinating angle of the story is the Lundy family lived out the saying that the apple doesn\'t fall far from the tree:  

http://www.kentucky.com/2008/11/16/593249_horseman-learns-an-expensive-lesson.html?rh=1

[Silver Charm]

Now there was a true bum!!

Who was the other prominent owner who not so long unexpectedly passed of a heart attack who conspired alongside Nelson Bunker Hunt to corner the Silver market? NO matter but for GODS SAKE Ritchie how did we forget Robert Brennan.

He didnt just own a stable of winning horses (2YO Champ Dehere) he owned his own Race Track (old but then new Garden State Park), singlehandedly bitch slapped the Triple Crown before being jailed for over a decade for major stock fraud with his pump and dump Securities Firm.. Seriously Zayat is the local Ice Cream man compared to some of these. And he wont be the last.....

[Bet Twice]

Ever since Zayat jettisoned Asmussen right after the PETA thing broke I haven\'t been a fan....seemed like he made the move rather quickly without the facts even being known to make himself look good.  Certainly not a crime but another example of low character, IMO.

[moosepalm]

Fairmount1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> Rick B.\'s likely favorite Horseplayers.


Don\'t know about Rick B., but I enjoyed it very much.  Very colorful slice of life portrayals.  Not the best book on the subject, but very entertaining, including an interesting segment on Fairmount Park.

[Fairmount1]

If you enjoyed Horseplayers, you might also enjoy Not By A Long Shot by T.D. Thornton about Suffolk.

The Big Horse was a fast read about Volponi and PG Johnson.