http://marybethellis.today.com Fri, 16 Jan 2009 03:08:43 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en As it's never too soon to start concentrating on mint juleps and all that come with them, Steve Haskin over at BloodHorse.com revs up for post- Sunshine Millions season with his pre-Derby Dozen.  He lists a healthy handful of young'ins to watch in the run up to the Roses.  But ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/15/the-pre-derby-dozen/ The last time (and, okay, only) time I attended the Eclipse Awards, I ate well, drank happily, and returned to watch the tape delay several days later to watch some sort of... chopped up version of what remotely could have been the same thing several days later on ESPN. So it's ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/14/eclipsin/ Wow.  Ouch.  If you sat out your senior prom (we here at Along The Rails are all too familiar with the feeling), you might have an inkling of how Azeri's connections are feeling this afternoon. Last month ATR noted that the supermare was going on the block at Keeneland; today, she ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/13/azeri-no-takers/ D. Wayne Lukas hath issued his pronouncement on his choice for Horse of the Year, and it's Curlin. He had an explanation for the four year old's first non win, place, or show finish of his entire raing life.  That took place last year at Santa Anita in the Breeders' Cup, ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/12/hey-curlin-dwayne-lukas-liiiiiiiikes-you/ That was how legendary horse racing writer Joe Hirsch, founder of the National Turf Writers Association, would answer whenever he was how he was doing.  He was doing an extraordinarily good job of describing himself. The Daily Racing Form's Joe Hirsch passed away this weekend at the age of eighty .  ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/11/couldnt-be-better/ Lookit, when I was a small racing fan, I had me some Breyer horses.  Breyer is very good at constructing model horses (unless, of course, they are the color of sherbet vomit and sport terrifying wings.)  But people?  Nooooot so much. I DEMAND AN EXPLANATION,  BREYER PEOPLE.  First of all, this ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/10/if-santa-loves-you-he-did-not-give-you-this/ The focus of industry writing/commentary/betting/general jumping up and down and freaking tends to focus at the sunshinest tracks with the biggest purses.  There's a reason why Jockeys is set at Santa Anita (or, as we like to call it here at Along The Rails courtesy of Toby Mcguire in ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/09/spread-the-love/ With the opening of Gulfstream, we may now engage in some Sunshine Millions talk.  The Breeders' Cup to Derby "over the hump" event will take place at the end of the month-- January 24. The signature event is the Sunshine Millions Classic, restricted to Thoroughbreds bred in California and Florida.  ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/07/riding-on-sunshine/ With many industry writers firmly announcing that they had cast their Horse of the Year ballots for four year old fan darling Curlin, the New York Daily News' Vic Ziegel is casting his vote for Big Brown. It is officially cool amongst racing fans, if not the general public, to dislike ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/06/one-vote-for-big-brown/ Oh, what a good time it is to be a racing fan in Florida.  Not only is Tampa Bay Downs up and running, the gates have swung open down at Gulfstream. Yesterday's grand entry into the 2009 live racing calendar saw about fifteen thousand fans through the turnstiles.  And despite the ... http://marybethellis.today.com/2009/01/05/gulfstreams-open/