What a night of racing in the Breeders Crowns last night at the Big M. I think Beach made his case convincingly for Horse of the Year honors, especially when coupled with Dewey's defeat in the sophomore colt trot.
The Beach vs. Shadow Play was the match people wanted to see most and it never really materialized as the champ dominated from wire to wire. All credit to the colt, to Brent MacGrath, to Paul MacDonell, and to the owners. What a horse!
And what a surprise to know that we'll see Beach in action again in the Matrons at Dover. You gotta hand it to Brent and the Beach people: they love to showcase their colt and taking him to Dover can only be good for the sport in the First State. Racing at Dover has been characterized by empty grandstands and a full racino in recent years, but I know that horsemen in the Delmarva area will flock to see this very special horse.
Dewey had no excuses, said trainer-driver Ray Schnittker. He'd said before the race that he wouldn't start Dewey if he wasn't right and he didn't reach for the Excuse Book after the race. Dewey got beat, plain and simple. He got a soft lead and nice fractions, but first the Pennsylvania Sires Stakes star In Focus went past him and then the New York Sires Stakes contender Holiday Credit went past him. Dewey will now hang up his hobbles and trot off to stud in Kentucky.
Did anyone notice that the freshman trotter Muscle Hill went faster than the 3-year-old trotters did? He's unquestionably the champ of his class and when a colt trots the fastest mile ever in his division in late November, you know he's special. The duel with Explosive Matter lasted a quarter-mile around the far turn until Muscle Hill put his rival away with complete disdain.
Those are a few quick opinions on the Breeders Crown. I'd love to hear your opinions on what was the most impressive performance of the evening. What horses surprised or disappointed you? How do you see Horse of the Year honors shaping up?
With all due respect, Anne
With all due respect, Anne is not correct !
She doesn't have him in her top ten ?
To not annoint him the greatest, absolutely that is without question a debate with no wrong answer. But to go as far as to list 10 other standardbreds ahead of him, well I have seen her top ten, and to not include Beach ahead of some of her choices . . . well it just doesn't leave much room for credibility.
It so often true that that the older fan is so quick to downplay the new hero while the younger fan simply doesn't share the first hand knowledge to appreciate the stars of the past. But you must also consider the other effect fan passion can have over a long period of time, and that being the farther away you get from the heroes of the past, the bigger their myth becomes, and it is very hard to accept replacing your past heroes.
Such an attitude reminds me of a discussion that my dad and I have had on numerous occasions. he still believes Gordie Howe was better than Wayne Gretzky, and I take the opposite opinion, however neither of us are stubborn enough to leave either player out of the top ten.
What a night! The Beach was
What a night! The Beach was superb and I'm so happy for Brent, the other owners and Paul MacDonell. My wife and I were on the edge of our seats at home watching the race on HPI-TV. I can't remember wanting a horse to win as much I did on Saturday night and I'm pleased people will be treated to potentially two more opportunities to see this truly amazing animal perform. I saw him race in Toronto on the 15th of November in very poor conditions and he didn't seem to break a sweat! But what amazed me even more was his demeanor in the winner's circle with at least one hundred people surrounding him! Gentle and well mannered and I have it on video! I'll be sad to see him leave the race track but I will look forward to Muscle Hill, Mister Big and Shadow Play filling the substantial void created by Somebeachsomewhere.
This has been truly an amazing year for harness racing and the most memorable one for me as a patron of the sport! Seeing the likes of The Beach, Dewy, Mister Big, Shadow Play, Art Official grace the tracks of North America has been a wonderful experience in what has become a difficult year for many people!
Carey
PLAIN AND
PLAIN AND SIMPLE.......SOMEBEACHSOMEWHERE is the greatest standardbred of all time !!
In reply to PLAIN AND by Anonymous (not verified)
November 30, 2008 - 8:58
November 30, 2008 - 8:58 pmPLAIN AND
Anonymous (not verified) SAID...
PLAIN AND SIMPLE.......SOMEBEACHSOMEWHERE is the greatest standardbred of all time !!
How long have you been watching Harness Racing? I've been an avid fan since the early 1960's and he doesn't make my top 10.
In reply to November 30, 2008 - 8:58 by Anne (not verified)
Anne is correct. We tend to
Anne is correct. We tend to forget great past champs, I am not sure that anyone has ever surpassed Greyhound, you have to consider the course and equipment, anyone remember Cardigan Bay? Niatross might be the best. Prehaps we can only go as far best of their era. I've been attending races for 50 years, When I got to present a cooler to Niatross I had to pinch myself.
In change of subject, I am wondering if anyone has heard a woman call a race, I did that last year and admitting very curious.
If thats not enough, does anyone know where Armbro Armbro Aussie ended up?
Hello All, It was an
Hello All,
It was an exciting night, Muscle Hill did steal the show.
This is my 1st blog, I met Dean Hoffman one and once he wrote about my horse retiring
I am a public handicapper, am on a harness promotion board. Have visited a dew tracks in Canda, really enjoyed that
I have an Armbro Aussie mare
Look Forward to conversing with everyone. I am anit passing lane
This is my 2nd attempt to post message so excuse me if it goes thru twice
To Dean, As I had mentioned
To Dean,
As I had mentioned previously, Beach deserves a lobbyist effort towards the Lou marsh award. There is certainly precedent for including horses in athlete of the year talk, Sports Illustrated made Secretariat number 28 on their alltime great list of the 20th century. Standardbred Canada is the perfect center for such a campaign, and the Beach truly is deserved of such a nomination.
Its been a long season for
Its been a long season for Dewey and it just caught up with him last night,it looks like Muscle Hill could very well be the next Donato or Dewey.
Most impresive, as always was the Beach. In 21 lifetime starts he has went under 1.50 in 11 of them,and an even more amazing statistic,of the six fastest times ever clocked 3yo pacers, 3 of them were by the Beach
Muscle Hill was super.
Muscle Hill was super. Kudos to Greg Peck and a brilliantly planned and executed campaign.