Kudos to Fasig-Tipton on a Successful Sale
This past week wasn't easy on anyone at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic May 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale in Timonium, Md.—consignors, buyers, horses, bloodstock agents, veterinarians, office staff, and groundskeepers. And what about all the grooms and riders! Horsemen are a resilient group. But somehow in true Fasig-Tipton fashion, they managed to pull off a successful sale.
It was a difficult decision for Boyd Browning and his team to make the call for "gallop only" the last day of the under tack show, but it was the right call and once again Fasig-Tipton did what was right for the horses first and worked to make a bad situation the best it could be.
The training sales have become so biased to the fastest horses and fast horses are simply fast, that's a fact. Maybe, though, it's a good time to open the conversation to possible options for upcoming sales. I heard everything from taking the crops away to not having published works. They do fine in Europe without timed breezes and people simply have their own stopwatches and time the horses themselves. One person even suggested taking the poles down!
A prominent consignor said horses won't bring as much if they don't breeze. I vetted Sandman and he sold quite well when he just galloped, but most of the time that is correct. So I don't propose eliminating breezing but let's keep an open mind how to best present the horses without the often negative visuals.
I digress. This isn't so much about changing the format. That's a conversation for another day. This is to say kudos to Fasig-Tipton for once again being proactive and thinking out of the box. Good team work!
Dr. E.C. "Pug" Hart
Ocala, Fla.
Pimlico Stewards Avoided Controversy but Missed Call
If the stewards would have done their job, Journalism should have been disqualified in the Preakness Stakes (G1). They are supposed to protect the horses, the riders, and the integrity of the race.
Umberto Rispoli forced his way through two other horses, stopping one and sending the other one sideways. That was careless riding, and he impeded two other horses. He rode like it was a stock car race.
The stewards got scared to create a controversy. That should be reviewed again. Umberto could have gone outside in the turn and still would have won easily. He should be taken off Journalism for the next race. It was unsafe riding, and that happened before in the Santa Anita Derby (G1) with only a five-horse field.
Bruno Favre
Harwood, Md.
