Louisville, Ky.
In the subdued regrouping that is for the vanquished the morning after the Kentucky Derby, the death of Eight Belles darkened the mood far beyond Churchill Downs. Hearts were heavy on Sunday morning and tears were shed everywhere.
The filly’s death after a courageous performance when cast in a role for which she was never meant will renew the debates that follow every racing fatality.
It is unusual, but certainly not unheard of for humans to race females against males. Three have won the Derby, the last, Winning Colors, 20 years ago. A filly, Rags to Riches, won the Belmont Stakes last June. It is, however, unnecessary and almost always costly in real flesh and blood terms. There is little to be gained that does not serve the human ego. Fillies do not become appreciably more valuable in the breeding market. A mare will produce no more than about 10 offspring in the course of her lifetime. Calculated risk is based on potential reward, but the reward in sending a female into competition with males is reserved for the human connections and the risk born entirely by the animal.
Until Barbaro broke a hind leg, the ultimate result of which was death, the most celebrated thoroughbred ever to suffer a fatal injury in a race was Ruffian, the undefeated three-year-old of 1975 who shattered a leg in a match race with Foolish Pleasure at Belmont Park. Ruffian is widely remembered as the best filly ever to race in the United States. Her unforgettable career is overshadowed in history by the circumstances surrounding her death, which are at the bottom line not unlike those that sent Eight Belles into the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.
Thirty years ago, there were no discussions about the safety of racetrack or the fragile produce of the American breeding industry. There were no alternative synthetic surfaces, no steroids. There were, however, humans with egos and agendas.
Ruffian was owned by one of the bedrock families in American racing but asking her to run in a match race with a male of Foolish Pleasure’s stature was a grievous error in human judgment. Eight Belles’ owner, Rick Porter, having been infected with Derby fever a year before, when Hard Spun finished second to Street Sense, made the decision to send the filly into the Derby rather than the Kentucky Oaks on Friday. His filly responded with a tremendous effort, giving – literally – everything she had while facing a horse, Big Brown, who was far superior to every horse in the Derby on Saturday. If she had a flaw, it was that her heart was too big for her legs. That, she shared with Ruffian.
For other great fillies who have competed successfully against males, the damage is more subtle.
Genuine Risk, who in 1980, became the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby, ran in all three Triple Crown races. Once retired, she was a dismal failure as a broodmare. Winning Colors, the last female Derby winner, never gave birth to a horse of note. Rags to Riches, the Belmont winner last year, was never the same, raced only once again, was defeated and was recently retired. Even those fillies capable of historic accomplishment in competition with males have paid a price.
Horses are injured in races under the best of circumstances, but misguided, reckless human decision does not qualify as best of circumstance. The finger of blame, in this case, as in that of Ruffian, points toward the owner, a bloated ego and an arrogant disregard to the welfare of a remarkable filly.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
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24 comments:
Hi Paul -
Eloquently said.
I know nothing about equine antomy or veterinary medicine. But my intuition tells me that those fractures did not occur in the last moment. She was running on them and they grew at the end until her ankles shattered at the end.
I believe you were correct in your article "Eight Belles gave Derby's most valiant effort" when you said that hers was the most valiant - the most courageous - effort.
Thank you for giving voice to my own sadness which, in a way is so baffling, because I hate horseracing just for these moments and normally feel anger at how horses are exploited, cast aside and their valor forgotten.
Just one little picky thing that detracts from your blog post:
you misspelled "arrogant" in your last sentence, spelling it "arrongant" probably out of emotional distress of your own.
Maybe you should leave it as it is.
Your call, of course.
God bless Eight Belles, wherever her spirit is.
Thank you so much for this informative and moving account of Eight Belles' demise. I was looking all over for someone to comment about her broken ankles and euthanization. You've put the event in perspective -- in brilliant prose as well. Her death is very sad. Is there any chance owners would learn from it?
Thank you Paul.
I am outraged at the ensuing celebration following the Derby, NBC in particular. Mr. "YUM" was giddy with delight while Eight Belles lie there, dead as a result of human greed. I will never watch another horserace. The total disregard for the safety of these beautiful horses is tragic. Shame on Rick Porter and company. Everyone I've talked with shares my sentiments. My parents and children were in tears as Big Brown's entourage displayed despicable arrogance. Kentucky should be ashamed.
I don't know, Paul, I just don't know. I'm more inclined to blame the track (Chelokee). Fillies have historically performed brilliantly on dirt against males without physical repercussion:
Personal Ensign, Winning Colors, Safely Kept, Gold Beauty, Glorious Song, My Juliet, What a Summer, Xtra Heat, Ta Wee (who sired Great Above), etc.
On the breeding front, few Grade I winners are produced by our greatest (or merely Grade I) mares, so the Genuine Risk angle doesn't quite work for me.
Poor Go for Wand, she snapped in a throw-it-down against another great filly (Bayakoa).
Of course you could be right. And of course your heart's in the right place.
You were also right about synthetics producing Kentucky Derby fool's gold. But PLEASE keep an open mind about synthetics being safer than dirt. Perhaps neither Chelokee nor Eight Belles would've gone down on synthetics. Impossible to say.
I hate the dynamics and results of synthetic racing. I didn't have a single winning day at Santa Anita. Not one. But over the next five or ten years, the animals tell me what keeps them safer and I'll defer to those conclusive wishes.
Thanks, as always, for the great writing.
Paul, I do agree with you regarding Eight Belles' valiant effort in the Derby. She is truly the hero. However, in your blog, please know that singling out only fillies who have been "dismal failures" is a little unfair. Plenty of colts have gone on to unsuccessful careers in racing AND breeding after Derby victories. There just happen to be more of them raced so the failures aren't as evident. If you want to question the overall sport, fine, but I don't think it's a question of gender or greed this time. (Barbaro was male, Chelokee is male, ....) I think it's more a question of current American breeding and bloodstock, but that's another story entirely.
Also, the Derby winner in 1915 was a filly as well. There have been three filly Derby winners.
Oh yeah, p.s. "tricia", YOU should be ashamed, as you made your poor parents and children sit and watch a horserace in the first place. Shame on YOU. Gah.
-cheesesteak
Paul,
I've often found much that you write informative and spot on, but in this case you are on the wrong "blame path."
You accuse Eight Belles connections of entering her against the boys because of ego. Well - no kidding! What is horse racing as a sport if not about human ego and the need to show that "my horse is faster than yours!" To try and hang a villain's hat on Mr. Porter and Larry Jones is just not fair, right or proper. One only had to see their faces and hear their words to know how much they grieved for that filly.
Europeans run fillies against the colts much more often then here in the US - and with great success. Running her in the Derby was her chance at greatness - no one, including you - could have foreseen the freak circumstances of the tragedy that followed the race.
And please - you aren't really trying to say that Winning Colors and Genuine Risk were failures in the breeding shed because they raced against males, are you? What about Personal Ensign? Perfect 13 race record against both sexes and still a Broodmare of the Year. Let's be realistic when making those kinds of claims.
What happened was horrible, but probably stemmed more from the brilliant brittleness inherent in the Unbridled Song line than from some mustachioed villainy by her human connections.
Sometimes, Paul - you have to remember people who actually are sportsmen want to showcase their best horses by running them against the best. That's sport.
I think it should be noted that Clyo and Tricia have completely ignored your post and are commenting on the distasteful nature of racing horses in general. I’m not sure what Valerie means about putting the incident in perspective. The last three comments, however, are right on target.
You are in fact laying the blame on the owner's decision to race a filly against males, a harsh accusation, and an utterly fallacious stance which I’ll consider in a moment, but they condemn the industry as a whole. As someone who has certainly benefited from the existence of horse racing -- more than 30 years covering the sport -- I doubt you agree with their position.
I’ve heard it said that fillies shouldn’t run in the Derby because they’ll get bumped around (Jerry Bailey made the comment several times on ESPN), and I assume the suggestion is that girls can’t handle the rough stuff. Apparently these people haven’t watched women’s field hockey. Also, if you watch the race, all of the horses are racing, not making any effort to bump or distract that uppity girl. My sense is that when it comes to racing, the only ones who care about male and female are human beings.
Are you honestly suggesting that Genuine Risk and Winning Colors were unsuccessful in producing notable offspring because they ran against males? And that Rags to Riches didn’t win her next race and then retired for the same reason? As though males haven’t run big races and then been retired due to injury. Smarty Jones anyone? This sort of logic defies even the most fervent imagination.
You seem to want to have it both ways. Eight Belles, like Ruffian, had a heart “too big for her legs”. If she had never faced males she wouldn’t have died I suppose. But wouldn’t this also preclude a horse like Eight Belles facing one like Ruffian. No doubt if they had raced each other one of them would have had to die in trying to beat the other. Absurd. At the same time, in an article you wrote for the ESPN site you seem to suggest that the fillies shouldn’t race against the males because of their historic lack of success. Good fillies like that Serena’s Song came 16th and Three Ring 19th . So what’s the point? The ones that aren’t good enough shouldn’t be in the Derby because they don’t belong talent wise, and the great ones shouldn’t run because they push their delicate frames beyond what’s good for them.
The argument that fillies usually aren’t as gifted is baseless. Of the 39 fillies who have run in the Derby, 3 have won. That’s 7.7%. If you take the 131 colts who have won out of 1653 entered, you get 7.9%. By any accounts, the success of males and females has been, well, pretty darn similar.
Also, if you look overseas, you won’t have to go far for evidence to support my stance. As someone who fell in love with racing growing up in Australia, I could point to the recent success of Makybe Diva in the Melbourne Cup. A mare who won the Group I, 2 mile race, at age 5, 6 & 7. A record three times. She is the highest money winner in Australian racing history, followed at number two by a horse named Sunline. Oops – she’s a mare too. And these are not anomalies. A few weeks ago, the most prominent juvenile horse in Australia, Sebring, won the Golden Slipper, the richest 2 year old race in the world, worth over 3 million US dollars. So what happened yesterday? A filly named Samantha Miss went out and beat him. If the names seem a little obscure to American racing fans, they should be more comfortable with Ouija Board, one of the biggest earners in British Racing History. She competed successfully against males several times, winning more than once.
I don’t understand why experienced, knowledgeable and well-intentioned commentators and fans of the sport make arguments that are based on anecdotal evidence and what I can only characterize as sexism.
Thank you for your time.
Paul-
Why don't you also throw Larry Jones under the bus? You are making this into a morality play in which case the trainer should take on every bit as much responsiblity as the owner. Oh, maybe Saez whipped the filly too much in the stretch you should go after him too. Killing the rich guy is too easy.
FYI cheesesteak,
Your humor escapes me. My well-educated, caring parents and grown children live in different cities across the U.S. Shame on YOU. Gah.
Didn't the great songwriter Dan Fogelberg get it right with his beautiful song "Run for the Roses"? "It's the chance of a lifetime in a lifetime of chance". Dan died in Dec. at 56. Eight Belles is up there in good company and Dan is telling her he wrote the beautiful song for her and she lived up to it.
So, I enjoy horse racing, and I will admit to not being as well-versed in technical developments of the sport, or inside knowledge.
I have some questions, though, particularly after reading this piece and the comments.
Can Paul or anyone else give some scientific/objective reasoning why a filly racing against colts is dangerous? I fail to see the logical jump you take for granted. Running on dirt is the same, is it not, regardless of who is running beside you or in front of you. Had Eight Belles run the Oaks, is your assumption she would have run differently? Would she have run slower?
I don't understand how a horse (clearly as tall and fast as the colts) would be more at risk for injury simply because of the other horses in the race. Are you saying Colts set too high a pace, and a filly's legs can't handle that? I find that a doubtful assumption. So, if possible, can anyone posting or writing on why racing fillies next to colts is dangerous thing, actually give any research/anatomical argument as to why that is so?
I fear that people get too emotional about these races, rather than keep their objectivitiy. The reality is that you have huge animals, running flat-out, and that these animals (if the articles are true), receive shots of steroids and other vitamin cocktails on a regular schedule to increase their speed, endurance, muscle recovery, etc. It stands to reason that some of these animals will suffer bone failure... either because of an awkward landing while racing, or because of an anatomical imbalance as the animal trains and grows more muscular, while its joints and bones are increasingly taxed.
So, in closing: 1) Why is racing with certain horses more "dangerous" to a filly, when in reality it's still just a race across a dirt track, regardless of the competition? 2) Shouldn't we expect injuries like this to occur, simply because of the emphasis on muscle-growth and curtailing muscle fatigue in what is a high-impact exercise on a huge animal's relatively skinny skeleton?
Paul -
Thank you for your concise and honest blog entry. Many years ago, my family attempted the horse racing game and we were wrapped up in the excitement of the day, the energy, and the odds. Our stallion never broke his maiden, but suffered with bleeding lungs and other painful byproducts of giving 100% of his Arabian heritage to do what was asked of him.
We got out of that game because the things we saw at the track were incomprehensible. The blatant disregard for the wellbeing of the horses and how easily the trainers, owners, and jockeys turned a blind eye to the travesty of the race industry was too much to bear.
Our stallion is retired and living a happy life now.
My heart breaks every time I hear about a tragic end to a young horse's life due to the money-grubbing, ego-tripping, bloody-handed persons making ridiculous decisions that end in tragedy.
Thank you for avenging Eight Belle's untimely and unnecessary death by way of voicing your thoughts in a public forum. One can only hope that somebody with some sense is reading this and won't make the same mistakes.
Paul,
You've followed racing for longer than I and know much more about it than I do, but I'm having a hard time seeing how you arrived to this point.
In many countries, fillies race against colts as a matter of course, and even in this country, a number have with no ill effects. As this filly was so clearly so much better than eighteen of the colts in the race, I find it perplexing that you would blame her connections for the choice that they made, which feels more than justified by the order of finish.
You also seem to be making a connection between fillies racing against colts and their reproductive success. I don't quite understand that and would appreciate if you could explain it further--do you see a cause and effect relationship there?
You made the connection between Ruffian and Eight Belles ever clear now in my mind and I thank you!! I hadn't seen it that way so you've enlightened me and it's appreciated believe me!! Thank you!!
Good minds are working to improve safety and I think progress is being made. Experimental new footwear was worn by many Derby horses (inc. Big Brown) and track surface research is at an all-time peak.
Please understand that fillies are NOT frail, second class racehorses. Why this injury occurred post-race, not at high speed, shows we need more facts before we leap to conclusions about EB's and Ruffian's tragedies being somehow linked.
Remember Ouija Board. Think Makybe Diva. Think! If you have ever been around a tough race filly, you know they have the stuff!
Think too about the Green Monkey, the highest-priced colt in history. Now there's a tragedy of a different sort.
This would mean alot more if it was written BEFORE the race. I read anything I can lay my hands on regarding Thoroughbred racing, and dont recall any of those who pontificate having these views in advance of the tragedy. In light of Rags triumph over Curlin, I think any owner who truly believed Big Brown was vulnerable and the rest were nothing special deserved the right to try. This filly finished second. She belonged in the race. The outrider saw the injury occur well after the race was over, and it happened while she was pulling up, and activity that happens daily with a horse. We will never know if that race, the course, trouble in the race ect. influenced the problem, but to say the horse that was second and beat all but one of the best 3 yo colts in America by several lengths didnt belong in the race is really not a very defensable argument, again, unless this was being stated before the race, imho.
Paul
I find much of your writing informative and thoughtful. But not this one. As a friend of mine has said, if you wrote this before the Derby - so be it. But after the Derby it is a raw case of Monday Morning Quarterbacking.
The comment about European racing with females versus males is RIGHT ON. Sun Classique beat some of the best turf horses in the world in the Dubai Sheema Classic - beating 14 or 15 top quality males. It is unusual in the US, but not on the broader landscape of the sport.
Yes, fillies do collectively have lower speed figures than males. But there are exceptions. And the exceptions are equal to the males in their own class range.
I wouldn't pick on the sex of Eight Belles as the cause for her demise, but a combination of the hardness of the track and the fact that the horse had never raced past 1 1/16th.
If anything, I would make a rule that in the future horses have to have gone at least one mile and an eighth to run in the Derby.
I know it sounds a little funny, but I really think that the distance contributed to Eight Belles demise more than any other factor.
She did look like she collapsed before she broke her ankles. It was probably heart related, but I guess we'll wait for the results.
Mr. Moran,
I must, respectfully, disagree. I didn't get to see the race until about 8:30 Saturday, having been a bit preoccupied with the joyful task of bringing a new filly into the world. She took her first breaths only moments before Eight Belles took her last.
My first insinct upon witnessing this tragedy was to curse the names of Mr. Porter and Mr. Jones. I recalled watching Hard Spun's impressive performance in the King's Bishop and declaring to everyone in my corner of the Carousel, and yet to no one in particular, that it would be criminal to ever run that colt over 9 furlongs again. I thought we bred these horses to WIN races, not to assemble enough classics' placings to warrant a huge stud deal. That was precisely what I thought Mr. Porter and Mr. Jones were doing during the 07 Triple Crown, and felt vindicated in my judgementalism on Travers Day.
Yet as desperately as I wanted to lash out at the human connections for the horrific outcome of Saturday's race, the filly's performance would not let me. She DID belong there. Her domination of all but one very special colt was impressive. Contrary to the first commenter, I saw nothing in her strong stretch run and gallop out that gave any indication of the horror that would ensue. Sometimes, there are tragedies for which no one is to blame. Perhaps this is one of those times?
I am also, however, willing to admit that hearing a CNN report this morning of a PETA press release demanding Gabriel Saez's immediate suspension raised such ire in me that one bias may have simply supplanted another. I have no use for these soft-fascist PETA types or their "activism". Few, if any, of them have ever given up a day's food, drink, sleep or sanity in a bid to save just one of these animals they profess so much to love. It would cut too much into their self-absorbed preening for whatever press outlet will give them a moment of free air.
So, perhaps my loathing of them has forced me into a too hasty defense of Eight Belles' connections.
There really isn't a large enough data pool to draw the conclusion that fillies will breakdown more against colts, go on to be unsuccessful in their further racing careers as a result, or not make it as broodmares afterwards. Secretariat was amazing, and yet he was not a successful breeding stallion of racehorses. Of all the colts that run every year few ever do have a significant career past the Derby either on the track or in the breeding shed. Endurance, jumping, and dressage horses compete side by side, mares, stallions, geldings and it does not seem to affect the mares adversely.
Regarding breakdowns, however, it is very true that human ambition can make some look past all the signs that a horse has had enough, or would be overfaced. There is no excuse for it for the owners, trainers, and riders involved when that happens. The rest of us who ride and train our horses with respect and care must show the world it can be done and the subsequent "win", might simply be to have participated at all.
Further, I find it interesting that the May issue of Equus magazine featured an article on a preliminary study where measuring the Heart Rate Variability is showing some indication as an accurate predictor of horses suffering from stress (mental and physical) and fatigue that puts them at higher risk of breakdown.
In light of this year's Derby, hopefully further funding can be found to look deeper into this study.
It is sporting to put our best horses against each other, but how "sporting" something is concerns only us humans. The horse has to come first.
Paul
I strongly endorse your comments, and yes, prior to the race I did express my opinion that Eight Belles should not have been entered in the race. It had nothing to do with her sex. It was based on the facts that she had never run beyond 1 1/16 miles, did not have a distance pedigree, was from a line known for unsoundness (do you remember Rockport Harbor?), would be at risk of being bounced around by the chaos of the first quarter if she did not break well (which she hadn't in her last start) and would be running at Churchill Downs on a track that is "souped up" for major race cards. In the 2006 Breeders Cup, it was two wonderful fillies who suffered career ending (and in Pine Island's case, life ending) injuries on this track...yes fillies do compete against males routinely in Europe, but they run on grass, not dirt. Yes, Rags to Riches did beat Curlin--and she had the distance pedigree and the distance experience that made that a "reasonable" risk to take. Racing will not survive much longer unless it makes some dramatic reforms that bring it in line with the racing conditions under which all sexes have proven they can compete on even terms--no drugs and safe surfaces (turf or synthetic).
Those of you that are complaining that this post is written after the fact need to look at Mr Moran's post on 4/30. The question was raised then in a big way. You should double check before you want to make such accusations (of couse one of the posteres are anonymous so it really does not matter).
Grass racing is easier on a horse---which is why
i didn't mention, Pebbles, Ouija Board, etc.
I inferred from Paul's piece that he meant fillies vs. colts on dirt.
Paul can handle himself---but everybody, please, be nice to The Green Monkey. It's not his fault he...he...what's the word I'm looking for?.......stinks!!!
I wrote a song about The Green Monkey, btw. Anyone interested can contact me privately so I don't soil Moran's blog with nutty frivolity (as if I haven't already).
Paul,
I would respectfully suggest that you are off base when you write that the Kentucky Derby victories of Genuine Risk and Winning Colors had something to do with their lack of productivity as broodmares.
First of all, you are generalizing from only two cases. Second, there is to my knowledge no viable theory, and certainly no hard evidence, that the rigors of competition adversely affect fertility in horses, or, for that matter, in humans.
Your citation of Rags to Riches as a filly who "was never the same" after winning the Belmont Stakes -- and your extension of that example to prove the point that fillies should not race against colts -- is also questionable. It is not uncommon for an especially strenuous race to knock a horse off form. That is the basis of the "bounce" theory that is fairly well accepted in handicapping circles, and it applies to all sorts of horses: colts, fillies, stakes winners, allowance horses, and claimers.
Also, how many races did the colt Monarchos win after winning the Kentucky Derby? How many races did the colt Go For Gin win after winning the Kentucky Derby? The answers are "zero" and "zero" -- so if Rags to Riches "was never the same" and did not win again after a taxing effort in the Belmont Stakes that proves little about the damage that racing against colts supposedly does to fillies. What all of the cited examples -- Rags to Riches, Monarchos, and Go For Gin -- really demonstrate is that a big effort can take a toll on a horse of either gender.
Further, I notice that you don't contend that Winning Colors "was never the same" after defeating top quality colts, and with good reason: Before winning the Kentucky Derby, she had already defeated colts in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby. And after winning the Kentucky Derby, Winning Colors came within a nose of defeating perhaps the greatest filly ever -- Personal Ensign -- in the Breeder's Cup Distaff.
The case of the undefeated Personal Ensign (13-for-13) also doesn't lend support to any of your theories. In the 10th race of her career, Personal Ensign defeated colts in the Grade 1 Whitney, conquering, among others, the colt Gulch, who would go on to win the Breeder's Cup Sprint.
Personal Ensign somehow survived the experience of racing against colts to win the final three races of her career, including a victory in the Grade I Beldame and, of course, a victory in the Distaff over Winning Colors in what is widely considered one of the greatest races of all time.
Let's not forget that the victory over colts in the Whitney did not preclude Personal Ensign from being an outstanding broodmare. In addition to producing a trio of Grade I winners from 10 foals in Miner's Mark, My Flag, and Traditionally, she is the dam of Our Emblem, sire of 2002 Kentucky Derby winner War Emblem.
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