That's a load of horse-hockey, as Col. Potter would say. Horses do it all the time; only these fancy stallion prospects can't do it, according to their trainers. Point Given did it (won the Haskell and Travers), but he was the best horse. Bluegrass isn't as good a horse as Bernardini; he's a good horse, no question, just not as good as some others in his crop (Barbaro included).

As to the injury; an athlete is more likely to be injured if he/she is trying to do more - run faster or farther, jump higher - than he/she has done before or than he is prepared to do. Trying to keep up with a superior athlete is falls into that category. Horses like Bluegrass, who keep on trying, are more likely to get hurt that way than a wussy horse. He wouldn't throw in the towel and ran so hard he hurt himself. Same thing happened to Lion Heart a couple of years ago; couldn't get 10f on a dry track, but kept on trying till he hurt himself.

OK ... you've convinced me ... now I know you're absolutely nuts.

The only way we know that a horse is the type who always keeps trying ... is to observe him keep trying. And the only way we can observe that ... is if he races ... something which injured horses can't do.

You fancy yourself as the great data copier and paster ... so ... go find some data to copy and paste ... to support this ridiculous yarn that you're trying to foist off on the rest of us.

I read on another board that it appears (per a publicist) that Bluegrass Cat kicked his stall in the middle of the night and that's what caused his injury. Obviously without an official quote, we have to take it with a grain (lots of grains) of salt...............

So are we now saying that Todd ran an unsound horse in the Travers? If he was not at his physical best, shouldn't he have scratched BC? I'm not buying the 3 weeks rest excuse - one week shouldn't make 8 lengths difference in a performance. BC just isn't as good as Bernardini. That being said, the horse ran a very commendable race and lost because he ran into a monster. If he was truly to tired to put in a representative effort, he wouldn't have run as well.

The lack of rest definitely made a difference- but I have a feeling that Pletcher, Johnny V, etc. . . were planning on saying that no matter how BGC performed (unless he won, obviously). That was pretty much the first thing JV said after the race- that his horse needed more rest. They were definitely trying to squeeze this last one out of him- like oracle (I think) said a while ago- BGC's goal was this race- Bernie's is the BC.

Horses are clearly much more fragile than they used to be- especially the top horses because the level they compete at just takes more of a toll on their bodies. Look how the horses that raced in both the Derby and Preakness ended up.

Barbaro- Hurt
Brother Derek- Hurt
Sweetnorthernsaint- Hurt?

Hello!!!

Bluegrass Cat retired with leg fracture....
 

...and i noticed he was wearing front wraps for the first time Saturday as they were warming up in the post parade......hmmmmmm....Was there something pre-existing going on there?....mighty fishy....

He also got his heart broken at the same time....I loved his grit and will to try, though, and I will miss his effort....he just wasn't in the same class as Bernardini but that isn't a knock on him...not many horses are...

And the uninformed uneductaed posts just keep on coming folks!!! He broke a rear leg, not a front one(where the wraps were that everyone noticed were added) So I guess I'm trying to figure out what, if any, link there could be between the two.

If you knew ANYTHING about racing you would understand that horses get off of what is hurting them and it usually causes injury elsewhere...If he was favoring the front-end then it would have compromised his action in the rear end when running full speed in the race and trying his ass off like he usually does...hence, more stress on the back end and SNAPOLA she goes...get it? Horses are smart animals and they know what is stinging them and what to get off of to take care of themselves...

Do I have to teach you everything about this game, Oracle?

I also noticed the front wraps and was worried. But his action wasn't at all different than his action in his other races and he also didn't act in any distress in the paddock. he was less sweated up than the last time he ran as well.
I think you just like tossing it out there(without making the direct accusation but doing so in an indirect manner) that Todd ran a sore horse. Todd was not real keen about running in the race off the 20 days and made no secret about it. Believe me, if he had any excuse at all to scratch out the spot he would have. He certainly didn't need to run the horse to earn the payroll for his barn.

You always think that I'm busting on your boy Todd and thats not the case...Unlike you, I don't do that s h it.....Let's face it, Storm Cats are not the most sound animals anyway and most racehorses in general run with some sort of problem(s)...

I was merely making a general observation that I was very surprised that nobody had caught or mentioned in the other related Bluegrass Cat threads in this forum - that is all...

When a horse goes front-wraps for the first time in a race and comes out of that race broken down - it'll make you think....the chances of coincidence are probably as good as the chances that the injury and front wraps were related....just saying

Joel I totally agree in the premise of what you are saying. Of course I noticed the wraps. I cancelled the ticket I had on him when i did ok? Its always a negative sign(most of the time). If he had injured himself up front I would completely agree. But those kind of breaks generally occur by freak chance, as you know very well.

Not mostly Mike, fronts added from a trainer who doesn't normally use them is always--always a bad sign. Whether you squeeze out a race or two more, it is a negative. And forget any horse that needs wraps on the turf.

bro derek returns in two weeks...sweetnorthernsaint is back with his trainer. i don't believe either had a specific injury cited. just needed a break.

Maybe Bluegrass Cat was wearing pacing hobbles ... which connect the front legs to the rear ones ...

... I didn't notice them ... but I was just watching the race on television ... so that doesn't necessarily mean they weren't there.

Yup, Mike ... that may have been the connection that the other guy saw ... and that maybe you missed.

I'm almost positive that Brother Derek came out of the Preakness with an injury. . .

i agree that most injuries occur when an athlete reaches for that something extra.

That is absolutely correct. Horses will often injure one of their good legs because they are getting off their bad leg. This is very common.

from bloodhorse:
After a four-week break, Cecil Pea****'s dual grade 1 winner Brother Derek returned to Santa Anita's main track this past Saturday to begin preparations for a probable start in the $1 million Haskell Invitational Handicap (gr. I) on Aug. 6 at Monmouth Park, trainer Dan Hendricks revealed.
The bay son of Benchmark was given some well-earned time off following back-to-back fourth-place finishes in the May 6 Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) and May 20 Preakness Stakes (gr. I), his first significant break since being purchased for $275,000 as a Barretts Select 2-year-old in training in March, 2005.

"He'd been in steady training for more than a year since we bought him, so we gave him four weeks off," Hendricks said. "He's very healthy and doing great now. He'll probably work at the end of the month. We're looking forward to running at Monmouth Park."

Hendricks said that Brother Derek spent his off time "just hanging around the barn" and walking the shedrow under an Astride weight belt, which is a device that simulates a rider's weight on a horse's back.

-----I did some double checking to be sure i hadn't missed anything....i know they checked him out after the preakness to make sure there wasn't a problem....nothing was found.

What happened to my Bluegrass Cat front-wraps and breakdown post?...Must have gotten ugly over night and Steve deleted....hilarious....

There is a strong possibility thta there was something pre-existinbg that the barn knew about that caused this breakdown....he was wearing front-wraps for the first time....hmmmmmm