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Originally Posted by Cardus
Is a 2F Thoroughbred race helpful to the sport? (I'm sure that someone is going to dig up old PPs that show Carry Back running in a 3F race first out.)
If Calder wants to have its novelty Rocket Man Stakes once a year, fine, but why bring two-year-olds to the races at, similar to what was said above, a minor league distance? And as a wagering event?
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But is it harmful? Most of the major outfits in NY don't crank up their 2YOs until June at the earliest. That's their choice. And I know that the 2YOs that we have had were just coming north about now, if everything went right down south.
The calendar in KY is far different, and the 4.5F races at Keeneland seem to be popular. With racing at Ellis/Turfway from July-September, if you want to run your 2YO early in KY at "major league" tracks, you need to get them going earlier.
As for the CA races, there have been some nice horses in recent years running in the 2F races that Santa Anita has carded. Golden Ballet and Sea of Pleasure are two that come to mind immediately.
With all the trouble racing secretaries have filling races, I'm sure they want to get their 2YO programs going as soon as possible. It's been a source of frustration in NY for the past few years. Some horsemen (Pletcher, Asmussen, Ward, to name a few) push their babies; other do not.
In the end, I guess that I agree with the sentiment that, if you don't like them, don't bet them.