Another one bites the dust.....Square Eddie

[King Glorious]

But then Eight Belles broke down and she didn't show anything before the race. Barbaro broke down in the Preakness and didn't show anything before the race. Lots of them that show no signs end up breaking down and lots that make you worry end up running fine. That's why I don't get so many people being worried that something was going to happen to the horse. His publicized condition is probably better than some of the others that will run that haven't been publicized.

[2 Dollar Bill]

Is it tooo late to get a DT horse in the derby ?

[Smooth Operator]

Just what we need ... more Pletchers in the horse racing contest.




Wouldn't it be a shame if they all finish up-the-track ... like those turf titans Circular Quay and Scat Daddy?

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by DaHoss9698

He had a broken leg 2 months ago and looked real bad coming home in the Lexington. How good is his publicized condition? All we here is what a good looking horse he is. For this owner NOT to run in the Derby, something must be wrong. Do you disagree?

I don't disagree at all that something is wrong. By the same token, if he would have been in the race, I would have believed that they had considered everything and felt he was ready and I wouldn't have been any more worried about him breaking down than I would have with any other horse. I'm only saying that people are making it seem like had he run, he was going to tragically break down and I don't think that was anywhere near the automatic assumption that people were making it out to be.

[Bobby Fischer]

Agreed, do what's best for the horse.

Remember he is a Canuck, so if they can get him right he will be a great underlay for the Queens Plate.

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by DaHoss9698

It's not an automatic assumption. But every other horse didn't have a broken leg 2 months ago. See the difference?

There's Derby fever and there is being reckless. Running him, in my opinion would have been a little reckless based on what was wrong with him a short while ago, how he looked late in the Lexington, the kind of run he put in and the new surface.

Running him in the Derby probably wouldn't have been in the horse's best interest in the regard of giving him his best chance to win. That much we'll agree on. Whether it was reckless in regards to the horse's safety, we'll disagree on. My concern for his physical safety came in the Lexington. Once he passed that test, I was much less concerned with him making it through the Derby.

[Merlinsky]

Phfew. I have to say, while I enjoy Square Eddie, I was dreading the possibilities. Had another Derby horse broken down and in this case from a known pre-existing situation however healed they thought it was, we would've seen the sky fall down. The Derby's just the right amount of pressure that, if he passed the physical test and hit the board or had somehow ended up having all the cards go his way for the win, they would risk pointing to the Preakness only to wind up with disaster.

I always felt if you don't have a horse sound enough and prepared enough to hit all 3 races (hey nobody says you have to win all 3), hold out of the Derby at the very least. There's less pressure to continue after a Preakness win than a Derby win and if you wait til the Belmont, well you can take all the time you need. Unless you're prepared to press on after a win, you're causing headaches for everyone and it's not in the horse's best interest either. The pressure would drive folks to try to keep going when maybe they wouldn't otherwise.

[Danzig]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

Running him in the Derby probably wouldn't have been in the horse's best interest in the regard of giving him his best chance to win. That much we'll agree on. Whether it was reckless in regards to the horse's safety, we'll disagree on. My concern for his physical safety came in the Lexington. Once he passed that test, I was much less concerned with him making it through the Derby.

i thought it was reckless. they didn't give the horse time off like most would to recover from a fracture. i laughed a bit every time i read 'minor' fracture.

[Riot]

What am I missing? I thought Square Eddie bucked a left front shin in January, and has now rebucked. That's not it?

[Indian Charlie]

They said said originally, but it really was a fracture.

[Riot]

Got' cha, thanks.

[RolloTomasi]

Originally Posted by King Glorious

My concern for his physical safety came in the Lexington. Once he passed that test, I was much less concerned with him making it through the Derby.

The Lexington was hardly a "test". Stress injuries like his are cumulative in nature, and every bout of physical exertion (whether it be a race or workout) is another check cashed from his body's account. In fact, apparently the Lexington (and the subsequent 1/2 mile workout) were enough to aggravate the injury.

While it may still have been a longshot that he'd breakdown in the race, certainly his odds of being injured was much lower than a relatively "problem free" runner.