horses
grrlscientist | June 7, 2008tags: Big Brown, horseracing, Triple Crown, streaming video
Big Brown fights with his jockey, Kent Desormeaux, in the stretch before he crosses the finish line last in the 140th Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. on Saturday, June 7, 2008.
Image: Chang W. Lee, NYTimes.
Big Brown was the favorite to win to today's Belmont Stakes, the 140th time this classic race has been run. Big Brown started from the far inside post position and ran against eight rivals in the 1.5 mile (2.41 kilometers) race, often referred to as the "Test of a Champion." The record for this race, 2:24, was…
grrlscientist | June 7, 2008tags: Affirmed, Alydar, horseracing, Triple Crown, streaming video
This is Affirmed's 1978 Belmont Stakes win which gave him horseracing's most recent Triple Crown win. This particular race is often cited as being the most exciting Belmont win in history. Remarkably, this was the first time in history that the same two horses, Affirmed and Alydar, finished one-two in all three of these races. This, combined with Affirmed's very small margins of victory in all three races (a combined total of less than two lengths), made many people think of Alydar as the first true runner-up to the Triple…
grrlscientist | June 7, 2008tags: Seattle Slew, horseracing, Triple Crown, streaming video
Here's a video of Seattle Slew's victory in the Belmost Stakes in 1977 -- the speedy Seattle Slew was the first horse to win horseracing's Triple Crown while remaining undefeated. He also turned in a fast time, despite the crappy track conditions that he ran on. If Big Brown manages to win today's Belmont Stakes, he will become just the second racehorse to win the Triple Crown while remaining undefeated [3:04].
Seattle Slew was not expected to be a great racehorse, so he was sold at public auction -- the first Triple Crown winner…
grrlscientist | June 7, 2008tags: Secretariat, horseracing, Triple Crown, streaming video
I hope that Big Brown wins today's Belmont Stakes here in New York, and in fact, I think he will win, especially since his only potential contender of note, Casino Drive, was scratched this morning. If Big Brown manages to win today, he will become only the 12th horse in more than 125 years to win the Triple Crown winner, and our first in 30 years. But do I think that Big Brown is of the same caliber as Secretariat? Not a chance. Big Brown is simply the best individual among a very poor crop of race horses (with the exception of…
grrlscientist | May 29, 2008tags: My Guy Barbaro, horse racing, horses, Kentucky Derby, Edgar Prado, John Eisenberg, book review
Like most of America, I fell under the spell of the talented athlete, Barbaro. I was riveted by his brilliance and ability. Despite Barbaro's tragic end, I wanted to read a book that told his story, that gave him a voice without being maudlin or poorly-written. So thanks to one of my readers who kindly purchased this book for me, I was pleased to have the opportunity to read My Guy Barbaro: A Jockey's Journey Through Love, Triumph, and Heartbreak with America's Favorite Horse (NYC:…
grrlscientist | May 27, 2008tags: paleo, horse artwork, street art, NYC through my eye, photography, NYC
This is another of the American Museum of Natural History's horse artworks. This piece is located on the grounds near the west entrance to the museum itself, as you can see in some of the shots in this photoessay.
Paleo, right side.
Artist: Ida Pagano.
Image: GrrlScientist 2008 [larger view].
All of these horse artworks are modeled after a full sized horse, standing approximately five and a half feet at the withers (shoulder).
The ambient light makes the pattersn and colors on this side of the horse difficult…
grrlscientist | May 27, 2008tags: Starry Night, horse tile artwork, street art, NYC through my eye, photography, NYC
This is another of the American Museum of Natural History's horse artworks. This piece is located at the 81st and Columbus street entrance to the museum grounds.
Starry Night, left side.
Artist: Geri Bowden.
Image: GrrlScientist 2008 [larger view].
This horse's colors and patterning was no doubt inspired by Vincent van Gogh's masterpiece, The Starry Night (Dutch: De sterrennacht), which is one of my favorite paintings. The original painting can be viewed at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) located…
grrlscientist | May 27, 2008tags: nocturnal landscape, horse artwork, street art, NYC through my eye, photography, NYC
A week or two ago, the American Museum of Natural History added some horse artworks to its grounds. This is one of those horses.
Nocturnal Landscape, right side.
Artist: Heather L. Martin.
Image: GrrlScientist 2008 [larger view].
This lovely horse artwork stands on the sidewalk on the western side of the American Museum of Natural History and is apparently part of the museum's special exhibit, "The Horse".
I like this side better, but unfortunately, the light does not show the colors and patterns…
grrlscientist | May 26, 2008
Big Brown, the favorite to with the upcoming Belmont Stakes,
has suffered a minor hoof injury.
It was recently announced that Big Brown, who is the favorite to win the upcoming Belmont Stakes and horse racing's Triple Crown on 7 June in NY, has an injury that has kept him from working out since this past Friday. The injury, which was described as "very minor", is a quarter crack -- a vertical stress fracture in the hoof wall.
Ian McKinlay, a hoof expert with a Canadian company called Tenderhoof Solutions, examined Big Brown's hoof and described the quarter crack as approximately five-…
clock | May 24, 2008Before I went back to Belgrade, I did not know if there was a website with information about the racing and equestrian activities there. There used to be one some years ago, but it has not been updated in a very long time. So, I was happy when, while there, I was given URLs of the Belgrade Racecourse website and the Federation for Equestrian Sport of Serbia website. The former looks good and easy to navigate.
The latter is little old-timey in appearance but that may be on purpose, to emphasize the long tradition. It is also a little too PDF-happy for my taste - it is OK to use the…
grrlscientist | May 17, 2008tags: Big Brown, horseracing, Preakness Stakes, Triple Crown
Kent Desmoreaux rides Big Brown across the finish line at the 2008 Preakness Stakes today. The horse's ears are pricked forward, indicating that he is running easily.
Image: Jonathan Ernst (Reuters).
Odds-on favorite and Kentucky Derby winner, Big Brown, won the Preakness Stakes today by 5 1/4 lengths. This victory makes him 2/3rds of the way to winning horse racing's Triple Crown. But Big Brown's win isn't really news, if you ask me, since he is the only talented living 3-year-old racehorse in America this year, so of course…
grrlscientist | May 17, 2008tags: Eight Belles, horseracing, autopsy results, streaming video
Below the fold is a hot-off-the-presses streaming video report on the autopsy results for the gallant thoroughbred filly, Eight Belles (pictured), who was killed on the racetrack two weeks ago after finishing second in the Kentucky Derby. According to the results, Eight Belles did not have any underlying catastrophic health issues, such as a heart attack or an aneurysm that caused her to collapse, as was postulated shortly after her tragic death [1:23].
The necropsy of Eight Belles found compound fractures of both front legs…
grrlscientist | May 5, 2008tags: Eight Belles, horseracing, music, Storm, The Saddle Club, streaming video
This streaming video has been vastly improved since the first time I viewed it. This is a tribute to the gallant thoroughbred filly, Eight Belles, who died this past Saturday after finishing second in the Kentucky Derby. This is a collection of candid images of this horse combined with a song, Storm, performed by The Saddle Club [3:46].
... Wherever you find your home
You can take us with you
wherever you roam
There's a place within our hearts
and you'll always be there
You're earth water fire and air
Free like…
grrlscientist | May 3, 2008tags: Kentucky Derby, horse racing, racetrack surfaces, racehorses, injuries and fatalities report, Eight Belles, Barbaro
Thoroughbred racehorse filly, Eight Belles,
who finished second in today's Kentucky Derby, and then was killed moments later.
This morning, the book, My Guy, Barbaro: A Jockey's Journey Through Love, Triumph, and Heartbreak with America's Favorite Horse co-written by Barbaro's jockey Edgar Prado and John Eisenberg, was presciently announced on National Public Radio. They were interviewing Barbaro's jockey as part of their show about today's upcoming 134th running of…
clock | April 29, 2008Yesterday I went to the Belgrade Racecourse and the barns and was happy to meet many of my old friends, including my old trainer (with Professor Steve Steve below) as well as some good new kids, including two sisters who used to own and ride my old horse. There were two small show jumping classes yesterday (3'6" and 4'), both with simple, nicely flowing courses appropriate for the very beginning of the show season. The horses are all better than what we used to ride, the rides went smoothly, and both sisters placed in the bigger class that included a jump-off:
clock | April 11, 2008This post from May 07, 2005, was one of the rare personal posts I have ever written. Under the fold....
It is Derby Weekend! Exciting, isn't it? I had to watch the re-run tonight, but I saw it. Giacomo! Who's that!? I love when underdogs win!
I practically grew up on the Belgrade Racecourse. Horse sports being really small in Yugoslavia, it is an unusual place. The mile-long dirt track is on the outside. Inside is a 1000m long hard track for trotting races. And in the very center, there is a large show-jumping ring. The Sunday racing program would usually start with a jumping class (and you…
grrlscientist | January 29, 2008tags: Barbaro, horse racing, thoroughbreds, horses, leg injuries, churchill downs
Goodbye Barbaro, thanks for the memories.
Image source.
Roy and Gretchen Jackson, the owners of the gallant racehorse, Barbaro, who was euthanized one year ago today, have decided to inter his cremains at Churchill Downs in Kentucky, where he won the Kentucky Derby in May 2006.
Barbaro, who shattered his right hind leg during the running of the Preakness Stakes in late May 2006, battled eight months for his life in a Pennsylvania veterinary hospital. The bay colored colt was eventually euthanized after…
grrlscientist | January 27, 2008tags: performance horses, polo, racing, tendon injury, stem cell research
Beat Maendli on board Principal clears a fence during the dressage and show jumping Grand Prix in Aachen, Germany.
Image: BBC.
Have you read the featured story in last week's issue of Science News? It is a fascinating look at the use of stem cells to treat injuries to leg tendons of performance horses. This treatment looks like it is successful, although no controlled studies have been done because, as you might suspect, horse owners are loathe to subject their prized horses to a controlled study where their horse…
grrlscientist | December 27, 2007tags: researchblogging.org, champion racehorses, thoroughbred, genetic correlation, heritability, Equus caballus, nature versus nurture
Seattle Slew (1974-2002), the only undefeated horse to win the Triple Crown (1977).
I have been thinking about a paper that was published last week, that analyzed the effects of "nature versus nurture" on the development of a champion racehorse. In short, this paper found that the effects of a horse's pedigree is minor when compared to its environment .. the combined effects of training, diet, choice of races entered, jockey skill and of course, injuries…
grrlscientist | December 20, 2007tags: zebras, Equus quagga burchelli, photography, Image of the Day
Burchell's (plains) zebras, Equus quagga burchelli, create a mirror image in their enclosure at the Zoological Park in Delhi, India.
Image: BBCNews.
Burchell's zebra has distinctive stripes that run diagonally and lengthways on the rump and continue on to the belly. They often have chestnut or yellowish "shadow" stripes in the middle of the white stripes on their rumps. If you look closely at the two animals in the image, you'll notice that they are not marked identically -- in fact, each individual zebra has a unique…