Mine That Bird
 

Random. There isn’t a 3 y/o in the past 30 years who was beating Mine That Bird that day. Here is a link to the on track call which was better than Durkins by a long shot.
Ps I’m a huge durkin fan but this call was spectacular

I crushed the exacta.......funny thing though.

On my tickets his name was “all”

Great call! Durkin was just a couple seconds behind in realizing what had happened and who had emerged.

I was there at Churchill that sloppy day. A friend who knew nothing about horse racing told me he really wanted to bet Mine That Bird and I convinced him to make a Show bet instead of a Win bet because I told him there was no way MTB was winning that race. He still won some money obviously, but he never let me live that down.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

i would've like to have seen Rachel in that race

I think she showed who was the better horse in the Preakness 2 weeks later. No Offense to Mine That Bird. He showed his class by finishing a close 2nd to the great filly in that race. Both were in rare form in those 2 TC races. Rachel destroyed the field by over 20 in the Oaks and Bird soundly beat a very good horse in Pioneer of the Nile in the Derby. The Preakness promised to be a great match-up and it delivered.

I don't know how great Rachel really was- a bit better than Mine That Bird and Macho Again, two non-earth shattering horses, would appear to be the answer- but I definitely give Chip Wooley and MTB credit- he peaked in the TC which is exactly what you want to do.

After the 2008 Kentucky Derby I didn't watch much horse racing, even ignored the Breeders Cup. Then the 2009 Derby came around and a little mud splattered brown horse who wasn't supposed to win rolled on by everyone and helped restore my passion for racing. I thought (and will always think) his name was retarded, but I respected him for being 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in all the TC races. Consider that the million dollar big name trainers and their colts with better pedigrees couldn't do the same. Monarchos, Orb, Super Saver, Animal Kingdom, and Always Dreaming couldn't do what the "50-1 fluke" did.

Perfect storm. Always felt like MTB and his trainer went together like peanut butter and jelly filling...... and then when Calvin Borel climbed aboard, it turned into the whole much-loved classic sandwich.

Every single note was just right.

Rachel was one of the top fillies of all time and as well as all the top older horses that year. Earning HOY over Zenyatta. She was already going off form when she beat Macho Again in her last 3YO race, but beat Mine That Bird who was in top form off his Derby win. It's a shame she never regained her form next year as a 4YO. She nearly died giving birth to the 2 foals she produced, one of which was Rachel Valentina, 2nd only to Songbird in her 2YO season.

I'll always be able to say I was there at that Derby when the most improbable winner of our lifetimes crossed the finish line 1st. Truly amazing story.



Unfortunately, I had another longshot that day in Summer Bird who was 44/1. Fortunately he came back to win the Belmont at 12/1 in his next race. :headbanger:

If you include broodmare performance, Dahlia and Personal Ensign kick both of their butts.

But no, Rachel was not one of the top fillies of all time. She won two stakes over three year old colts, and a breeders' cup prep race by a nose over a weak opponent. There are mares like Shuvee and Two Lea and Miss Grillo and Dahlia and Estrapade who beat a lot better caliber of colts than Macho Again. And there are mares who hsd longer better careers.

Rachel gets credit for the Ky Oaks (her best performance) and the Preakness, and her Haskell race. The BC prep was nothing, and she would have gotten her ass kicked in the BC Classic. And she wasn't good for a long enough period- she was like Arrogate in that respect, but not as good as Arrogate.

Yeah, Nice win in by Summer Bird that day in the Belmont. Great ride by Kent D. Summer Bird went on to a good 2nd to Rachel in the Haskell with Mumings 3rd. Throw in Pioneer of the Nile and that was a pretty good crop that year.

Yeah, way to degrade the the tremendous filly. It's easy to denigrate any horse's record if that is what one sets out to do. Let's not forget her Oaks win by over 20 lengths in fantastic time was the best in the race's history. She then came back to beat the Derby winner who was in the top form of his life in the Preakness. Beat the males again in the Haskell including the Belmont winner. No filly has ever beaten both the Derby and Belmont winners in their next races. She went on to win the Woodward, which you refer to as merely a BC prep, in open competition against older males despite being far from her best. That's why she didn't run in the BC classic. An in form Rachel would have won there too based on her races that year which earned her HOY over the heavily hyped Zenyatta which many consider a great mare.
Her broodmare record is irrelevant to her racing career, especially since she only had 2 foals, though one (Rachel's Valentina) went on to be a 3 time Gr 1 winner 2nd only to Songbird as a 2YO.

Pretty weak crop actually.


Pioneer of the Nile is the only notable Derby starter other than Summer Bird, and that is because he is a pretty damn good sire.


Outside of Summer Bird, did any of the other Derby runners in 2009 win a graded stakes race over a mile against elders? Looking at the names, I'm not sure they did. There isn't even a good sprinter in the bunch.