Desormeaux,Bad ride period.

[lcohen]

the same tactic that was employed in the preakness

[whyhorseofcourse]

Originally Posted by Tom

Shaq.

lol

Bad ride...
KD does it so many times though. If he would ride out through every race he would be a great jock. I have seen him lose at the wire so many times for giving up on horses its not funny.

[DeanT]

Originally Posted by headhawg

Finally, a more reasonable viewpoint...

Thank the lord. Only in our present society do we have to look for constant blame. I liked the old days when a horse raced poorly and the class veterans like Woody Stephens would say "horse raced bad, what can you do?"

I've seen 4 claimers at Thisteldown have happen what Big Brown had happen and still come on to win.

Big Brown lost the race because he raced horribly, why people can't accept that is beyond me.

[Trax21]

Originally Posted by the little guy

What rider would have won on Big Brown?

Michelle Nevin.

Funny that Dutrow did say that the only two times BB looked bad was when Kent worked him out. Said he was all over the track. A mess.

I think BB is trying to tell us something.

[westny]

Originally Posted by Seabiscuit@AR

It was a bad ride but the jockey probably figured he was on a horse that was too good so he was happy to sit wide and not risk getting boxed in

The bottom line though is that it was a disgraceful performance from a supposed top line horse. I have never seen a worse performance from a major player in a big race anywhere in the world. Even with a bad ride he should have been able to battle bravely on for a respectable finish position

This has to be one of the stupidiest posts I've ever read on a racing forum.

The horse IS not a CAR. The horse did NOT want to run. The horse was NOT going to run. Maybe you expected Dmx to "pack the horse" on his back and run on to YOUR a "respectable finish"

[Tarver]

The headline on Brisnet website for the Belmont states," Da`tara FOILS Big Browns Triple Crown in Belmont". How did Da`tara FOIL Big Brown when Big Brown doesn`t even finish the race???

To foil something means to," to prevent from being successful".

Brisnet`s headline should have said. " Kent Desormeaux FOILS Big Browns Triple Crown in Belmont.

[dastar]

There was no gas in the tank. Big Brown came up empty, period.

There may be a good chance that 3 races within 5 weeks had a lot to do with it.

When certain media were comparing this horse to Secretariat, that was the biggest joke of all, then Dutrow proclaimed him a "Guaranteed" Winner. That topped them all.

Rick may have learned a lesson, wait till the horse crosses the finish line first before opening your mouth.

dastar

[46zilzal]

Originally Posted by Seabiscuit@AR

I I have never seen a worse performance from a major player in a big race anywhere in the world. Even with a bad ride he should have been able to battle bravely on for a respectable finish position

Find the Breeder's Cup Classic of 1988 at Churchill. That distinction belongs to Julie Krone on Forty Niner. Absolutely the worst I have seen in over 40 years.

[badcompany]

Originally Posted by DeanT

Thank the lord. Only in our present society do we have to look for constant blame. I liked the old days when a horse raced poorly and the class veterans like Woody Stephens would say "horse raced bad, what can you do?"

I've seen 4 claimers at Thisteldown have happen what Big Brown had happen and still come on to win.

Big Brown lost the race because he raced horribly, why people can't accept that is beyond me.

Finally, some sanity.

Had the horse won, nobody would've even mentioned the little bit of trouble he had early in the race.

[jotb]

I would like the head on video view if anyone has it because the way I viewed the race it seemed to me Eibar Coa hurt KD twice in the race. When DA' TARA crossed over in front of Big Brown KD went right to a hole that was closed up immediately by Eibar Coa. Then down the backside Eibar Coa has Tale Of Ekati in the 6 path keeping Big Brown further out. I know Da' Tara was in the 3 path on the lead but you would think at a distance like that you would try and save as much ground as possible. The pan shot always looks so much different and that's why I would like to see the head on shot. I know one thing for sure and that is Kent originally wanted to shoot for the hole to be alongside of Da' Tara and the hole closed quickly by Eibar Coa. Whether Coa did it intentionally or not it did happen and it certainly made a hugh difference in the race.

Joe

[Norm]

Originally Posted by SmartyMarty

Banana Nose woulda won by 10... happy now?

Ole 'Banana Nose' always said he could have won more races,
but they made him stay on the horse !

[Observer]

There is no way of knowing just how much Kent Desormeaux's ride took out of Big Brown, and I know I may be mocked for my beliefs on just what went wrong. But after watching many views, many times over from the ABC coverage, one this is clear to me: Desormeaux definitely hurt his horse's chances from the start. Just how much is nearly impossible to say without personally knowing the horse's disposition.

Some horses have an amazing ability of perception, almost as though they can read the rider's mind. It's an indescribable feeling when a horse moves from a thought crossing your mind. On the flip-side, it's a horrible feeling when a horse is traveling wonderfully, then by some innocent miscommunication between horse and rider, there is a communication failure that can last for countless minutes before a peaceful understanding can resume. Experiences such as these are tough to translate to those who have never had the pleasure to encounter them first hand.

With 24 years of riding experience, though admittedly never in a race (except for the occasional run through a field), I was furious with what I saw unfolding, and became even more so with each pass of the video replay from the various angles provided from ABC.

Kent was hell-bent on getting to the outside, this is made clear until he actually gets to the outside.

At the break, with getting outside on Kent's mind, it's almost funny how Big Brown breaks and takes a few steps sideways, to the outside. They straighten for a couple of strides before Kent, for some insane reason, tries to turn right - right into Tale of Ekati!!

At that moment, nearly crashing into Tale of Ekati, Big Brown's head goes straight up into the air as he weaves left toward the rail and his expression changes. This is now a completely different horse than we've seen before.

Frantically looking for a way off the rail, Kent is now hanging and yanking on an understandably rank Big Brown. The rider finally gets what he wants, by practically forcing his way out while putting his horse in major danger.

After an opening like that, not many horses would trust their rider, especially in the next minute or so.

This was NOT the same incident as in the Preakness, where they more easily got to the outside. In the Preakness, there was no conflict of communication between horse and rider. There was no anxiety through the opening furlongs, there was no frantic panic to get off the rail. There was a patience in the Preakness that was painfully lacking in the Belmont.

Of course hindsight is 20-20, and yes, it's very easy to criticize the rider, but there are so many more things a rider can do wrong than do right.

Big Brown certainly did not need the extra obstacle created by Kent, and failure to communicate has been known to destroy many things. In this case, for me, it was a Triple Crown bid.

[cj]

Top stuff Observer. I think I was the first to post here that the ride was horrendous. Was it the only thing? Probably not, and we'll never know, but it is possible. He certainly didn't do the horse any favors.

[DeanT]

Originally Posted by Observer

Big Brown certainly did not need the extra obstacle created by Kent, and failure to communicate has been known to destroy many things. In this case, for me, it was a Triple Crown bid.

If a horse can't handle that bumping, we should all be thankful he lost, because he does not deserve to be called a Triple Crown Champion.

[rrbauer]

Originally Posted by cj

Top stuff Observer. I think I was the first to post here that the ride was horrendous. Was it the only thing? Probably not, and we'll never know, but it is possible. He certainly didn't do the horse any favors.

What were his choices?