Tuesday, September 30, 2008

The Moneyed Horse

Last Saturday afternoon, Curlin won the $750,000 Jockey Gold Cup (Gr. I) at Belmont Park and set the money record for a North American horse's earnings at $10,246,800, surpassing Cigar's record of $9,999,815 that stood for 12 years and made individuals from as far as Omsk Siberia Russia and Kununurra Australia question whether or not this run-on sentence would actually end.

Our good friend and resident cat lover, Teresa, over at Brooklyn Backstretch, penned a heartfelt and stirring reflection of Saturday's events at Belmont Park,

The applause rolled across the apron and rained down from the upper levels; when I rejoined my friends on the second floor, each of us, whether we’d made money or not, or loved Curlin or not, was caught up in a wave of adrenalin, because we got to see something remarkable in the sport that we love.

She captured the emotions of the day magnificently. She included excellent photos of Curlin, Ginger Punch, Cocoa Beach and others.

Lovely.

Apparently, Teresa doesn't drink enough when she's at the track.

Needless to say, Curlin's won a lot of dough. $10,246,800. Let's put that into perspective. You would be able to purchase 565 Hyundai Sonatas. Or 2,277,066 frozen margaritas at Rio Mambo, gratuity included. Or 4,098 "premiere" seats to the October 16th Obama fundraiser.

Note that it can also be considered a paltry sum. It's only 0.00142% of the Wall Street bailout.

So now Curlin's at Santa Anita, lounging poolside in the California sun when he's not training on the Pro-Ride synthetic surface, which by the way, cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $10 million. If he likes the surface, he'll meet Big Brown and others in the $5 Million Breeders' Cup Classic next month.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Curlin's winnings: $10,246,800.

Post Parade photo of the historic moment: priceless!

Teresa said...

"Apparently, Teresa doesn't drink enough when she's at the track."

How dare you impugn my character in public? You'll hear from my lawyer...not to mention my bartender; I have any number of witnesses who can vouch for the falsity of that statement.

Wind Gatherer said...

That is as svelte as I have ever seen Asmussen. Curlin on the other hand looks like he just received a shot of Winstrol.

Thanks for the laugh.

Anonymous said...

I can vouch, not only did she have her own drinks, she helped me with mine!

Superfecta said...

That might be the best racing photo ever.

Anonymous said...

Hey! I recogize that track!

I'm still stuck on the opening sentence which reminds of the time when I showed up late for a mid-term exam, because I had skipped the previous class to do laundry only to find that I had washed a read t-shirt with my whites, causing me to spend the last twenty-nine year trying to make my underwear white again, without using too much bleach, never mind missing the 1980 Miracle on Ice, End of the Cold War, my kid sister getting married and everything else of significance since the Carter Administration.

Unknown said...

That's funny photo ever.I just loved it.
-----------
siva

http://www.celebpoker.net