O Curlin, Where Art Thou?

My husband tells me that my email Inbox is absolutely obscene. It’s cyber-stuffed with 648 messages that I think might be important, like Kay Bailey Hutchinson’s message, “Texas can do better” (2/4/09) proclaiming, “We must start now to bring bold, innovative leadership to Austin ... with your generous gift of $25 or $50.”

So, the other afternoon I perused through the cyber log jam of DRF Morning Line email alerts when I discovered a couple of very important pieces of information. (1) Alice’s pogo stick has been recalled (3/18/11) and, (2) the possibility of a Breeders’ Cup “showdown” between Uncle Mo and Havre de Grace in the Classic (10/5/11).

Malfunctioning pogo sticks aside, this was rather troublesome. Uncle Mo as an awe-inspiring and overwhelming dominant force in the Classic? Havre de Grace – “super filly” – comparable to that of Zenyatta?

Am I supposed to be excited?

When I think of Breeders’ Cup Classic winners, I think of commanding and dominating horses that spent the entire year captivating the racing public, and the Classic is their exclamation mark on their way to winning Horse of the Year. For instance, take Curlin. In 2007 he raced in the Rebel, the Arkansas Derby, Kentucky Derby, Preakness, Belmont, Haskell, Jockey Club Gold Cup, all before he raced in (and won) the Classic. When Uncle Mo hasn’t been in sick bay, he’s raced in the Timely Writer, Wood Memorial, King’s Bishop, and the Kelso. True, Uncle Mo had an impressive 118 Beyer in the Kelso but his whole 3-year-old campaign wasn’t exactly what I consider dazzling.

And does Havre de Grace really get you roused like Zenyatta? Well, apparently even Breeders’ Cup is a little skeptical about that notion as I see in my Inbox an email from Breeders’ Cup (10/11/11 – hey, that’s today!) that Friday, November 4th will be the inaugural Zenyatta Celebration,

Celebrate Zenyatta’s Greatness All Day on Championship Friday
Come celebrate one of the greatest horses to ever grace the Breeders' Cup Winner's Circle. Zenyatta spent her career capturing the hearts and minds of horseracing fans everywhere.

As Kay Bailey Hutchinson might say, “Horse racing can do better.”