George Washington

I want to remind you that we are awfully tough on our equine friends, making them work so very hard for our pleasure. Here is a photo of George Washington who was euthanized last October after a dislocation fracture he sustained during the Breeders' Cup Classic.

He was called "Gorgeaus George" by his fans, and you can see why. He is simply breathtaking. His final record was 14: 6-1-4 and among his achievements was the Queen's Plate and the 2,000 Guineas. He earned the 2005 European Championship 2 year-old colt and the 2006 Europemans Championship 3 year-old colt.

And then the sadness begins. He was retired to stud and covered only 50 mares, but proved to have fertility problems. Which is why he was put back into training and sent to the Breeder's Cup. Since he couldn't produce, he had to race. And he died trying his best to please at his work.

But here's a nice postscript. Among his mares, Flawlessly by Rainbow Quest did take and on February 4, 2008 she delivered a healthy bouncing baby filly by GW. This foal is owned by Stefano and Loreto Luciani who live near Rome. She is the only foal by GW, so she is pretty darn special. The Luciani's usually only breed to sell, but they consider her so rare and precious that they are considering keeping her.

She was born at the Irish National Stud at Tully in County Kildare, Ireland. Doesn't that sound nice? GW's trainer said that he was "unbelievably talented- a natural athlete," so they are expecting big things from his baby girl. She's been named Go George Go and the foal manager says, "She's a good bodied fily with good bones and has a lot of quality." I am so glad that he had this baby girl before passing.

Now since about a handful of mares did conceive, it's a bit unclear how many foals he will truly end up with. She's his first. But there is some evidence that a colt was born this spring. I will try and keep track and report later!

Our Nation's Capitol!

About 3-4 times a year, I travel to Washington, DC to volunteer my time to the National Institute of Health. I love my work for them. But here's a photo from my last trip this past November 7th-8th. In these photos, I am taking a taxi from Dupont Circle to Washington National airport with two scholars from my panel session. We are passing the Washington and Jefferson Memorials.

I wish that we had taken the way of the bridge into the city with the two giant golden horse statues. I asked the taxi driver about them, and he said that was the Victory Gateway! I will post pictures of those two massive steeds in the future!

Right before this trip, I stopped to visit Violet on my way to the Toledo Airport. She and I practiced Parelli and she did it perfectly. I felt so empowered and happy when I left for DC! And then I swung by on my way home to give her a kiss goodnight upon my return! What a good little thoroughbred girl!

Breaking News. George Washington Passes

This year's Breeder's Cup had a catastropic event, during the Classic race. In the backstretch, George Washington broke his cannon leg and both his sesamoid bones. He never looked comfortable in the wet, and they think he finally broke through the wet surface to the unforgiving surface below. His breeders were Roy and Gretchen Jackson, Barbaro's parents. His trainer was Aidan O' Brian and his jockey was Mick Kinane. Mick is shown in this photo being consoled, after George Washington was put behind screens and euthanized on the track.

He has sort of a sad, short life. He was only 4 years-old, and he was a top horse from Europe. He had been in last year's Classic, where he finished 6th, and then was retired. But he was discovered to be sterile, so he was put back to racing this year. He didn't win any of his four starts this year. In his career, he won 6 of 14 races, including 4 Group I races. He earned $1,480,050 in his short time here.

Breaking News! A Waterlogged Breeder's Cup!

These photos are from Getty Photos who took some tremendous photos of this year's Breeder's Cup! They had a great two-day lineup of races, and a $5 million purse for the Breeder's Classic, which had Street Sense, Curlin, Hard Spun, George Washington, and Lawyer Ron, among others. Curlin won by 4 1/2 lengths in a completely wet, sloppy track. He raced strong, sound, true, and fast. He raced with ease.

This is the horse who makes me sort of sad because he has fighting parents. One set of his parents are from the famous Kendall-Jackson winery, another set of parents are literally in jail, awaiting sentencing for not paying their clients after the Phen-fen fiasco, and another set of parents are fighting with the first about his future. They are at odds about whether he should continue racing or whether he should head to the breeding shed! Whatever his next days unfold, I hope he has health and happiness and glory and joy and lots and lots of petting and praise and comfort.