Derby Day

The Run for the Roses. The First Saturday in May. The Greatest Day in Horseracing. The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports. All these are names for the Kentucky Derby.

For those of you who don't follow horseracing, the Kentucky Derby is a mile and a quarter race held at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. As one sports announcer said "The day of the Kentucky Derby is the one day, where the eyes of the world are fixed on Louisville Kentucky."

And why is that? The Kentucky Derby is not the "Test of Champions", the grueling mile and a half that the Belmont Stakes is, but it has proved to be the making of champions. 11 out of the 134 winners of the Derby have gone on to win one of the greatest achievements in racing: The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing.

The Triple Crown is comprised of three races: The Kentucky Derby, The Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. Only 11 horses have ever won, the last being Affirmed, 30 years ago. Year after year, viewers wait to see if that year will be the crowning of a new champion. Since Affirmed, 10 horses have won both the Derby and the Preakness, but have missed winning the Belmont, one only by a nose. Every year after the Derby, viewers ask: "Could this be the year? Could this be the horse?"

Many of the horses in past years could have, but didn't. There is no guarantee that I am right, but this year, I'm going to say that I believe that the winner of this year's Derby, Big Brown, could very well be the horse.

He was the favorite for the Derby this year, but there were a lot of doubts. This colt had only raced three times in his career, could an untried horse deal with the Derby? He was starting from the 20th post position, the very far outside of the track. The last, and only other, horse to win from that position was Clyde Van Dusen in 1929.

But against all odds, he did it; and did it wonderfully. He had clear sailing the whole time, riding on the outside, back near sixth place. Towards the end, his jockey said he told Big Brown to go, and away they went. When you see above-views of the race, it is amazing to watch him literally take off. You can see an almost instant increase in speed, as he flies ahead to win by three and three-quarter lengths. It was, quite simply, breathtaking. In my humble and inexperienced, and certainly not qualified opinion, I think he has enough in him to easily run a mile and a half. His bucking off his jockey, not long after the race, is at least reason to believe he has plenty of energy to.

On a sadder note, to what was a triumphant day, the filly Eight Belles, who placed second, collapsed a quarter mile past the finish line. She had broken both front legs, and had to be euthanized immediately. She had no leg to stand on in order to attempt recovery; unlike two years past winner Barbaro, who, in the end, also had to be euthanized.

It now remains to be seen, whether Big Brown, the victor of Derby Day, can capture the elusive Triple Crown. Can he do it? Well, I think he can.

If you are interested, I would advise visiting other Derby related sites

* The Kentucy Derby Official Site

* Photo Gallery

Civil War All Stars

This is rather humorous Civil War-Baseball analogy that I found a while back on this website. Sorry, if you know nothing of Civil War, it won't be funny - but perhaps it will inspire you to look in to this period in history. (Knowledge of baseball is of less importance.) So without further ado...

Civil War All Stars!

Union All Stars

Manager - U.S. Grant. Has good success with the two-platoon system; has developed well-balanced team. Possibly a bit lax in enforcing training rules.

First Base-"Cump" Sherman. Watch this boy burn up the base paths. Reminds old timers of the "Georgia Peach" Good at digging them out of the dirt; consistent hitter. Not popular with all fans.

Second Base - George Meade. Good pivot man. Team captain. Always dangerous at the plate. Would attract more attention with a favorable press.

Third Base -"Fighting Joe" Hooker. Whiffs a lot since he was beaned at Chancellorsville. Plenty of natural ability; sometimes clutches under pressure. Good power, but a sucker for an outside curve.

Shortstop - "Phil" Sheridan. Larcenous base runner. Able to go from either side. Real sparkplug of team's offense. Dangerous in the clutch.

Right Field - "Speedy" Burnside. a real "wall climber," which led to injuries last season at Fredericksburg. Has developed a rifle arm. Led the league in strike-outs last season.

Center Field - Jim Wilson. One of the least publicized players in the league. A strong arm and plenty of speed. A good pull hitter. Candidate for rookie of the year.

Left Field - George McClellan. Plenty of natural ability, but slow on the base paths. Probably brought up from the minors too soon.

Catcher-"Rocky" Thomas. Real key to team defense. Good arm; plenty of power. Base runners don't take chances with this one.

Pitcher -"Win" Hancock. Fireballer; tough with runners on base. The best of a weak staff.

Pitcher - Bill Rosecrans. Has good stuff, but experiences difficulty staying ahead of the batter.

Pitcher - "Chief" Custer. Rookie of the year his first full season in the majors. Hasn't been the same since the last series with the Indians!

Middle Relief-"Come to Papa" John Buford. Good with the changeup, continually has batters chasing the Seminary Sinker Ball, a favorite of his.

Closer- Joshua Chamberlain. Calls his overpowering fast ball the swinging gate. Been known to use the inside portion of the plate with great advantage, some cases beaning opposing hitters.

Confederate All Stars

Manager - Robert E. Lee. Aggressive; not afraid to take risks. Lee gets along well with both the players and the front office, but who was it that said "Nice guys don't finish first?"

First Base - "Frenchie" Beauregard. Slick fielder. Has tendency to swing at bad pitches. Has never quite lived up to preseason notices.

Second Base - "Joe Johnston. Good field, no hit. Can make the double play. Has been peddled to several clubs because of his uncertain temperament.

Third Base - "Texas John" Hood. Good at the hot corner; hangs tough at the plate. Provides plenty of batting muscle when not on disabled list.

Shortstop - "Jeb" Stuart. Can play any position, best at short. Good range, often hits for the circuit. A real crowd pleaser.

Right Field - "Ranger" Mosby. Hits well to all fields; excels at hit and run. Really shines when playing in his own field.

Center Field - "Wizard" Forrest. A tough competitor. Covers lots of ground in center. Can hit the long ball. An umpire baiter.

Left Field - "Bill" Hardee. A real student of the game. Dangerous at the plate. One of the most underrated players in either league.

Catcher - "Pete" Longstreet. A steady influence. Plenty of power at the plate a tough competitor and a good pull hitter. Seems to have trouble hitting in Yankee Stadium.

Pitcher - "Stonewall" Jackson. Best righthander in the league. Blazing fast ball. Uses dust-off pitches. Can usually go the route. Chances for a successful year may well rest on Jackson's arm.

Pitcher - "Brax" Bragg. Control pitcher; good for a couple of innings. Would probably work better on a different club.

Pitcher - A. S. "Mormon" Johnston. Master of the curve ball, but sometimes has trouble with control.

Middle Relief - A.P."Red" Hill. Good set-up man when his temper doesn't get in his way. Refuses to pitch when Longstreet is catching. Sometimes feuds with other pitchers.

Closer - "Baldy Ewell" Capable fast baller. Has trouble reading signals, sometimes has problems with power hitters.