These days they don't turn the yearlings back out, they start them in training so they will be ready to breeze, run at racing speed, for an eighth of a mile at the two year old in training sales in Feb. These sales were usually in August when I started. Some in July. Now the first races for two year olds are in mid-April. Some of those horses aren't actually two yet, and they are racing on open knees some of them.

The thing is that a horse's joints close at certain ages, just like people's do. Ankles close as yearlings, knees at about 2 1/2. Breezing on open knees is one of the stupidest things a trainer can do. Or used to be. The spine closes at 4, which why you aren't supposed to jump a horse under 5. That used to be a rule in all horse shows. Isn't anymore, though.

Anyway, when the yearling prices skyrocketed, I mean some fool paid $13.1 million for a horse that hadn't been even broken to saddle, let alone raced!! And he never raced, either. Broke down in training and went to stud. They also started using steroids to bulk up the horses..steroid bloat makes them look great. It also puts useless weight on their legs. Useless in that it isn't muscle or bone that is useful in racing or anything else the horse will be doing. And the steroids can interfere with breeding..Genuine Risk and Cigar are two examples of horses whose breeding ability was compromised by steroids. Of course, they also compromises the immune system including the inflammatory response, which contributes to bone density among other things.

Then after the people pay a lot of money for a horse that has been trained before his body is ready, and medicated to the max, unlike the olden days when no trainer would dream of breezing a horse with open knees and meds were illegal, they can't wait to get their money back and send the horse on to the races.

When Thoroughbred racing gets back to being about the horses and not about how much you can flip them for at a young age, and then get your money back from that, then they will go back to the old fashioned way of doing things and the young horses will be sounder and will not break down in such huge numbers. Being old fashioned is good for some things, like horses in horse racing.

My thoughts are with her owners, trainer, jockey, and handlers.

There was very awkward moment shortly after the race ended. NBC interviewed the track doctor and he broke the news to the viewing audience that the filly had suffered a devastating injury and had to be euthanized. When he said it I felt sick to my stomach. Not ten seconds later NBC cuts to the camera crew following the entourage of the winning owner and they're overjoyed and basking in victory. Very poor timing by the director in the TV booth.

But I'm just not angry enough for most of those sites mentioned, so I do admit...they don't have a lot of influence.

I'm a moderate Democrat.  Nothing about Hillary's plans scares me.  I do confess, Obama scares me financially.  He seems to not understand the reality about those of us in CA.  He just doesn't get it.

Hillary is a Democrat I can vote for without feeling like I'm shooting myself in the foot.

I'm not so sure about him, frankly.

I may vote my self-interest, which would be McCain if Obama is his opponent.

But my heart belongs to Democrats.

You must be filthy rich,so you can't see how a few dollars in my pocket is better than nothing at all. Whats your or Obama's solution?  GWB blames the Congress for not blasting ANWAR for a few barrels that won't even come fast enough to do us any good right now when we are hurting.

Perhaps Russert will ask him about it tomorrow.  At the very least, I hope he grills him on what makes policy comparisons "negative" campaigning.

Remember, the day of the Mississippi vote they ran the infamous 3 AM ad = KKK propaganda Op-Ed

And just before the major NC primary they run "Since January, the Clintons have pummeled Barack Obama with racially tinged comments and questions about his character."

I honestly believe someone should organize a boycott.  Their editors have gone off the deep-end to select such biased and inaccurate re-visioning of the clinton campaign and do a disservice to our democracy by publishing it right before primaries.

The Obama projections are to take NC by 8, IN by 7, lose WV by 12, win OR by 5, lose KY by 14, lose PR by 15, win MT by 11 and win SD by 15.

Based on getting 90% of the AA vote, the projection of non-AA vote needed is.....

NC .36
IN .46
WV .42
OR .52
KY .38
MT .54
SD .57

As long as I live, I will never forget sitting outside the ring watching her jump a course in a lesson, when her horse took off early, hit the rails with his knees, got one caught in between his legs and went down on his chest.  She was still on him at that point, but he rolled over her.  Oy.  Fortunately, after an ambulance ride to the hospital, she came away with 10 stitches in her chin, a mouthful of stone dust, and was sore for days - and her horse was fine.  Scariest moment of my life as a mother - remember leaping over the fence wondering if this was the moment when all of our lives were going to change.