Odds & Ends

Okay, it's 2009 now. That means... it's Derby Trail Season. Yipee! I love the three-year-olds. Mary Forney's Blog http://maryforney.blogspot.com is doing a good job of keeping me updated on the west coast contenders. Thanks. :) I'm growing fond of The Pamplemousse despite the name.

Sorrow: Curlin is retired. So is Big Brown. Hopefully in a few years we'll be seeing their colts on the track.

In a complete change of subject: The Holy Revision of the Dark Servant continues. If anyone is interested in proof-reading the ms, let me know. My eyes are starting to cross when I stare at it for too long, and the Workshop is sooo slow.

Someone suggested I go ahead and write the Hybrid as YA and someone else that I write the Dancer as erotica. That made me wonder... YA and Erotica in the same series?! With a murder-mystery in the middle?! Am I insane? Is that how I've managed to come up with this stuff?

Curlin

Today I watched a racehorse set a new record. Curlin has now earned over ten million dollars in purses on the race track. For those of us who followed his Triple Crown run last year, and came away disappointed, it is vindication.

This is why racehorses should continue running so long as their health and soundness permits. Curlin as a four year old is superior to Curlin as a three year old. And I was a loyal fan of Curlin at three.

Like most racehorses, he's won some and lost some. He even lost the Belmost Stakes to a filly, in what really was a beautiful race. To those who think Eight Belles should not have been in the Kentucky Derby because of her gender, I suggest you check the NTRA video archives of the '07 Belmont Stakes, when a filly named Rags to Riches defeated Curlin in a stretch duel. In the '08 Derby, that same sort of courage was present, but with different results.

And none of that detracts from what Curlin has accomplished in his career. Truly, Curlin deserves to be ranked among the modern greats. And if he meets Big Brown in the Breeder's Cup Classic, well, I for one will be glued to my seat for the two minute duration.