Who was it for you?

General racing discussion.

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RuffianT21
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Who was it for you?

Postby RuffianT21 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 12:12 pm

"How many times have we heard the expression "It was _____________ who got me into the sport"... with ________ usually being the super horse that won a major."

Dray said this on another thread, and I absolutely agree, so I thought I would start a thread asking which horse it was for people here. Was there a specific horse that made you fall in love with racing? If so, was there a specific race? If not, what did? I'd love to hear people's stories.

For me, it was War Emblem (yes I know, I'm practically a baby :) ) in the 2002 Derby. Baffert's white hair and charisma, Espinoza's boyish charm, and War Emblem's shiny black coat absolutely bowled me over. I was lucky that the Breeder's Cup was at Arlington, 10 minutes from my house, that year. I went to that and have been a fan ever since.[/quote]
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cedarridge1962
Yearling
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Postby cedarridge1962 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 12:16 pm

I've only posted a few times, but I found this topic to be intriguing.
For me it was Spectacular Bid. I still think he was the best horse I ever
saw race.
I'll meet you on the other side.
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Toccet02
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Postby Toccet02 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 12:35 pm

Mine was two-fold--when I got cable in the mid 90's, I was just in time to catch the Cigar craze--that was great fun.

Then in 2002 I saw Toccet as a 2YO and just fell in love with him. What a talented clown.
that started me on following a specific horse's career, and looking at pedigrees, finding this site, etc.
All shouting does is make you lose your voice.
----Arrested Development
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Sysonby
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Postby Sysonby » Mon Sep 15, 2008 12:38 pm

I was a horse addict as a kid anyway but it was probably reading the Cooper and Treat book on Man o'War about the same time that Secretariat was running.
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Tucumcari
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Postby Tucumcari » Mon Sep 15, 2008 12:38 pm

Swale.
Proverbs 31:8
"...stand up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all those who are destitute.."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QawYXs2e ... re=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIASWv9GYC8
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pfrsue
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Postby pfrsue » Mon Sep 15, 2008 12:41 pm

Genuine Risk winning the Kentucky Derby.
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oceancolors79
Suckling
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Location: Florida

Postby oceancolors79 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 1:05 pm

Personal Ensign <3 :D
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madelyn
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Postby madelyn » Mon Sep 15, 2008 1:07 pm

Northern Dancer (my age is probably showing here)..
So Run for the Roses, as fast as you can.....
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oceancolors79
Suckling
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Postby oceancolors79 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 1:12 pm

and of course Ruffian...though I wasn't born until 1979, when I heard about her I couldn't get enough, started collecting anything Ruffian... and I fell in love (like everyone else!).
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Barbaro06
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Postby Barbaro06 » Mon Sep 15, 2008 1:40 pm

Affirmed and Alydar....and parents who indulged me by taking me to Arlington Park...before the old grandstand burned down...
A horse gallops with his lungs
Perseveres with his heart
And wins with his character. --Tesio
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Denise
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Postby Denise » Mon Sep 15, 2008 4:48 pm

Arts and Letters in the '69 Belmont (I was in grade school, before you think I'm really old...LOL), then my addiction became a problem 4 years later with Big Red. :D
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majxmom
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Postby majxmom » Mon Sep 15, 2008 5:19 pm

I have to say that I was always horse-crazy when I was little, so it was books that got me started. I had all of the Walter Farley Black Stallion books, and then Scholastic kids' books on Exterminator and Seabiscuit. Exterminator was a great story: the work horse no one respected that won the Derby.

The first living race horse of which I was a fan was Personality when I was 11 years old. If I remember correctly, he had won a stakes race in Northern California, and he ran 8th in the Kentucky Derby. In my child's mind, I couldn't believe that he had lost (if nothing else, racing teaches you how to lose). After that, Riva Ridge and Secretariat came along, and I was hooked.
"When I am on my deathbed, I imagine I will say, 'Thank God I did that'" - Arthur Hancock, on buying back Gato del Sol from Europe after Exceller was killed in a slaughterhouse in Sweden.
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Roger
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Postby Roger » Mon Sep 15, 2008 5:38 pm

I think I have always loved horses, (I stole my first horse when I was six and got beat by dad and I had to take it back anyway). Walter Farley's books got me hooked on racing when I was in the third grade. Denise, my first really studied Derby was won by Majestic Prince and by that time I had been teaching and coaching seventhgraders for two years. I guess that makes me older than all of you.
Loving God, Loving People and Serving = Peace and Happiness
Try it you will like it.
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Strategic Maneuver
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Postby Strategic Maneuver » Mon Sep 15, 2008 5:49 pm

Black Beauty and My Friend Flicka.
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Lucy
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Postby Lucy » Mon Sep 15, 2008 5:55 pm

Pleasant Colony. I'd been watching before that - I'd watch anything with hooves when I was a kid - but he was the first 'star' I recall following.
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