Not all horses are as good as War Machine. I just need to accept that fact.
In the forum, many owners proudly state that they are pleased with their 3rd place finish. Why can't I be happy with that kind of result?
The fact is, I am completely disappointed if my horse doesn't win. Period.
Nova came in second in the Breeders Cup Sprint. Was I happy? Nope. To me, anything less than a win is simply a loss.
Which brings me to the subject of this rant. Is there room for mediocre horses?
Not in my stable.
By all accounts, Doomsday is a pretty good racer. He tops 100 in his speed scores occasionally and has career earnings over $1,000,000. So, why has he been on the bubble with me for the past 2 seasons?
Four career wins in 24 starts. Not good enough. Mathematically, he disappoints me 83% of the time. I find it very hard to live with that ratio, even though he is an above average racer.
When I reach a point where I don't feel the horse has a chance to win every race, I start to get the itch to sell. Doomsday is very competitive, but he hasn't been winning enough.
I'll cut slack for horses who are immature. But once they are in top racing form, a horse needs to win fairly consistently to keep a stall in my barn.
We'll be keeping an eye on several horses for the first third of the season in 2009. Mediocrity will not be tolerated.
In the forum, many owners proudly state that they are pleased with their 3rd place finish. Why can't I be happy with that kind of result?
The fact is, I am completely disappointed if my horse doesn't win. Period.
Nova came in second in the Breeders Cup Sprint. Was I happy? Nope. To me, anything less than a win is simply a loss.
Which brings me to the subject of this rant. Is there room for mediocre horses?
Not in my stable.
By all accounts, Doomsday is a pretty good racer. He tops 100 in his speed scores occasionally and has career earnings over $1,000,000. So, why has he been on the bubble with me for the past 2 seasons?
Four career wins in 24 starts. Not good enough. Mathematically, he disappoints me 83% of the time. I find it very hard to live with that ratio, even though he is an above average racer.
When I reach a point where I don't feel the horse has a chance to win every race, I start to get the itch to sell. Doomsday is very competitive, but he hasn't been winning enough.
I'll cut slack for horses who are immature. But once they are in top racing form, a horse needs to win fairly consistently to keep a stall in my barn.
We'll be keeping an eye on several horses for the first third of the season in 2009. Mediocrity will not be tolerated.
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