West Virginia Derby Thoughts?

[GMB]

1. The chart says MTB "resisted restraint" down the backside, and thats what it looked like to me.
2. Big Drama was on the ground for 20 minutes after the race due to heat stroke according to a friend of mine, and still held second!!!
3. Speed was super all day.
4. They came home in 14 and change!!!!!!!!!!!

And Mine That Bird's rider cost the horse a good showing?

God I love this game, is that the best anyone can come up with? The horse is woefully average, yea, a better time ride and maybe he gets the win , maybe....and it would be good for a whopping 90 beyer figure.

[Masterp]

Classy he finished 3rd in a field of 6 which had the winner earn his first stakes victory. This field wasn't very good today, Mine that Bird wasn't very good today. I hate to say it, but Mine That Bird is this year's Da Tara. He'll be battling for show money in allowance races before we know it.

Mike Smith didn't give the greatest ride, but this horse wasn't going to win today regardless.

[GMB]

Classy he finished 3rd in a field of 6 which had the winner earn his first stakes victory. This field wasn't very good today, Mine that Bird wasn't very good today. I hate to say it, but Mine That Bird is this year's Da Tara. He'll be battling for show money in allowance races before we know it.

Mike Smith didn't give the greatest ride, but this horse wasn't going to win today regardless.

The way to look at it is give the horse the perfect timed ride, ya know, the fall apart no hustle ground saving trip, and he wins by a length for a 91 beyer or so.....and that makes him a 20/1 shot in the Travers based on that run, he was not good today and honestly did not have that bad of a trip.

[Srotagtbs]

Smith admitted his bad ride:

"The way the racetrack played all day, whoever made the lead was winning," said Mike Smith, the rider of Mine That Bird.

Smith said he felt compelled to keep the late-running gelding closer to the pace than usual.

"Mine That Bird doesn't want to run that way," said Smith. "I used too much of him on the backside."

http://www.drf.com/news/article/106030.html

That doesn't make it seem like MTB was fighting Mike, but maybe I'm not reading into those comments enough. And Mike contradicted himself by saying whoever made the lead was winning. I could have sworn Big Drama made the lead and didn't win, but I guess being 2nd by a neck is like being 1st and coming from 12 lengths out of it to win is like wiring the field Plus, he won the 6th race by coming off the pace. Again, I guess coming from 5th to win is like going gate to wire. Speed did pretty well but to say it the way he did it sure sounded like he tried to do the impossible.

[GMB]

Smith admitted his bad ride:

"The way the racetrack played all day, whoever made the lead was winning," said Mike Smith, the rider of Mine That Bird.

Smith said he felt compelled to keep the late-running gelding closer to the pace than usual.

"Mine That Bird doesn't want to run that way," said Smith. "I used too much of him on the backside."

http://www.drf.com/news/article/106030.html

That doesn't make it seem like MTB was fighting Mike, but maybe I'm not reading into those comments enough. And Mike contradicted himself by saying whoever made the lead was winning. I could have sworn Big Drama made the lead and didn't win, but I guess being 2nd by a neck is like being 1st and coming from 12 lengths out of it to win is like wiring the field Plus, he won the 6th race by coming off the pace. Again, I guess coming from 5th to win is like going gate to wire. Speed did pretty well but to say it the way he did it sure sounded like he tried to do the impossible.

1. I dont listen to riders
2. its nice that he fell on the sword for the horses loss but it still does not answer coming home in 14 and change and not even getting second.

[Marat]

He will NEVER win another graded stakes.

Precisely how much would you care to wager on this proposition?

[Sluggo4171]

MTB is being pointed towards the Travers. Not saying he ran a good or poor race. The target is in late August and not some grade 3 at Mountaineer (not trying to demean the Wa Va derby either). Definitely think he deserves the benefit of the doubt with this race.

[DegenerationX]

MTB is being pointed towards the Travers. Not saying he ran a good or poor race. The target is in late August and not some grade 3 at Mountaineer (not trying to demean the Wa Va derby either). Definitely think he deserves the benefit of the doubt with this race.

Sluggo when the horse wins another graded race please feel free to bring this post up, much like I did the AZ Cardinal's thread of a year ago.

[Classy]

You can't win them all and he has done good no matter what. He is a Derby winner and no one can take that ride from him . I will stick by MTB no matter what. He proved himself enough for me. Beside BD did not win either. Not like the old days where all the tracks where either dirt or turf so no matter where you went it played the same. He at least has come in 1,2, or 3rd.

[Risen Star]

He needs mud?

He doesn't need mud, he needs a steady jockey. Win, lose, or draw, he deserves his own jockey not Calvin for this race, Mike for that race, then Calvin again, then Mike again, and always having to play second string to some other horse. I'm not blaming these riders, but I hate these circumstances.

At least when MTB goes into the Travers, he'll have the rare privilege of being under the same rider for two races in a row. Wow!