After thinking about this for quite awhile, there is really only one way to start this blog entry.
In Over My Head won today.
There was no purse money, no crowd, just a handful of people both on and off the track who were anxiously awaiting the results of the qualifier. Predictions were probably pretty mixed after last week’s disappointing finish. It was another one of those ‘make or break’ events for Mo. If it had gone poorly, we would have had to seriously start thinking about the end again. However, each time that has occurred in the past few weeks, Mo has hit it out of the park. Today was no different.
What was a little bit different this week was that Mo was up against some accomplished horses including I Kill Time (winner of $170,000+ in just 16 lifetime starts) and Native Hotspur (winner of over $450,000 in her 4 year career). Now, each horse in a qualifier has different motivations…some may be looking to hit a certain speed or just go easy, but nonetheless, these two had talent. At the end, however, it was Mo responding to Marcus’s urging as he darted past the finish line, a full 4 lengths ahead of the second place finisher for the win in 1.54.3. First to cross the line, which means Mo is back where he belongs.
When the news came out, we all felt like winners. Marcus (obviously, he drove him), Tyler, John, Penny, Dr. Tony, the Leonards…all the people who take care of him on a day to day basis and of course his very proud ownership team and anyone else who just refused to give up on Mo. There have been PLENTY of opportunities, but everyone took their turn picking others up when they were down. Initial indications were that he came out of the qualfier well, which means that In Over My Head’s the next step in his rehab is that rehab is over. It’s RACE TIME BABY! The loose plan is that he will be in a week from Saturday at Balmoral in a conditioned race. If Mo has taught us anything, it is to expect the unexpected. However, things are looking good for a loooooooong awaited trip back to the track for a real race.
Now, there is at least a little disappointment about one thing today: Mo didn’t get his picture taken in the winner’s circle and from what I understand, he was a bit disappointed. Unfortunately, he was not aware that you don’t get win pictures for qualifiers (how can you blame him…it’s been awhile). Well, luckily, I was able to obtain a picture of Marcus and Mo just as they came off the track from someone that was down there and have posted it below…hopefully Mo can get his Ipad fired up tonight in his stall and see the great pic:
In Over My Head won today.
There was no purse money, no crowd, just a handful of people both on and off the track who were anxiously awaiting the results of the qualifier. Predictions were probably pretty mixed after last week’s disappointing finish. It was another one of those ‘make or break’ events for Mo. If it had gone poorly, we would have had to seriously start thinking about the end again. However, each time that has occurred in the past few weeks, Mo has hit it out of the park. Today was no different.
What was a little bit different this week was that Mo was up against some accomplished horses including I Kill Time (winner of $170,000+ in just 16 lifetime starts) and Native Hotspur (winner of over $450,000 in her 4 year career). Now, each horse in a qualifier has different motivations…some may be looking to hit a certain speed or just go easy, but nonetheless, these two had talent. At the end, however, it was Mo responding to Marcus’s urging as he darted past the finish line, a full 4 lengths ahead of the second place finisher for the win in 1.54.3. First to cross the line, which means Mo is back where he belongs.
When the news came out, we all felt like winners. Marcus (obviously, he drove him), Tyler, John, Penny, Dr. Tony, the Leonards…all the people who take care of him on a day to day basis and of course his very proud ownership team and anyone else who just refused to give up on Mo. There have been PLENTY of opportunities, but everyone took their turn picking others up when they were down. Initial indications were that he came out of the qualfier well, which means that In Over My Head’s the next step in his rehab is that rehab is over. It’s RACE TIME BABY! The loose plan is that he will be in a week from Saturday at Balmoral in a conditioned race. If Mo has taught us anything, it is to expect the unexpected. However, things are looking good for a loooooooong awaited trip back to the track for a real race.
Now, there is at least a little disappointment about one thing today: Mo didn’t get his picture taken in the winner’s circle and from what I understand, he was a bit disappointed. Unfortunately, he was not aware that you don’t get win pictures for qualifiers (how can you blame him…it’s been awhile). Well, luckily, I was able to obtain a picture of Marcus and Mo just as they came off the track from someone that was down there and have posted it below…hopefully Mo can get his Ipad fired up tonight in his stall and see the great pic:
I know what you are thinking…how can this be real? Marcus isn’t that much taller than Mo, right? The answer is simple, Marcus is simply standing a little closer to the camera, so it has the appearance that he is taller. A lot of smiles in that picture. Not surprising…I would have been smiling too. And I will tell you this, we have a real glimmer of hope that Mo will be back in the winner’s circle for real. Maybe not off his first or second start, but he’ll find his way there, I just know it. The smiles that day will be even bigger…reflective of an exciting end of a long tough journey back home.
0 comments:
Post a Comment