Seis de Mayo, Derby light

Before I went to sleep last night, I didn’t find myself searching the regular sites for write-ups on palatable angles that explained why the Kentucky Derby played out the way it did. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t start out that way, but it didn’t take me too long to get off on a little bit of a tangent. I was, in part, intrigued by the horse that had so many local track experts in California riding the fence. But after reading countless vanilla race recaps and fighting off yawns, I found myself fixated on the winning pilot, Mario Gutierrez, who first showed up as a blip on my radar in February of this year. The tangent ultimately led me to the Windsor (Ontario, CA) Star. A fine publication to be sure. It was 12° C and the wind was blowing at 13 km/h NE in Windsor, Ontario when I signed off last night. A bit of a departure from the 90° F+ heat index that the folks in the infield, as well as the Jockeys during the post parade, were dealing with in Louisville only hours before. 

Fast forward to Sunday morning and me attempting to rub the Cinco de Mayo out of my eyes. Mario Gutierrez had already been up for hours by the time I was. This (Mario’s obligation, not my May 6^th recovery) was a result of one or both of the following factors. One, his adrenal glands were still redlining from his 3,017^th and most memorable career mount… or two, he was busy planning the trip that Hidden Passion needed to get in the 6^th this afternoon at Hollywood Park. Such is the life of a jockey. There were races to tend to before the 11^th yesterday at Churchill, and there will be races after… like, today.

The native Mexican, riding out of western Canada, got his first ever Derby Mount in Kentucky, on a poly-track shipper from California. Throw in a draw of the 19-hole…one of two stalls that had never produced a Derby winner at Churchill, and you’ve got the makings of a champion. I love this sport. 

About the Derby… I’ll never mind eating a little crow, especially when there is an opportunity for redemption less than three weeks away. But man, what a race. Maybe a bit of a tactical mistake in the game plan from Gemologist… boy did he get out there fast. It made me nervous, then excited, then left me shaking my head by the time he entered the final turn and I saw those fractions. The head shaking continued when I had to sift through the field to find Daddy Nose Best and Union Rags hampered with troubled trips; and even more so when Take Charge Indy apparently began attempting to settle a bet with Trinniberg to see who could finish last. It’s hard to tell who won that bet, since Calvin Borel was saddled with a ‘DQ’ next to the #3 by the time the tote board went official. 

But, like Mario Gutierrez, we all must move on. I’m sure plenty will be focused on Bodemeister in handicapping circles over the upcoming weeks, and rightly so. What a horse. I’m excited to see him run again, and equally excited to see who the new additions to the field at the Preakness will be. Between now and Preakness week, maybe some Lone Star Park, maybe some fodder that I come across. But we’ll be dialed in for the Preakness now that The Derby tornado has blown through.

Damn. Mario Gutierrez. To stand at the precipice of the sports world for one day. A place where just over 100 people have stood in almost the last century and a half. He didn’t go to Disney World today; he just went in for another day at the office. The Mexican, the Canadian, the Kentucky Derby Champion, returns to California to ride in an allowance optional claiming race. It's the only mount he was offered today. I’ll be watching. Congrats, Mario. Great ride.