To the uninitiated, the Racing marketing department can be awfully convincing. Especially when faced with crisis – coverage of what is perceived to be an inordinate amount of dead horses – the polished industry pros are quite adept in the art of reassurance. We’ve got this; no stone will be left unturned. More vets, tighter prerace exams, stricter drug regulations, transparent medical records, “continuing ed” for trainers, and my personal favorite – super-diligent surface testing (“cushion depth,” “moisture content,” “ground-penetrating radar”). And yet.
The New York Racing Association (NYRA) – covering Aqueduct, Belmont, and Saratoga – does the above, including massaging the numbers, with the best of them, and they’ve been doing it for years. “Demonstrably Safer Racing,” they’re fond of saying. Sunday, according to the Gaming Commission, a young filly christened Darken a Day “sustained [an] injury on [the] Belmont training track requiring euthanasia.” In the process, she became the 34th dead horse at Belmont alone this year – and 54th at the three NYRA tracks combined. How’s that for a “commitment to equine safety”?
Incidentally, Darken a Day was trained by Gary Contessa, who, you may recall, referred to his horses as “children.” Well, Mr. Contessa can now boast 10 dead children (in just NY) over the past four years. Vile.
The Belmont ’19 Carnage:
Doyouknowsomething, Jan 8, stall – “sustained left elbow injury in stall”
Speke, Jan 19, training – “suffered a fracture to his right shoulder”
Catpsalm, Jan 29, stall – “protozoal myeloencephalitis”
Miss Marion, Feb 3, training – “fractured cannon bone…euthanized on track”
Chronos, Feb 3, training (euthanized Feb 4) – “fractured right front leg”
For Pops, Feb 26, training – “collapsed and died” (four years old)
Queen Bode, Mar 3, training – “euthanized at hospital”
Mighty Zealous, Mar 10, stall – “severe respiratory distress…euthanized”
Miss Marilyn, Mar 23, training – “leg injury…euthanasia on the track”
Miss Mimosa, Mar 28, training – “cardiovascular collapse” (three years old)
Pretty Enuff, Apr 1, training – “suffered a leg fracture…euthanized”
Luz Mimi, Apr 4, training – “suffered a leg fracture…euthanized”
La Manche, Apr 11, training – “suffered a fracture…and was euthanized”
Noble Cause, May 11, racing – “injuries necessitating euthanasia”
Anne’s Song, May 24, racing – “ambulanced off, euthanized due to poor prognosis”
Successful Mission, Jun 9, training – “sustained fractures while breezing”
Inflection, Jun 9, racing – “euthanized due to poor prognosis”
Ro Bear, Jun 16, stall – “died in the barn from an apparent impaction colic”
With Caution, Jun 28, training – “P1 fracture…died complications from anesthesia”
Fancy Persuasion, Jun 30, racing – “cardiovascular collapse” (two years old)
yet-to-be-named, Jul 11, training – “fractured sesamoids…euthanized”
La Fuerza, Jul 27, training – “fractured humeral, ambulanced to barn, euthanized”
Royal Inheritance, Sep 6, training – “collapsed and died” (five years old)
Passporttovictory, Sep 6, racing – “bad steps”
Mo Moxie, Sep 7, training – “sustained a fracture and was euthanized on track”
Deft, Sep 12, racing – “broke front leg and was euthanized on the track”
Rhode Island, Sep 14, racing – “was vanned off…subsequently euthanized”
Coffee Crush, Sep 19, training – “cardiovascular collapse”
Have Another, Sep 20, stall – “severe laminitis”
Meet Me in L A, Sep 21, racing – “went wrong…euthanized”
E Z for You to Say, Oct 10, stall – “severe laminitis [both front] feet” (two years old)
Mo Fun, Oct 14, training – “suffered a cardiovascular collapse” (three years old)
Kid Robin Hood, Nov 2, training – “sustained a fracture at the 5/16 pole”
Darken a Day, Nov 10, training – “sustained injury to leg requiring euthanasia on track”
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