September 15, 2020

With the 145th running of the Preakness Stakes to take place on October 3, in this the year of all things Covid-19 and the upheaval it has caused, it looks like a large field is set to contest the event.

There's nothing like a fresh group of horses stepping up to the plate to stir the pot and challenge the pundits to choose a runaway favorite. Personally, I like a good horserace. The diversity makes it exciting. You never know what can happen. Look at the horse who finished third in the Kentucky Derby, Mr. Big News at nearly 50-1, that was big news.

For my part, after Casual Lies ran second in the Kentucky Derby, I know I would have liked to have seen nearly four weeks between that race and the Preakness Stakes, instead of the historical two weeks.

After all, part of the Triple Crown challenge and why it is so difficult to win is that all three races are contested within a five week period.

Since the Triple Crown is off the table, there won't be any naysayers questioning the validity of a Triple Crown winner, if there had been one, due to the amount of time between races.

On to other news, my new novel Into Madness is now available to read as part of Kindle Unlimited. So, if you have a monthly subscription to that service, you can now read it on your devices.

Starting today is a new Goodreads giveaway. Check it out and enter to win one EBook copy of Into Madness, the first book in the Born From Stone Saga.

Take Care and be safe,
Shelley Lee Riley

The Day After

September 6, 2020

The day after the Kentucky Derby and overall, the race itself was uneventful. It looked to me like the best horse, on the day, won. There were no big excuses for the favorite, Tiz the Law. He ran a terrific race, and other than a little bobble down the lane, he just got outrun.

Nothing wrong with second. No really. I should know. Still, I have to admit, first is way better. Let me reiterate, in a country where winning is everything? I don't care, second in a race of that caliber is nothing to sneeze at.

For me, the days most remarkable events happened before the race and right after. Thousand Words, flipping in the saddling paddock and taking out Bob Baffert's assistant trainer, Jimmy Barnes—breaking his arm? That was one scary incident. And if that wasn't enough to tell you how dangerous racehorses can be, there was the scramble for life and limb in the winner's circle afterward.

Truth be told, I have always held my breath when the flower garlands are thrown over the winning horse's withers. This is not something horses are trained to expect. Saddles, blankets, jockeys, yes. A massive carpet of flowers, no.

Fortunately, no one looked to be seriously injured in the veritable lawn bowling incident that went down in the confines of the winners'circle. Stuffing that many people into a small space with a volatile thoroughbred is just asking for it. The outcome could have been so much worse.

My hat is really off for Bob's crew and, in particular, the groom who was handling Thousand Words. When the colt flipped, it was definitely not the groom's fault. I replayed the incident several times, and the handler didn't lock up on the lead shank, which would have guaranteed the colt would go on over. By his hold on the colt's head, he gave Thousand Words every opportunity to change his mind. At the same time, the groom didn't lose his hold on the end of the shank. A loose horse running around the saddling paddock? Yeah, not something you want to see at any time.

Finally, Honor A.P. What a flashback in time for me. My biggest nemesis in 1992 was A.P. Indy. The similarities in the way Honor A.P. runs, at least yesterday, and his grandsire was striking. While not as heavy headed as Indy, the awkward, heavy-front-end running style was. And let's don't forget how Indy loved to come from way off the pace.

So, I don't know if it was the rough start Honor A.P. got or if this is his usual running style, but I thought he was super courageous. To come from last, circle the field on the outside, and then grind it out down the lane to finish fourth, impressive.

Take care,
Shelley Lee Riley, author of Casual Lies - A Triple Crown Adventure
and now, just released, a YA fantasy novel, Into Madness

2020 Kentucky Derby

September 5, 2020

It's the first Saturday in September, and it's time for the Covid19-delayed Kentucky Derby to run. Not only the date for the festival has changed due to the global pandemic, virtually everything that makes it so much fun has changed. No overflowing crowds in the stands and the infield. No derby hats. No Mint Juleps. No party.

It's been twenty-eight years since I saddled my horse Casual Lies to run in the Kentucky Derby. It was the first Saturday in May, the year 1992, and there were record-setting crowds in attendance, or so I was told. It was also the first year that the telecast was going to be aired on Russian television. And it was the year the much touted Arazi was a sure thing to win the 118th running of the Kentucky Derby. Reporters had come from all over the world to report on every breath Arazi took.

The atmosphere was electric, leading up to the big day. The morning of the race was hectic. Barricades had been set up at each barn where a derby horse was stabled. And then it went quiet, and the wait was on for the call to the saddling paddock.

Stanley (as I called Casual Lies) napped with his head over the stall guard. I re-read the same page of the book that I held over and over again, anxiety twisted my gut, making it impossible to concentrate on the written page. It wasn't just the enormity of what we were about to take on. It was the same fear I faced every time that I prepared a horse for a race. More than winning, I wanted my horse to come back from the race in as good a shape as he started it. With so many horses running in one race, the odds of something going wrong were far higher than usual.

Stanley didn't know anything was different. It was just another race day for him. He didn't get any grain at lunch, and his hay bag was taken away. Something that made him cranky. Stanley loved his food.

When the call came, and we readied our horse, nothing could have prepared me for what came next—navigating he gauntlet of noisy fans before we even stepped onto the trap from the backside—the wall of noise that grew with each step that brought us closer to the jam-packed grandstands—the saddling paddock.

My heart pounding so hard, it made it difficult to breathe.

The roar of over 132,000 fans as the starting bell rang!

This year? None of that will happen.

Even so, a fantastic line-up of horses will be coming out of that gate. The lack of a crowd will make it no less impressive for the horse that wins. The thrill of victory for the entire team that takes a foal from frolicking in a pasture to winning the most prestigious three-year-old race in the world will not be dimmed.

Still, the weeks that led up to the Kentucky Derby Festival were what made the whole experience so special. Nobody has enough money to buy that kind of memory.

Each year on the first Saturday as I listen to the first strains of My Old Kentucky Home, I wonder, yet again, how lucky I was to have found that weedy little colt in a Kentucky sale on a snowy day in January. And twenty-eight years later, I still feel blessed to have known and loved the amazing horse he grew into.

Here's to a safe and uneventful race, and may the best team, on the day, win this year's crown.

Shelley Riley - Author of Casual Lies - A Triple Crown Adventure