- Error
| 04 June 2010
Dakota Snail, an relatively unknown thoroughbred and a 1000 to 1 underdog in the Belmont Stakes, performed even more poorly than anticipated when he paused to rest for several minutes just short of the 3/4 mile mark of the 1 1/2 mile race.
"We knew he was a long shot," said jockey Arthur Reynolds, "but thought he'd at least be able to run the entire way. Maybe his heavy wheezing during our training runs should have been a clue."
Dakota Snail's trainer, Marty Bates, blames the colt's poor performance on his unhealthy diet.
"I suppose you could blame us, since technically we are the ones feeding him, but once you hear the joy in a horse's whinny after he eats a triple bacon cheeseburger, you just want to hear it again. Looking back, I guess it could have been a cry for help due to severe heartburn. I mean it was a horse eating a triple bacon cheeseburger."
Bates also admitted the horse had a terrible smoking habit.
"We should have helped him quit, but it was so cool saying I was training a smoking horse. Have you every seen a horse with a cigarette dangling from its bottom lip? Let me tell you it is awesome. Besides, I'm not totally convinced smoking hurt his cardiovascular performance anyway. Studies show it harms human lungs, but I've yet to see a study done on the effects of smoking in thoroughbred race horses."
Around the Web:
Drosselmeyer Wins Belmont Stakes (FanHouse)
Drosselmeyer pulls upset in Belmont Stakes (WRAL Sports)
Drosselmeyer Wins Belmont Stakes (The Rail - New York Post)
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