Consecutive Excuses

It may be simply because I bet on him and lost on Sunday at Keeneland, but it appeared to me that Prolific now has two legitimate excuses for bad performances following his debut win at Belmont last fall.

Let’s start with his second career start, which was last April at Keeneland.  He did virtually no running that day after breaking alertly but finishing a long way last.  Then he got some time off and had throat surgery because word was there was a breathing issue.  Seems reasonable, right?  Then he turned up at Keeneland this weekend for start #3, got first Lasix, broke a little slow, and again did no running.  But as the race was being run, it seemed obvious to my non-horseman eye that Prolific wasn’t handling the sloppy surface very well.  He had very high leg action, which is to say his legs weren’t moving outward but rather upward.  I am told this is called “climbing” and is indicative of a horse that doesn’t like the surface.  Maybe that’s true, and maybe it isn’t. Like I said, I am not a trainer.  But I HAVE seen horses do this before, and they never seem to finish well.  And it’s worth noting that in both of Prolific’s first two starts, he didn’t exhibit the same high leg action that I saw from him on Sunday.

Maybe Prolific just isn’t very good and I am looking for an excuse to explain my losing bet.  Or maybe Prolific is better that his last two races would indicate, and he’ll be ignored in the wagering the next time he runs because of the poor running lines.  You can add him to your stable mail if you want, see what the tote board says the next time he is entered, and bet him or not bet him.  I’ll probably bet him.

If you want to go watch replays and see for yourself, these are the races to watch:

9/16/17- Belmont Race 3, post 1

4/7/18- Keeneland Race 4, post 5

10/14/18- Keeneland Race 8, post 7