Direct From Europe APASSIONATA - The Beginning Freedom Hall Tickets Presale Password

Direct From Europe
APASSIONATA - The Beginning

Coming to Louisville's Freedom Hall
April 27 - 29, 4 shows only!

Direct from Europe and now touring North America! APASSIONATA "The Beginning" captivates families and horse lovers alike with trick riding, dressage and jumping! See internationally renowned riding teams and over 40 beautiful horses from Shetland Ponies to Friesans.

Friday, April 27 @ 7PM
Saturday, April 28 @ 3PM & 8PM
Sunday, April 29 @ 3PM

Tickets: $180 VIP Table Seat, $130, $93, $62, $52 & $27=20

Everyone attending the show needs a ticket regardless of age.

Watch The Trailer

Presale Discount Offer: Wednesday, February 22 @ 10Am through Thursday, February 23 @ 10PM
Tickets: $180 VIP Table Seat, $130, $83, $52, $41 & $27

Password: HORSES Buy Tickets Here

On sale to the public Friday, February 24 @ 10AM

Concert News, Tour Dates, and Ticket Information

Churchill Downs Sets Dates for 2012 Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wager Pools

Churchill Downs has set the dates for its trio of three-day betting pools for its 2012 Kentucky Derby Future Wager (“KDFW”) and a single pool for the historic track’s Kentucky Oaks Future Wager (“KOFW”).

Dates for the pools for the Kentucky Derby Future Wager, which is now in its 14th year, are:

    Pool 1 – Feb. 10-12
    Pool 2 – March 2-4
    Pool 3 – March 30-April 1

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 Wagering on each of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager pools will open at noon (all times Eastern) on Friday and close on Sunday at 6 p.m.  The KDFW Pools will feature both win and exacta wagering.

The single three-day pool for the Kentucky Oaks Future Wager, now in its ninth year, is scheduled for March 2-4 and will run concurrent to Pool 2 of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager.  Betting on the KOFW pool will open at noon on Friday and is set to conclude on Sunday at 6:30 p.m., 30 minutes after the conclusion of betting on the accompanying Kentucky Derby Future pool.  The Kentucky Oaks Future Pool will also offer win and exacta wagering.

The wagers provide fans of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks opportunities to bet on potential competitors in those great American races at odds that could be considerably more attractive than those available on the days on which the respective races are run.  Winning mutuel payouts on both wagers are determined by the odds that are in place at the conclusion of each respective betting pool.

The 138th running of the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I), America’s greatest race and the 1 ¼-mile first jewel of the coveted Triple Crown for 3-year-olds, is scheduled to be run on Saturday, May 5 at Churchill Downs.  The $1 million-guaranteed Kentucky Oaks, the nation’s top prize for 3-year-old fillies, will be run on Friday, May 4, the eve of the Derby.  Like the Derby, the Kentucky Oaks has been contested annually since 1875 and its 2012 renewal will mark the 138th consecutive year that the 1 1/8-mile “Derby for Fillies” has been run beneath the track’s historic Twin Spires.

Both the KDFW and KOFW pools consist of 24 wagering interests that include 23 individual horses and a mutuel field, or “all others” interest.  In the Kentucky Derby wager, the mutuel field is made up of all other 3-year-olds – including fillies.  The mutuel field in the Kentucky Oaks bet consists of all other 3-year-old fillies.

All bets in the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future Wagers are $2 minimum wagers.  No refund will be made on any wager placed during the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks Future pools.  If it is determined during an individual pool that any of the individual betting interests has suffered an illness, injury or other circumstance that would prevent that horse from competing in either race, wagering on that betting interest will be suspended immediately.

Wagering on the Derby and Oaks Future wagers is available through TwinSpires.com and other advance deposit wagering platforms and at racetracks and simulcast centers throughout North America.

Team Valor’s Animal Kingdom, who went off at odds of 20-1 and paid $43.80 for a $2 win wager in the 2011 Kentucky Derby, was listed as an individual betting interest only during Pool 3 of last year’s Derby Future Wager.  He closed at odds of 31-1 in that pool and a $2 future wager on trainer Graham Motion’s colt returned $64.40 on Derby Day.  As a member of the “all others” mutuel field in the first two pools of 2011, he returned $6.20 for a Pool 1 bet and $9.40 for a Pool 2 wager.  Both Animal Kingdom and Derby runner-up Nehro were part of the “all others” interest (#24), so the KDFW $2 exacta payouts for the three pools were:

    Pool 1 – 24-13 (mutuel field over third-place Mucho Macho Man) for $230;
    Pool 2 – 24-12 (mutuel field over third-place Mucho Macho Man) for $388.20;
    Pool 3 – 1-12 (Animal Kingdom over runner-up Nehro) for $3,074.60.

 The Derby Day $2 exacta payout for Animal Kingdom over Nehro (16-19) was $329.80.

Eventual Kentucky Oaks winner Plum Pretty was not an individual betting interest in the lone Kentucky Oaks Future Wager pool, but returned $21.80 to win as member of the KOFW mutuel field.  The Peachtree Stable filly trained by Bob Baffert returned $14.60 for a $2 win wager on Oaks Day.  Both Plum Pretty and runner-up St. John’s River were members of the mutuel field, so the KOFW exacta paid to 24-23, with third-place Zazu under the top two “all others” finishers, and returned $142.20 for a $2 bet.  The Oaks Day exacta of Plum Pretty over St. John’s River (12-13) paid $163 for a $2 wager.

Wagering for the three 2011 Kentucky Derby Future Wager Pools totaled $1,362,101, the fifth highest total since the Derby bet was introduced in 1999 and its largest three-pool betting total since 2007.  Kentucky Oaks fans wagered $92,902 during the single KOFW pool of 2011, second only to the single-pool total of $117,368 recorded in the wager’s introductory year in 2003.

Wagering interests for the 2012 Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks future pools will be announced on the Wednesday prior to the Friday start of each pool.  Real-time odds and other information on the KDFW will be available at the official event Web site at www.KentuckyDerby.com, and information on the KOFW will be available at www.KentuckyOaks.com.

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The Ky Horse Park is offering free gelding surgeries on Mar 10

The Ky Horse Park is offering free gelding surgeries on Mar 10 in partnership with the Kentucky Horse Council's Save Our Horses fund and the American Horse Council's Unwanted Horse Coalition for horse owners who are financially unable to have the surgery done otherwise.

For the benefit of Kentucky's horses, free gelding surgeries will be offered at the Kentucky Horse Park on Saturday, March 10, 2012.

This free clinic is being provided by the Kentucky Horse Park in partnership with the Kentucky Horse Council's Save Our Horses fund and the American Horse Council's Unwanted Horse Coalition.

The free gelding surgeries are open to any equine owner who is financially unable to afford the surgeries.  Castrations will be performed by a veterinarian or a veterinary student under close supervision by a licensed veterinarian.  Stallions must be halter broke, in good health, with two descended testicles and be at least four months of age, with current Coggins and health certificate.

Applications are now being accepted.  A $20 registration fee will be charged per horse to help offset some of the expenses. Surgeries by appointment only.

For information contact Sheila Forbes, 859-233-4305 or Sheila.Forbes@ky.gov.



Information and registration forms:

Churchill Downs to Permit Also-Eligible Entrants for Derby, Oaks Beginning in 2012

Churchill Downs will permit four also-eligible entrants to the $2 million guaranteed Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I), America’s greatest race, and the $1 million guaranteed Kentucky Oaks (GI), the nation’s premier race for 3-year-old fillies, beginning with the respective 138th runnings of those races in 2012.

For the first time in the history of those races, the new system allows as many as four horses to remain eligible to compete in each race beyond the official time of entry and one or more of the “also eligible” horses could be allowed to run in their respective race if members of the original fields for their races scratch from the race within a specified period of time.  A maximum of 20 horses is allowed to compete in the Kentucky Derby, the 1 ¼-mile race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds conducted each year on the first Saturday in May, while the Kentucky Oaks, the Derby’s 1 1/8-mile counterpart for fillies run on the eve of the Derby, is limited to 14 starters.

Entries for the Kentucky Derby are due the Wednesday before the race, while Oaks entries are taken on the Tuesday before its annual Friday renewal.  Also-eligible horses would be permitted to compete in the Kentucky Derby or the Kentucky Oaks if there are scratches from either race prior to their shared official “scratch time” of 9 a.m. (Eastern) on Friday, Kentucky Oaks Day.  That time is the opening of wagering on the Kentucky Oaks Day racing program and the beginning of preliminary betting on the Kentucky Derby.

In the event of a scratch or scratches from either race, preference among also-eligible entrants would be determined under the current eligibility system for the Derby and Oaks.  Horses with the highest total earnings in graded stakes races would “draw-in” to the field for their respective race.  If the total entrants for either of those races should exceed the maximum field size plus four, the four horses listed as also-eligible entrants would be determined by the same system.

“There has been significant discussion in recent years regarding also-eligible entrants for the Kentucky Derby and Oaks, especially in light of the late scratches of Derby favorites I Want Revenge in 2009 and Uncle Mo from this year’s running,” said Kevin Flanery, president of Churchill Downs Racetrack.  “Our concerns have always focused on preliminary wagering on the Kentucky Derby permitted during our Kentucky Oaks Day racing program, including refunds of wagers on scratched Derby horses and potential confusion during those two special days among our massive crowds of bettors.

“Also-eligible horses for Oaks will have nearly three days of opportunity to get into their race, while the Derby’s window for also-eligible entrants to participate is just under 48 hours. We feel strongly that the deadline for also-eligible horses to join the Derby field must be set before preliminary wagering on the race begins.  Despite the more limited window for also-eligible horses for the Derby, this system provides owners and trainers an opportunity to keep their Derby dreams alive that has never existed before.”

Equibase past performances for also-eligible horses for the Kentucky Derby and Oaks will appear in racing programs along with the original fields for the two races.  As many as four also-eligible horses outside of the Kentucky Derby’s 20-horse field would be listed, in order of preference, with program numbers 21, 22, 23 and 24.  Kentucky Oaks also-eligible fillies would be numbered between 15 and 18, also in order of preference.

In the event of a scratch from either the Kentucky Derby or Kentucky Oaks fields, horses in post positions outside of the scratched horses would move in a spot and the also-eligible horse would then occupy the outermost position in the starting gate.  Also-eligible entrants are not required to compete in either race in the event of a scratch. Source>>>

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The dates have been set for the 2012 Alltech National Horse Show at the Kentucky Horse Park

Written by: Kenneth Kraus/ PhelpsSports.com.
Client: Alltech National Horse Show

Following an amazingly successful debut this year, the second edition of the Alltech National Horse Show in Lexington, Kentucky, is set for October 31 through November 4, 2012. The show will once again be held at the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park.

The Alltech National Horse Show, 128th edition, closed with great excitement, receiving unanimous approval from the horse show community. The Show was a great success with the thousands of attendees, in addition to nearly half a million viewers who watched the events unfold online.

More than 560 horses and 350 riders from nine countries, including nine Olympic veterans, competed this year, and according to Mason Phelps, Jr., the President of the National Horse Show Association, next year’s show will build on the excitement of the 2011 debut. “We couldn’t have been happier with our first year effort in Kentucky. But, that being said, we are already working on a bigger and better event for next year,” he said. “We expect bigger prize money, we’ve already added an extra competition day and the American Saddlebreds will return to the Alltech National Horse Show next year. So we are very excited about what lies ahead.”

The show’s debut this year will go down in the record books as one of the most successful in the history of equestrian events in the United States.

“The Alltech Arena is an ideal location for the National Horse Show, it is perfect for all the horsemen and horses, and it really captured the feel of Madison Square Garden,” noted legendary horseman George Morris after attending this year’s show. “The Alltech National Horse Show has brought back class, something that has been lacking in horse shows today.”

Next year’s show, scheduled for October 31 through November 4th, will build on the success generated during this inaugural run.

“It’s been fantastic. It’s been amazing. It’s been wonderful,” agreed Alltech President and Founder Dr. Pearse Lyons. “This inaugural event was a good beginning, but it was only the beginning. This show will continue to grow and next time around the city of Lexington will embrace this show more and we, in fact, will go all out to create a super experience for all who attend.”

“We hope that everyone will mark their calendars for next year,” added Phelps. “With what we learned during our first year, I can promise you that the Alltech National Horse Show in 2012 will prove to be an amazing event.”

Strike the Gold, the 1991 Kentucky Derby The oldest living Kentucky Derby winner dies at age 23.

Strike the Gold, the 1991 Kentucky Derby (gr. I) winner, was euthanized at Karacabey Stud Farm in Turkey Dec. 13, it was confirmed by the Turkish Jockey Club. The 23-year-old son of Alydar had been the oldest living Derby winner.

Strike the Gold, who was still the leading active stallion in Turkey, fractured his left front pastern Dec. 13 and, after being examined by a team of veterinarians, was euthanized. He had battled laminitis recently, but was still in relatively good health until his injury.

“He was a champion stallion and our top stallion,” said Adem Kutay Yusufoglu, an officer of the Turkish Jockey Club. “He had some problems, but he was still a happy horse until he died.”

The chestnut horse, who was bred in Kentucky by Calumet Farm and was out of the Hatchet Man mare Majestic Gold, won the 1991 Blue Grass Stakes (gr. II) prior to scoring the Derby by 1 3/4 lengths over Best Pal. He was ridden to victory by Chris Antley for trainer Nick Zito. B. Giles Brophy, William J. Condren, and Joseph M. Cornacchia owned Strike the Gold and raced him under the name BCC Gold Stable during his 3-year-old season.

Strike the Gold would go on to finish sixth in the Preakness (gr. I) and second by a head to Hansel in the Belmont Stakes (gr. I). As a 4-year-old, after a reported ownership dispute, he was sold at the Fasig-Tipton New York sale for $2.9 million, with Condren and Cornacchia signing the ticket. Later in 1992 he tallied his only other grade I victory when taking the Pimlico Special Handicap and then won the Nassau County Handicap (gr. II) at Belmont Park. He was graded stakes placed 10 times in his career.

He retired in 1993 with a record of 6-8-5 from 31 starts and earnings of $3,457,026.

Strike the Gold began his stallion duties at Ben Walden Jr.’s Vinery near Midway, Ky., and in 1998 was sold to Turkey. He was a tremendously successful sire in Turkey, with total progeny earnings of more than $20.4 million, according to the Turkish Jockey Club. At the time of his death, he was the leading stallion in 2011, with progeny earnings of more than $4.3 million.

His best runner was Sabirli, a seven-time champion sprinter/miler who earned more than $6 million.
Source>>>

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Rapid Redux extends his win streak to 21 races and ties Citation's record for wins in one season (19) on Tuesday, Dec. 13, at Laurel Park.

WHAT A WIN by the hard knocking wonder horse, Rapid Redux, who has won 19 races in a calendar year to tie Citation’s modern-day record! His victory yesterday increased his winning streak to 21 consecutive victories…an unprecedented feat in modern era racing!
Watch his incredible achievement

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Kentucky Equine Humane Center Meet the Adoptable Horse of the Week: Donna!

Wow, what a beauty! This is Donna, a 3-yr-old, sound, friendly Thoroughbred mare who is ready for a new career! Read more about Donna and please cross-post to help her find a forever home:

Meet the Adoptable Horse of the Week: Donna!

As you can see, Donna is an exceptionally beautiful mare.  She is also sound, intelligent, young, and kind -- what a great combination!

She is only 3-years-old, 16.1-hands, and spent only a short amount of time on the racetrack, so she doesn't have any bad habits.

Donna is currently in the retraining program at the Kentucky Equine Humane Center where she is preparing for a new home and new career.  She is being recommended for low-level jumping or low-level dressage.

If you'd like more information about the lovely Donna, call 859-881-5849 or info@kyehc.org.  You can also visit their website to see other adoptable horses, www.KyEHC.org.

Kentucky, Are You Going To See War Horse? Check Out The Trailer and Purchase Tickets Now!

War Horse
Opens December 25, 2011 | Runtime:2 hr. 26 min.
PG-13
Intense sequences of war violence
    
DreamWorks Pictures' "War Horse," director Steven Spielberg's epic adventure, is a tale of loyalty, hope and tenacity set against a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War.

An epic adventure for audiences of all ages. Set against a sweeping canvas of rural England and Europe during the First World War, “War Horse” begins with the remarkable friendship between a horse named Joey and a young man called Albert, who tames and trains him. When they are forcefully parted, the film follows the extraordinary journey of the horse as he moves through the war, changing and inspiring the lives of all those he meets—British cavalry, German soldiers, and a French farmer and his granddaughter—before the story reaches its emotional climax in the heart of No Man’s Land.

Cast: Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, David Thewlis, Peter Mullan, Niels Arestrup
Director: Steven Spielberg
Genres: Drama

We Love Our Horses Here In The Bluegrass, But Do You Love Them Enough To Eat Them?

Horses could soon be slaughtered for meat in U.S.
Recently, Congress quietly lifted a 5-year-old ban on funding horse meat inspections.

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Horses could soon be butchered in the U.S.for human consumption after Congress quietly lifted a 5-year-old ban on funding horse meat inspections, and activists say slaughterhouses could be up and running in as little as a month. Slaughter opponents pushed a measure cutting off funding for horse meat inspections through Congress in 2006 after other efforts to pass outright bans on horse slaughter failed in previous years. Congress lifted the ban in a spending bill President Barack Obama signed into law Nov. 18 to keep the government afloat until  mid-December.

It did not, however, allocate any new money to pay for horse meat inspections, which opponents claim could cost taxpayers $3 million to $5 million a year. The U.S. Department of Agriculture would have to find the money in its existing budget, which is expected to see more cuts this year as Congress and the White House aim to trim federal spending. The USDA issued a statement Tuesday saying there are no slaughterhouses in the U.S. that butcher horses for human consumption now, but if one were to open, it would conduct inspections to make sure federal laws were being followed. USDA spokesman Neil Gaffney declined to answer questions beyond what was in the statement.

Watch The News Video Here

John Veitch was dismissed as chief state steward for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission on Monday

LEXINGTON, Ky. - John Veitch was dismissed as chief state steward for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission on Monday, according to his lawyer, five months after the commission conducted hearings into whether Veitch had broken racing rules when handling the Life At Ten incident at the 2010 Breeders' Cup.

Veitch, a Hall of Fame trainer who was appointed chief state steward in 2005, was informed of the dismissal by letter from the Kentucky Public Protection Cabinet, which oversees the racing commission, according to Tom Miller, Veitch's lawyer. The dismissal was effective as of Monday, Miller said. No cause was given in the letter.

"John was told to come to the racing commission office and he was told he was discharged," Miller said. "That's about all we can say."

Dick Brown, a spokesman for the Public Protection department, said on Tuesday that Rick Williams, the assistant director of the Kentucky Breeders’ Incentive Fund and an accredited steward, will fill in for Veitch on an interim basis. Kentucky’s next live race day is Thursday, when Turfway Park opens its winter meet.

Brown said that the commission has not yet started a formal process to fill the chief steward’s spot.

“The process is not yet underway, but will be shortly,” Brown said. “It’s an important position that needs to be filled.”

The dismissal followed by two weeks the resignation of Lisa Underwood, the commission's executive director, who returned to private law practice after leading the commission for six years. Underwood and Veitch had often clashed on the commission's priorities and penalty guidelines for medication infractions, according to testimony Veitch gave during the three-day hearing into the Life At Ten incident.
Read Full Article>>

Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic Winner Royal Delta Sells for $8.5 Million at Keeneland Shatters Keeneland Record for a Horse in Training

LEXINGTON, KY (Nov. 8, 2011) - Royal Delta, winner of the $2 million Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic (G1) on November 4 and probable three-year-old filly champion, sold for $8.5 million, a Keeneland record for a horse in training, near the close of Tuesday's session of the November Breeding Stock Sale. The filly was purchased by Benjamin Leon's Besilu Stables and consigned by Chanteclair Farm, agent for the complete dispersal of Palides Investments N.V., Inc (Prince Saud bin Khaled).

The previous Keeneland record for a horse in training was the $6.1 million paid by Aaron Jones for the graded stakes-winning colt Half Ours, consigned by Taylor Made Sales Agency, at the 2006 November Sale. The previous record for a filly sold in training is the $4.6 million paid for champion Open Mind at the 1989 November Sale.
 
Leon, who said Royal Delta was a birthday gift for his wife, Silvia, confirmed that the filly will race again next year, though it is undecided who will train her. Read More>>>