OMG PWNIES!!!!!

Hansen, who goes into this weekend's Blue Grass Stakes as the favorite has much is his favor to discuss, but first we'll focus on his most notable attraction...his color.

Hansen (Tapit x Stormy Sunday by Sir Cat)

The color "grey" is not uncommon among thoroughbreds. It results when a horse develops white colored hairs over dark colored skin. Although it was once though to be a "weak"color and indicative of a horse's poor health or abilty as a runner, we now know that a grey horse has no more health problems than one of any other color (except a strong tendency towards melanoma, for obvious reasons). Still, grey racehorses are usually actually grey in color (often with dark dapples throughout their coats), and do not attain the lighter patina that might be described as "white" until they are older. Hansen does not fit this pattern.

Hansen at 2.

He's a bloody magic carousel horse, and the dream of every horse loving girl in America.

As if he wasn't flashy enough by himself, his owner (also named Hansen) is a very flashy kind of guy. He doesn't fit the mold of a traditional horse owner, and makes for excellent interview material. But let's stop with the petty info and get down to the real question of what kind of racehorse he is.

Not too shabby, as it turns out.

Hansen is the reigning juvenile champion of 2011. He got this title after winning his first two races very impressively, and following them up with a nose win over Union Rags in the ever important Breeder's Cup Juvenile. Those three races were enough to crown him champion, but not enough to convince most folks that he could make the mile and a quarter Derby distance. His running style was very much a "go to the front and never look back hell bent for leather" kind of style, which tends not to bode well for longer distances. His defeat of Union Rags appeared to be at least partly luck, for if the latter had not swerved crazily in the stretch, he probably would have caught the white wonder.

Hansen started out this season with a loss that confirmed the suspicions of some, but did not detract from his supporters, who expected a bit of a "bounce" off his long layoff. He improved in his next start, winning the Gotham Stakes and proving, in doing so, that he could rate (meaning that he could allow other horses in front of him a bit and save some of his speed for the end of the race). Now he heads back to his Bluegrass home to see if some horse (any horse) can keep the Derby favorite spot for more than a week.

From a pedigree perspective, Hansen is by one of the hotest up and coming sires around (and the progenitor of a whole bunch of grey colored stakes winners). Tapit is a good sire for distance horses and is proving himself to be the best sire son of Pulpit, who was himself probably the best sire son of A.P. Indy. All good distance horses. His mother's side leaves a bit to be desired. His dam is a daughter of Sir Cat, who is a second rate son of Storm Cat, and her female family is even more questionable.

Whether or not Hansen wins on Derby day is something one can only guess at today. However, its clear that, of all the horses currently pointing towards the starting gate, he'd look the prettiest in a horseshoe of roses.

He's just so damn adorable!!

A Horse with a Cause

Since at least one person has expressed continued interest in this blog (although they're probably the only one), I'll soldier on.

Creative Cause (by Giant's Causeway, out of Dream of Summer by Siberian Summer)

Today Creative Cause shall attempt to prove that he is the "best of the west", taking on a challenging field in the Santa Anita Derby. If he wins, it might be enough (in the minds of many horseplayers) to skyrocket him to the coveted favorite position amongst Derby hopefuls. Although many still believe that Union Rags (who I profiled before, and who recently finished a disappointing third in the Florida Derby) is the cream of the crop, no one can argue that Creative Cause is not far behind.

After starting off to an impressive 2-year old season, Creative Cause came up a creditable (but somewhat distant) third to Union Rags and Hansen in the Breeder's Cup juvenile. He's managed to duck those two monsters since then, but otherwise has not failed to impress in his stakes efforts. In his first start of the season he again finished third in the San Vicente stakes. This somewhat surprising loss was quickly followed up by a fairly comfortable win in the San Felipe. I say fairly comfortable, because he did not blow the competition away, and had the well regarded Bodemiester breathing down his neck through the stretch. How he performs today will have much to say for him (and possibly his competition) in the upcoming Derby.

Creative Cause is by Giant's Causeway, one son of Storm Cat that proved he was a route horse through and through. After being a European horse of the year, he finished a close second to Tiznow in that horse's first of two consecutive Breeder's Cup Classic wins. Creative Cause's female family is also replete with horses that could go the one and a quarter mile Derby distance. As such, no one is questioning his ability to run all day, if necessary.

One thing that is odd, is his connections' decision to run him today for the first time without blinkers. Those are what we call the face-mask with the eye cups you can see him wearing in the picture above. They're usually intended to keep horses that spook at things such as shadows andother horses coming up close to them with their mind on their business (that being running on the track in front of them). They can also help a horse that needs a little encouragement to keep a sharp turn of foot (meaning quickness). To switch tactics this late in the game could mean that his trainer doesn't think he needs the focusing help that blinkers supply anymore. Or it could mean that he's been showing a bit too much speed in practice, and they want him to learn to rate (meaning to harbor his strength early on) better. Whichever is the reason, any time you introduce something new to a horse is a chance for them to freak out about it and not perform to their best level (horses, as a species, do not prize novel situations). If and how it will affect his performance, remains to be seen.