There was an interesting article by Joe Drape in the New York Times on Sunday, May 11. Drape quotes Arthur Hancock III, breeder of three Kentucky Derby winners, including Fusaichi Pegasus (pictured), on speed in the modern Thoroughbred. “We’ve lost sight of trying to breed a sound solid racehorse,” said Hancock. “I’m guilty of it, too. The danger of it is great. Like Willie Nelson said, ‘Greed is terminal.'”

Drape also quotes Wayne McIlwraith, equine surgeon and past president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, as well as Larry Bramlage, the on-call veterinarian at Churchill Downs, when Eight Belles was euthanized on the track, as a result of her breakdown following her second-place finish in the Kentucky Derby. Both McIlwraith and Drape discuss the change in Thoroughbred conformation over the past 50 years.

In Monday’s New York Times, there is also an article about Rick Dutrow, trainer of Kentucky Derby winner Big Brown (who is also mentioned in Sunday’s article). Dutrow talks about his troubled past, which included a 5-year suspension from New York racetracks, and Big Brown’s prospects in the Preakness and Belmont stakes.