He's been at this 40 years.  Strong supporter of HISA and wants to see Tapeta here. 

Highlights: "Luckily, I missed (New York Thunder). I had seen the Test, and I thought, I've been doing this for 40-some years. It was the most sickening thing that I'd ever witnessed in racing."
"I think we really, seriously, need to look at more synthetic tracks. I believe in them. I believe they've got plenty of data to back that up, and I think if anybody's an expert on it, it should be me."

And this quote especially:  "several tracks, like those in California and Keeneland, switched to synthetic, and then switched back."

Well., you guys KNOW my theory on this. (besides fact that maint don't know how to take care of tapeta or synth. I just want to know how to express it publically, w/out generating a ton of "hate mail." Obviously I'm not going to name names, as we all know who I'm talking about. 

I would say:   "Well I have a theory as to why but I probably can't say it publically.  All I can say is look back to the ones who's living was made on certain figures, who was unable to cap on synth.   

Because:   When somebody hates on a horse simply to bolster their own legacy, when it's a horse who was 2010 American Horse of the Year, Champion Older Female in 2008, 2009, and 2010, and won 19 of their 20 starts -----

....and you tell all your little followers to completely leave that horse off their tickets?  

Then its time to look behind the curtain of their ego, and figure out why they would possibly think that way.  The explanation was pretty clear to me.  

I was there and saw it with my own 2 eyes. When you seal a track you should move the race to tapeta. Although I think tapeta is the way to go period. Lol whenever I hear dancing queen it brings a tear to eyes. She was special and enjoyed her job.

And it was laughable how losing by a nose to Blame suddenly means she was no good according to these people.  I'm sure many of them took a bath leaving her off their tickets in the ex/tri/super/hi5 pools....

WT, you express yourself as well or better than most writers I know.  The only job an editor would have with your work is to tweak your final draft for things the reader might not even be aware of.

Go for it.

Smith started her too late.  He was adult enough to admit it afterwards.  

And Many of us  thanked those people very much. Only time I lost money on her was by a nose.

oEveryone here knows the person I am talking about (intitial A.B.)  his own achilles heel / weakness (total inability to handicap on synth) made him turn a false belief into a pronouncement,  one that may have caused others to act in a way that doesn't objectively confirm that belief, but many would follow him over that cliff anyway.   All because you can't admit that one weakness you have (but that everyone knows about anyway).

Compare to the utter generosity and grace that was Steve Roman for comparison.   I respected Steve Roman a lot, at least he admitted that with the advent of the ex quarterhorse trainers taking over TB flat racing, and the breeders following the way they train and race, that he was "getting out", and that his chef-de-race theories were not going to work in this new environment.  I credit him with helping me win many TC races, his PF numbers were gold. 

 But then again, he never charged for his work...so he wasn't desperate to "protect his pocketbook" like A.B. was. 

After that I was certainly not going to support A.B. ......... in anything.   That is one greedy misguided human.   Steve noticed that in the latest Kentucky Derby he "seemed to come around a bit" because he liked some of the Japanese horses.   That was because he couldn't DENY their figures, even in his own theory.  but pretty much spent his whole career dousing foreign horses w/insults.   
 

But he's an old man, and it's too little too late.  Beyer  already been instrumental in making SURE that no tapeta or synth tracks would EVR grace most of U.S. Racecourses.   And I don't find that forgivable, because it wasn't about the horses or jockeys.....it was all selfish self interest on his part for his legacy.  


 

Steve Roman is brilliant, no doubt.  I learned a lot from him about expressions of speed and stamina over the decades of breeding. 

However, and Rob will remember this, I'm sure, Steve thought Zenyatta was overrated.  He didn't think she was particularly fast, considered her, to a great degree, a synthetic specialist and his highest praise about her was that she was "consistent".  I remember his opinion on Zenyatta clearly because I discussed it with him more than once.

That was when she was active as a racer.  I do not know if his opinion has changed.