The Good Old Days

We all look back on "the good old days," usually with fondness. I recently had a chance to reminise about the 1990's the decade that we were deeply involved in horseracing. The Daily Racing Form, the horseplayers bible, published an article by Bill Christine about the 10 most eclectic silks in racing. Ours were number 4! In the article Bill talked about the many horses we had owned and raced, how we acquired them, how we named them and how we came up with the Cubs logo on our silks. His writing brought that era back to life for me, as I remembered the highs and lows of horseracing, the men and women who came in and out of our life during that time, and the few long relationships that developed. Horseracing is an industry where you're as likely to know the president of a foreign country as you are a homeless man. We knew both. Unfortunately, most of the people involved in racing are only interested in what you can do for them: give them a winner, give them a job, do something for them. Thus, when you get out of the business or fall on far times, most of those people are long gone. So when I think about the good old days, I have both good and bad memories. The friends that have survived our departure from racing, Roger, Alfredo and Angela, and Jose and Renee are true friends. We cherish their friendship. The good old days for me also means stress. There is tremendous stress to win, as feed and vet bills are very expensive. It costs upwards of $3,000 per month to keep a horse in training. That means they must run and earn money every month to pay their way. If they get injured, they still have to eat. We had horses that had to be laid up for a year before returning to racing. The anxiety of the actual race is a huge adrenalin rush. Big race or small race, it's all about winning. We loved our involvement in racing, but looking back on it, I am glad we've moved on. I'm not sure my heart could take it now. Below is the article from the DRF written by Bill Christine. I got a kick out of it, and hopefully you'll enjoy reading it too. 4. Ron Anson Adrian “Cap” Anson was a 19th century star first baseman for the Chicago franchise that became the Cubs. A hundred years later, Ron Anson (no known relation) campaigned a California racing stable noted for silks patterned after a Cubs’ uniform. Anson comes from Chicago’s South Side, which by rights should have made him a White Sox fan. He campaigned mostly claimers, but took shots with horses in Japan and won the Oak Leaf Stakes at Santa Anita with the you-have-to-explain-the-name-of-this-horse Tali’sluckybusride − something to do with Ron’s wife, Susie, who befriended a puppy thrown off a bus and named her Tali (“lucky” in Chinese). The Ansons once won the same race twice on the same day, when their entrymates, Gomezmerize and Onepowerful Bullet, finished in a dead heat at Hollywood Park on Nov. 18, 2000, Ron Anson’s 58th birthday.