Christmas in July: My Morning with Zenyatta

-Sarah Andrew

The world waits with bated breath. Jockey Mike Smith's Facebook page reported that the superstar Zenyatta will foal within the next 24 hours. At last count, there were 656 comments on Zenyatta's most recent diary entry. Team Zenyatta tweeted that she was relaxed and yawning all day.

As I read these updates, my mind takes me back to a hazy July morning in 2011 when Lucas Marquardt and I had the pleasure of spending a little time with the great mare.

Since 2008, I had the privilege of photographing the bold, beautiful daughter of Street Cry a few times at the track. I've photographed thousands of horses in my life, from the Breeders' Cup to the World Equestrian Games to our local horse auction. No horse other horse has the presence of the great Zenyatta. On the track, she earned over $7,000,000 and she carried herself like she knew it.

She was poetry in motion when she glided over the track at Santa Anita.



She was a supermodel when she showed off her legs at bath time at Churchill Downs.



She always seemed to know where the camera was, and always thrilled the hordes of photographers who surrounded her and documented her every move.



In July, I visited Zenyatta at Lane's End Farm. Retired from racing and pregnant with her first foal, she had a serene look to her, but had not lost an ounce of charisma.



Life on the farm agreed with Zenyatta, just like track life did when she was a racehorse. When she was led out to her pasture, her walk was casual... a far cry from the trademark prowling dance she did before her races at the track.

Her famed dapples were still as big as apples, but had been kissed by the sun from the time spent in her pasture, grazing on Kentucky bluegrass.






It must be a challenging job to care for a mare as famous as Zenyatta, and her team strikes a perfect balance of caring for her every need while also letting her enjoy life as a horse. Tasty Temptation is the perfect companion for Zenyatta, and the two mares peacefully spend many hours together in their idyllic pasture.



Although she could have grazed on acres and acres of grass, Zenyatta chose to spend time with her human admirers, much to our delight.





And now, I go back to waiting with the rest of the world. I extend my very best wishes to Team Zenyatta for an easy and safe delivery for mare and foal, and a bright future for all.

The OTHER Horse of the Year...

-Sarah Andrew

In 2011, Havre de Grace delighted racing fans at five different tracks, from her thriller-diller showdown with Blind Luck in the GII Delaware Handicap (video) to her GI Woodward S. performance at Saratoga, in which she gave the boys a proper trouncing (video).

I have fond memories of photographing the tall, bay daughter of Saint Liam. She is both photogenic and charismatic- I spent as much time admiring her as I did photographing her on the morning of the Woodward. After Havre de Grace's Woodward victory, her jubilant connections brought her back to a little grazing area, where she posed this way and that and treated photographers to a photo session in the fading summer light.

At Monday night's Eclipse Awards, the connections of Havre de Grace accepted the award for Horse of the Year. Owner Rick Porter said, "As many of you know, I've seen the lowest of lows in horseracing. And I've seen a lot of highs. But nothing rivals Havre de Grace. She is the most deserving horse. She is the perfect racehorse, as [trainer] Larry [Jones] has said. She has a great demeanor, an absolutely gorgeous body, a heart as big as America and more ability than any horse that I have ever owned. She puts fire in my belly every time she races. She is just an amazing horse and fits the name Harbor of Grace."

 Just three days earlier, another Thoroughbred with a heart the size of America was awarded Horse of the Year honors. He raced in Australia under the name Hurtle (pedigree), but he's much better known as Neville Bardos. The Danzig grandson didn't show much talent on the turf, and was destined for slaughter, according to trainer and rider Boyd Martin. Neville was purchased for $850, and began his second career as an event horse.

In less than five years, the fiery chestnut went from being a slow racehorse to the United States Equestrian Federation's Horse of the Year and a 2012 Olympic hopeful. But along the way, Neville faced an obstacle like no other. In May 2011, he was in a barn fire that took the lives of six horses. Neville suffered from burns and smoke inhalation, but with the help of his devoted owners and a dedicated veterinary team, his miraculous recovery led him to the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials in England in September, where he finished seventh to cap off a year of unimaginable highs and lows.

I have photographed the team of Neville Bardos and Boyd Martin at both Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event and the World Equestrian Games. The pair always sports serious game faces, and can be seen from a mile away, thanks to Neville's blaze, which crosses his face at a rakish angle.

The horse was named for Neville Bartos, a character in the Mark Brandon "Chopper" Read books (and subsequent movie). But Neville the horse is living a life that is beyond cinematic.

Congratulations and best wishes for future successes to the connections of Horse of the Year Neville Bardos AND to Horse of the Year Havre de Grace. There is nothing quite like the heart of a Thoroughbred...