Friday, April 30, 2004
Tapit and his training habbits.
Meet Tapit, the wonder horse who will be running in this weekend's 130 Kentucky Derby. Tapit is among the favorites and will roughly a 10-1 chance of winning. Supposedly the field of horses is wide open, but I don't know much about it. However, I do know about Tapit's training regime.
In addition to usual feed, Michael Dickinson nourishes each of his horses with a daily combo of three eggs and a bottle of Guinness Stout.
Rather than training them at a racetrack, he does it here on his postcard-perfect Tapeta Farm on the upper Chesapeake Bay.
Instead of galloping them around a flat, dirt oval, he runs them slightly uphill on long, grass courses or on another course layered with his patented mix of sand and "secret ingredients." He says it is all designed to ease pounding on their vulnerable front legs.
"He is a happy horse," says his trainer, Michael Dickinson.
With a remarkably straight face, Dickinson, known as "The Mad Genius," goes on to explain why you can't lead a horse to only water: "It's an appetizer. The main part of his diet is oats. That's like Corn Flakes, and we all like milk on our Corn Flakes. Well, he likes Guinness on his Corn Flakes."
Brilliant option | Unusual methods ¶ 4/30/2004 09:00:00 AM
Meet Tapit, the wonder horse who will be running in this weekend's 130 Kentucky Derby. Tapit is among the favorites and will roughly a 10-1 chance of winning. Supposedly the field of horses is wide open, but I don't know much about it. However, I do know about Tapit's training regime.
In addition to usual feed, Michael Dickinson nourishes each of his horses with a daily combo of three eggs and a bottle of Guinness Stout.
Rather than training them at a racetrack, he does it here on his postcard-perfect Tapeta Farm on the upper Chesapeake Bay.
Instead of galloping them around a flat, dirt oval, he runs them slightly uphill on long, grass courses or on another course layered with his patented mix of sand and "secret ingredients." He says it is all designed to ease pounding on their vulnerable front legs.
"He is a happy horse," says his trainer, Michael Dickinson.
With a remarkably straight face, Dickinson, known as "The Mad Genius," goes on to explain why you can't lead a horse to only water: "It's an appetizer. The main part of his diet is oats. That's like Corn Flakes, and we all like milk on our Corn Flakes. Well, he likes Guinness on his Corn Flakes."
Brilliant option | Unusual methods ¶ 4/30/2004 09:00:00 AM
