Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Life in the Fast Lane....



Boy, my apologies for neglecting this blog for the past several weeks...needless to say, I suck at blogging, LOL!  I'm great at taking photos and editing, but when it comes to uploading and writing, I need to work on that for sure.

So, forgive me....

I have some gorgeous things to share - namely THOROUGHBRED HORSES!  I grew up living just above the Santa Anita Racetrack, I mean literally, you could place a bet and then walk into the backyard and hear Trevor Denman calling the race!  Needless to say I NEVER went to the track...it took me 40 years to get there and I can tell you that this past Saturday I photographed the most amazing, gorgeous creatures.



We met a friend in the morning at Clocker's Corner for breakfast and watched the morning work-outs.  I was giddy as a kid in a candy store, armed with my 5d...I shot across the track during the workout.  


Ok, so this isn't a horse, but it IS Hall-of-Fame jockey Gary Stevens holding court at Clocker's Corner!

Ok, AND we got to meet him (he played drums with my husband's band in college!)  Forgive the Facebook/MySpace/pseudo-gang signs of my almost-7-year-old

Later we took the Seabiscuit Tour through the back barns, into the pre-race paddock, into the jockey's silk room and jockey room, then into the saddling paddock...it was wonderful.




I feel inspired (almost) to raise at 5 a.m. to go to the track and shoot these beasts through the morning fog..(I said FEEL inspired...I'm not committing to anything because unfortunately my body truly doesn't function well before 10:30 a.m.!)



This is trainer Bob Bean of Beans Barn...his gorgeous Appaloosa is *29* years old!  We actually had the pleasure of meeting Bob at one of the local restaurants a few months ago (he gave me his card!)...he's been training for more than 55 years!

This is Lexi...she for the most part, lives at the track and hangs around with her best friends - Rebel the carriage horse.  See her coat?  I love it!  So fashionista...or is that doginista??

Jockey Danny Sorenson

Jockey, Corey Nakatani...man, this guy has been around forEVER....one of the last great jockeys...I bet on him when I used to go Del Mar in the '90s....


 
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....I love the track....