Saturday, May 03, 2008

Tragedy at the Derby

byL Frank Carpano

As the only Phillie in the field of 20, Eight Belles was the Sentimental favorite among the over 150-thousand fans at Chuchhill downs.

In the grandstand where we sat, many had picked the number 5 horse and were thrilled at the race the horse ran.

From our seats, we couldn’t see the horses after they crossed the finish line. The first indication that something was wrong was when the horse ambulance went racing by in front of us… about 15 minutes later word spread through the crowd…that Eight Belles had collapsed and had to be euthanized.

It had been a wonderful day with a very festive atmosphere that quickly turned somber. Many Derby veterans said that they had never seen anything that tragic in the 134 year history of the race.

Bringing a tragic end to an otherwise thrilling day

(more to come later)