Horse Racing's Holy Grail: The Epic Quest for the Kentucky Derby

I have been a fan of Steve Haskin when he was a columnist for the Daily Racing Form, and I continue to read his articles in the Blood-Horse as well as his frequent internet postings. I enjoyed the Holy Grail. I have read it twice, most recently as a reference guide in preparing remarks to my local Rotary club on the Kentucky Derby. The stories set forth therein will interest not only the dedicated fan of thoroughbred horse racing but anyone with an appreciation of the human condition.

One of the best books I have read on on the Derby. I though I was a fairly good handicapper on the Derby but didnt realize how important it was to have the Gods of Racing on your side. Very informative book.

Steve Haskin is one of my favorite senior correspondents for the weekly 'Blood-Horse' magazine. His Derby Watch is a feature of the 'Blood Horse' web site, although it hasn't done me much good, so far on the 2002 Derby trail (I'm currently ranked 12,123 out of a field of 17,187 players in the Kentucky Derby Fantasy Challenge).At any rate, Haskin writes descriptions of the current Derby prospects, like:'Hey, nothing surprises us anymore this year. So, we've got a Derby contender who changes leads four times, is pulled to the inside rail twice as if it were magnetized, and runs with his tongue flapping out of his mouth. So what? We threw the book away this year a long time ago.'No, don't throw away the book---at least not if it's Haskin's 'Horse Racing's Holy Grail.' By nature, the book is more generic than his online column---he has to talk about previous Derby contenders, and their jockeys and trainers, not the current lot. However, 'Grail' is quite informative on what bloodlines to look for (the infamous Dosage index), which jockeys are best fitted to ride say, a horse that likes to come from behind, and which trainers are gearing up to win the Derby as soon as the yearling sales are history.His favorite trainers are multiple Derby winners, and he calls them the 'Derby Dynamos.' They are D. Wayne Lukas, Nick Zito, and Bob Baffert. You could do well if you picked one of these trainers, and bet on his horse (or horses)---although 2002 seems to be an exception to the rule---none of the 'Derby Dynamos' has what currently looks like a Derby horse unless you planning to pick a longshot like Baffert's Danthebluegrassman. 'Grail' is a fun book to read if you have any interest at all on watching or betting on the Kentucky Derby. Haskin writes very knowledgeably the ten rules on how NOT to pick a horse, which jockeys are the most likely to win (hold off betting until Jerry Bailey, Chris McCarron, and Corey Nakatani have finally settled on their Derby mounts), and how (if all else fails) to appease the fickle Derby gods (in part, it involves feeding senior press correspondents).