BitPlayer Wrote:
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> I'm far from an expert, but this is not Pletcher's
> first rodeo. Part of his success with Lawyer Ron
> was attributed to the use of draw reins:
>
> http://cs.bloodhorse.com/blogs/horse-racing-steve-
> haskin/archive/2009/07/20/lawyer-ron-beyond-a-reas
> onable-doubt.aspx

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[i]Fast forward once again, this time to July 28, 2007 at Saratoga. Lawyer Ron had won the Oaklawn Handicap, but subsequently could only manage a third in the Met Mile and a second in the Salvator Mile. Now, it was the morning of the Whitney.
At 8:30, blacksmith Ray Amato was putting the final nails in Lawyer Ron's new shoes. The colt stood calmly, barely moving a muscle, as Amato's assistant, Joe Estrada, stroked his head and planted an occasional kiss on his muzzle. But Amato felt something that escaped the naked eye.

"Joe, can you bring his head around, he's layin' on me pretty good," Amato said to Estrada, as he felt the strength of Lawyer Ron pushing against him. "Come on, Ron, stand up here now. After a few minutes, Amato was unable to continue. "Joe, I'm gonna have to let him go; he's really layin' on me."

That seemingly insignificant scene took on a good deal more meaning later that afternoon when Lawyer Ron laid over his 10 opponents, who also felt the colt's strength as he powered his way to a 4 3/4-length victory in track-record time.

One of the reasons Lawyer Ron was more cooperative that year than the year before, learning how to rate kindly, was the addition of draw reins for his morning gallops. In the Whitney, a more professional Lawyer Ron sat behind the pace after breaking from the 10-post, and when John Velazquez asked him, he exploded and busted the race wide open. A month later, he romped by 8 1/4 lengths in the Woodward Stakes. Stretching out to 1 1/4 miles, which was not his best distance, he doggedly turned back the challenge of Curlin.
[/i]
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>


Not sure if it was the draw reins or not, but I remember that Whitney day vividly. I was standing in the paddock not more than 3 feet from Pletcher as Velasquez hopped aboard Lawyer Ron just as they were about to enter the track. Don't know what the two said to each other, but as the typically stoic-faced Pletcher turned to leave the paddock, his eyes were practically bursting out of his sockets and he had this kind of maniacal look on his face that sent chills down my spine. Never seen anything like it before or since.

LR exploded down the stretch that day and trounced the Whitney competition, running a negative 6 and breaking a track record in the process.

I'm sure the backyard crew at the spa has heard me tell that story on more than once occasion..