Damon Thayer is a 35 year old "good old boy" and a control freak from a racing family in Kentucky. I have had to deal with him personally in regard to my band performing at the Breeders Cup, an event we performed at (with high regard from horsemen and fans alike) from 1998-2001 until he took over the reigns. In his typically dictatorial style, he chose to hire a ( now retired )drunk because the drunk was "a legend" and to soothe his own ego with regard to controlling people. His efforts have gone to the extreme of sueing anyone who uses the term "Breeders' Cup" on their websites. Imagine that - free publicity for racing and he wants to sue those who want to help the game!

The fact that the Derby was won by a New York bred and a PA bred the last 2 years was equivilant to the Tsunami disater in the egotistical minds of Thayer and his cronies. Look folks, if it were not for the Derby and its mass marketing of an overhyped 2 minute race, Louisville would be just another hic-town in the middle of nowhere and guys like Thayer would be lucky to be flipping burgers for a living, that is unless they could get into the slave trading business. O wait, they already are in that business. You know, some things about racing haven't changed since 1875 and as long as guys like him are running the show, they never will.