It's Good for You! Kentucky Derby Contender Swears By His Guinness

by Fran Jurga | 1 May 2009 | Fran Jurga's Hoof Blog

Kentucky Derby horse Musket Man drinks a Guinness every day; photo by SniperPhotography.com.

How long does it take a pint of Guinness to leave a horse's bloodstream?

I have a feeling that Derek Ryan, the Irish-born trainer of Musket Man, has that all figured out. The winner of the Illinois Derby was exposed today when the New York Times wrote about his unusual diet, which includes a daily Guinness and raw egg--shell and all.

Musket Man goes to the post tomorrow with the best wishes of his horseshoer, Bruce Anderson who normally shoes in the Tampa, Florida area or in New Mexico. We believe he is wearing Kerckhaert Kings Plates all around (thanks to some detective work by Dan Burke of Farrier Product Distribution).

Thanks to Sniper Photography for catching Musket Man sniffing out his favorite beverage on the backside at Churchill Downs.

But wait, there's more: A p.r. rep named Veronica who works for Guinness sent me an email tonight (you never know who is reading this blog) to let me know that the brewery has donated a supply of the new, limited-edition Guinness 250th Anniversary Stout to Derek Ryan and/or Musket Man.

Once this blog post gets around, Veronica is going to hear from every ex-pat Irish horse trainer in America...and there's a lot of them!

Click here to read the New York Times story about the trainer's unorthodox ideas about how to feed a racehorse. Considering that the colt was bought for $15,000 and has won over $500,000, I would not change a thing.

I fully expect to see Musket Man's photo framed and hung on the wall among all the Guinness and racing memorabilia in Saratoga Springs when we return in August. He'll fit right in.

What Would Mr. Gibbs Say About Big Brown's Feet? Horseshoes Mean Something to New York's New Governor

What would the New York governor's great grandfather think of glueable Yasha shoes?

New York Governor David Paterson has a lot of firsts to his credit. He took over the leadership of the state on March 17, after the resignation of then-governor Spitzer. Paterson is New York's first African-American governor and the state's first blind governor.

What we didn't know until today is that he has piles of horseshoes in his past. While presenting the Belmont Stakes trophy to trainer Nick Zito, Paterson shared his family's horseshoeing connection.

Paterson's great grandfather was horseshoer to the powerhouse breeder/owner H.P. Whitney, owner of Greentree Stud, in the years after World War I in New York. In particular, Mr. Gibbs shod a horse with the apt name of Upset. Upset would hand the great Man 'o War his only defeat, in August 1919 in the Sanford Stakes at Saratoga, with Mr. Gibbs' shoes on his hooves.

Mr. Whitney, who just happened to be one of the wealthiest people in America, rewarded his blacksmith by buying him a house in the Fort Green section of Brooklyn. He also bought homes for some other members of his stable staff.

As Paterson describes it, the new house helped lift his family to a new level of possibility in pursuit of the American dream. Without Whitney's generosity, the house wouldn't have happened. It was the house where Paterson spent his childhood. And it was a house that some very lucky horseshoes built.

Thanks to the Left at the Gate blog and other sources for help in piecing together this story from Governor Paterson's remarks.