The Most Difficult Shade is Gray

     I have absolutely no time to write this, so please excuse the bad writing and mistakes. I hope I remember everything I want to say, but I'm just writing "on the fly" here. I think that people who want to help, want to help as much as possible. And it is easier to do more helping, if there is a quick way to do things. If there are hard and fast rules. If there is right and wrong and black and white. But in the case of Star of Rome, as is the case often in life - it's a complex shade of gray.
     I wanted to help. I saw on Facebook that there was a 15 year old horse at finger lakes that had a workout. I've been told that the "claiming game" can be a dark place for a horse. I know good people that keep their eyes on the older horses because sometimes they shouldn't be running. I shared the information on Twitter and well intentioned people took action. But I realize now that I acted rashly. And I don't know if the ramifications can be undone.
     The owner of Star of Rome is Mike Progno. I spoke to him at length. He is owner, breeder, and trainer of Star of Rome, and he says that Star of Rome loves to race. At first I didn't believe him. I saw, on Equibase, how often Star of Rome ran. I saw that he ran on Lasix. I thought that for sure this guy was "bad." I now believe I was wrong.
     Mike Progno is a horseman that does things the old way. He said that he doesn't believe in running horses until they are four years old. He says that not running as a two or three year old is the reason for Star of Rome's longevity, but because of the way things are done nowadays, healthy Star of Rome seems like a freak. He says that in the old days, you'd see teenage horses run often. He told me the names of some horses from long ago so that I could look them up and check it out online. Unfortunately, I couldn't jot the names down as I was driving, and even if I could - I couldn't hear too well on my hands free device. 
     Mike thinks that contrary to the reaction of horror that we all had to the idea of a 15 year old running, that Star of Rome should be held up as an example of racing done right. He said that if horses weren't pumped full of drugs and put into training at two, that there would be many more like "Star," and he thinks that fewer horses would be shipped off to slaughter as well. I asked Mike about the Lasix. I said "Lasix is a drug - what about that?" I asked, "What about the fact that it drains a horse, and doesn't allow them to race often - safely?" Mike said that Star of Rome has never bled, and that he hates Lasix, and wishes that it didn't exist. He said that when Lasix came out, the horsemen were told that it was good for the horses and would prevent the dreaded bleeding. He said that they all used it, but that Star has only ever been on 3 CCs - the minimum recommended dose. Other good horseman that I know to be morally sound have been duped into the Lasix culture as well. Even the best trainers at the top of racing - the cleanest and most revered - use it, as it has become a fact of the racing life (Graham Motion, Cristophe Clement). I believed Glenn Thompson when he said that he would love to not use Lasix, and he was telling the truth. He's isn't using Lasix with his two year olds, and found that if no NSAIDS were given in the days prior to breezing, they in fact didn't bleed. I believe that Mike Progno doesn't want to use Lasix as well, and would be happy to see it taken away. He said that most trainers take away the water after giving Lasix, because they want the horse to lose the water weight to aid Lasix's performance enhancing effects. Mike says he leaves the water with the horse, to minimize any dehydration and its effects.
      I asked Mike why he raced Star so often. He said that the horse dictates when he runs. He says that usually it's every 10 days, but sometimes longer and sometimes shorter in between. He said that Star doesn't like to race on ground that is semi-frozen in the Winter, and that Star gets that time off every year. When off, Star lives in an big open paddock/pasture, and grazes at will. He said that Star gets crazy when he wants to race and starts tearing away up and down the paddock fence, "chomping at the bit," so to speak. He said that between races, Star doesn't train much at all - just a little jog here and there, but mostly - he rests. He said that his filly doesn't like to race as often & usually has a month in between.
     I asked him why Star runs in claiming races. I asked if he was afraid he would lose him that way. He said that he used to be, so he ran Star in allowance races, but that now that he is older, he doesn't think that anyone will want to claim him.  He also said that everybody knows him there - and knows that Star is his "pet." He said that he is afraid that people who think Star should retire might claim him. He said that would be bad for Star - that Star loves him, and even has a girlfriend (the filly) at home, and just doesn't want to retire - yet.
     Finally, I asked him what he would do if Star isn't allowed to race again - what would happen to him then? He said, "Well, it would really stink, because Star would be very unhappy, but he'd just  come home with me." He sent me the pictures and the videos - like he said he would. He seemed to be genuine. I just want to relay the information and let you all judge for yourself: Black and white? Or gray? Are horses all individuals or all cut from the same cloth? Should they be treated based on the reality they present? Or, should hard and fast rules apply to each and every one?
     In my opinion, the hard and fast rules should be those that say: Hay, oats and water only. To me, that's black and white. In other areas, I have to say - there are many shades of gray.