The Haiku Handicapper: Eclipse Awards

DRF Breeding’s Joe Nevills makes his selections for the 2014 Eclipse Awards in the form of haiku; a Japanese poem of 17 syllables, in three lines of five, seven and five.

2-year-old male
In an even group
Hootenanny went global
And held the home front

2-year-old female
From well-bred longshot
To champion in two months
Hail Take Charge Brandi

3-year-old male
Bayern’s better late
But Chrome had a dream campaign
And can’t be denied

3-year-old female
Not just her crop’s best,
The best female in training
It’s Untapable

Older male
Rough year for this group
In the main-track division
The pick’s Main Sequence

Older female
Close Hatches’ first half
Was enough to overlook
Late collapse in form

Turf male
Dan overcame more
Main Sequence beat better fields
Advantage: Latter

Turf female
Late start, big finish,
Seven-figure hammer price
Dayatthespa reigns

Male sprinter
Many contenders
That needed one more big win
Private Zone lands it

Female sprinter
Strong throughout the year
Won the big one at the end
Judy the Beauty

Steeplechase
Watched more mule races
Than steeplechase the past year
Therefore, I abstain

Trainer
Pletcher earned the most
And won the most big races
Slam-dunk for seven

Owner
Earnings nearly topped
Second- and third-best combined
Ramseys win again

Breeder
Handful of Tapits
Or army of Kitten’s Joys?
It’s the Winchells’ year

Jockey
Another big year
Leads to Eclipse number two
For Castellano

Apprentice jockey
A fast-rising star
In the So-Cal jockey ranks
Drayden Van Dyke scores

Horse of the Year
Full campaign, big wins
Held form, save one mulligan
California Chrome