{"id":5955,"date":"2008-05-09T22:12:16","date_gmt":"2008-05-09T22:12:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blacktypebugler.com\/?p=5955"},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","slug":"oldbtb_1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/?p=5955","title":{"rendered":"Apollo versus Achilles: Sim powerhouses Rapid Grey, Kirby’s Best Yet in Ireland Festival rematch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ireland<\/STRONG>–\u00a0\u00a0 Holy moly!\u00a0\u00a0 The lure of free Guinness and other tasty Irish fare must be too good of an opportunity to pass up even for rich multi-millionaires.\u00a0\u00a0 Must be so, because the good folks at\u00a0Ireland’s Forty Shades of Green<\/A><\/STRONG> residency\u00a0pulled off a major\u00a0coup de grace<\/EM> this week.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Saturday is the rez’s annual Spring Festival.\u00a0\u00a0Every year, they host several\u00a0races for their supporters as well as the premier Grade 1 $500,000 Keg Of Guinness<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0It’s a mighty challenge\u00a0seven-years-running over a turfy mile-and-a-quarter.\u00a0\u00a0 It’s also rich in history.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Keg of Guinness Winners<\/U><\/STRONG><\/FONT><\/DIV>
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2002\u00a0 Prospector Spend\u00a0 2:00 2\/5,\u00a0 <\/FONT>over a proverbial “Who’s Who of the Sim,” including Green Bow, Project Thor, Stormy Prospector, Majestic Water, more!<\/FONT><\/DIV>
2003\u00a0 Sunken Treasure<\/STRONG> 1:59 4\/5<\/STRONG>, set stakes record <\/FONT>over Project Thor<\/FONT><\/DIV>
2004\u00a0 Russ\u00a0 2:01 2\/5, <\/FONT>honest field of graded performers<\/FONT><\/DIV>
2005\u00a0 Militant\u00a0 2:02 1\/5,\u00a0 <\/FONT>short field over Preferred Power<\/FONT><\/DIV>
2006\u00a0 Rise To KLP\u00a0 2:01 4\/5,\u00a0 <\/FONT>over Gerfly’s Deed, Militant<\/FONT><\/DIV>
2007\u00a0 Rapid Grey\u00a0 2:00 4\/5, photo finish over Jumpin’ Java, Rosenthal, New Storm, etc<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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You’ll notice that Rapid Grey<\/STRONG> (5\/1) drank from the golden Guinness Cup last year and he’s back again Saturday to defend his prize.\u00a0\u00a0 But stop the BTB presses, Sim gamers!\u00a0\u00a0 Rival Kirby’s Best Yet<\/STRONG> (7\/1) followed Rapid Grey into this race.\u00a0\u00a0 The duo\u00a0met for the first time last March in the Sand Castle Golden Turf Classic(G1)<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0And the result of that matchup was one for the Sim ages.\u00a0 <\/FONT><\/DIV>
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The Powerhouse\u00a0Duo\u00a0<\/STRONG> <\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Best known as a 10f superstar,\u00a0Rapid Grey attempted to stretch out to\u00a0the Golden Turf’s<\/EM> classic 12f.\u00a0 The 6yo son of Tactical Cat had been successful before over that distance for trainer champions4.\u00a0\u00a0 However, Rapid Grey was on a real mission heading into the Golden Turf<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0 The old\u00a0titan was awesome through the majority of 2007, winning a heap of Grade 1 races.\u00a0\u00a0 Unfortunately,\u00a0he tailed off some by autumn and, in the end, lost the Sim Eclipse turf older horse championship to Lex Luthor.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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After winning his ’08 debut easypeasy at the listed level, Rapid Grey looked primed and ready for a victory that would just vindicate him.\u00a0\u00a0 I think he’s one of the best Sim horses to never win a championship.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0But the problem is that he’s raced in many horses’ shadows like Horseshoe Bay, Sunnybank Memorial, Rain God, and recently, Lex Luthor.\u00a0\u00a0 If Apollo is the god of the moon, then, like the moon, always does Rapid Grey wax and wane<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He gets white-hot, then stumbles in a premier contest, with other stars’ shadows passing over him.\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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In this year’s Golden Turf<\/EM>, Rapid Grey had one of those white-hot races.\u00a0\u00a0 He flew from the back of the pack\u00a0and recorded a huge 111 SP#.<\/STRONG>\u00a0\u00a0 But, as poor luck would have it, this Apollo suffered from yet another shadow.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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And that shadow’s name was none other than\u00a0Kirby’s Best Yet(IRE).\u00a0\u00a0 If there ever was a player who truly could be forgiven for jumping up and down, screaming at the monitor when watching a Sim race, then that player has to be Kirby55 watching his horse’s Golden Turf <\/EM>triumph.\u00a0 <\/EM>\u00a0Are you kidding me?\u00a0\u00a0 Don’t be too\u00a0upset at me Kirby, but I thought your colt last year was one of the biggest\u00a0campaign collapses\u00a0that I had ever seen\u00a0in 9\u00a0years of gameplay.\u00a0 LOL!\u00a0\u00a0 After going perfect through nine starts last July (including all the honor of a\u00a02007 Derby de English <\/EM>trophy!), Kirby’s Best Yet totally flopped.\u00a0\u00a0 It was stunning — this colt was the heir apparent to a long line of great Derby de English winners.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/FONT><\/DIV>
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However, Kirby’s Best Yet turned out to be mortal after all, fizzling away the latter half of ’07.\u00a0\u00a0 Perhaps the son of Dynaformer had some off track excuses and such.\u00a0\u00a0Maybe he also suffered from a bit too conservative<\/EM> race placement (for you newbie readers out there, I can criticize like that since\u00a0kirby55 is an oldie player like me, LOL!\u00a0*wink, wink*)<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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But a good horse (and\u00a0a superior horse especially) will rebound.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Kirby’s Best Yet threw this gorgeous 113 SP#<\/STRONG> stalker-style victory in the Golden Turf<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0 The colt held Rapid Grey safe by near three lengths at the wire too.\u00a0\u00a0 It was his first graded victory since taking the Derby de English<\/EM> last June.\u00a0\u00a0 In this case, all it took was one race to turn this colt’s career around.\u00a0\u00a0 He went on to win a Grade 2 over 12f last month and renews his new rivalry with Rapid Grey Saturday.\u00a0\u00a0Rapid Grey has his ups and downs, but he has the accomplishments worthy of a Sim god like mighty Apollo.\u00a0\u00a0 Kirby’s Best Yet, on the other hand, has proven mortality.\u00a0\u00a0 He’s my Achilles with an Achilles’ heel.\u00a0\u00a0 One of the hottest horses in the Sim at the moment and he tries 10f at the graded level for the very first time.\u00a0\u00a0 Can he beat Rapid Grey at Rapid Grey’s own distance speciality?\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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In The Wings<\/STRONG><\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Well, I’ve done gone and yammered up a whirlwind!\u00a0 Big kudos to the Ireland crew for capturing those two heavy-duty Guinness <\/EM>starters.\u00a0\u00a0 We’ve got 14 other entrants in the race though and I could’ve very well jinxed Rapid Grey and Kirby’s Best Yet with all my coverage.\u00a0\u00a0 So, Ha!\u00a0\u00a0 Let’s see if we can find a spoiler…………….<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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How ’bout a Grade 1 winner in his last start?\u00a0\u00a0 Uh huh, we got one in Forambo Wildcat<\/STRONG> (10\/1) who burned up the Louisiana course in the Explosive Bet(G1)<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0Olwhisper trains the late-blooming Forest Wildcat 4yo.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Bruce spent\u00a02007 testing this colt in ALWs over turf and dirt off and on.\u00a0\u00a0 The colt appeared to have equal propensity over both surfaces.\u00a0\u00a0 That is,\u00a0until Forambo Wildcat threw\u00a0big 101\u00a0and\u00a0110 SP#s on the grass earlier this season.\u00a0\u00a0Look out!\u00a0\u00a0 Forambo Wildcat ran fresh,\u00a0rank, yet positively sensational in a big 111 SP#<\/STRONG> Explosive Bet<\/EM> stalker-style score.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Gimme the green!\u00a0\u00a0 And money, money, money — that was a very nice field in the 9f Bet<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0 Six weeks rest.\u00a0\u00a0 He’s\u00a0inexperienced,\u00a0and you never know if he’ll bounce after his last big race.\u00a0\u00a0 But I like him.\u00a0\u00a0 You should like him too.\u00a0\u00a0 A big possible.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Runnerup in a Grade last time out?\u00a0 Mmhmm, Shriver Mine<\/STRONG> (16\/1) from Jrogue stables.\u00a0\u00a0 Only 16 career calls to the post for this 6yo Dynaformer old timer.\u00a0\u00a0 But, boy, he’s been coming around nicely of late for Jrogue, winning assorted ALWs over 10f.\u00a0\u00a0 The horse leapt all the way up to graded company and picked up a 4th-place cheque in the Misfired Bogie(G3)<\/EM> over nine and\u00a02nd-place\u00a0moeny in the Hallelujah Turf Cup(G2)<\/EM> over 9.5f.\u00a0\u00a0Shriver Mine is workman-like then.\u00a0\u00a0 The stalker threw his best speed\u00a0figure in his last race, and appears to appreciate the extra ground.\u00a0\u00a0 This is a kind of sleeper to sneak up on a poor ‘capper.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I would like to see him at least win a listed stakes race though, but who knows?\u00a0\u00a0 Forambo Wildcat won off of ALWs, so Shriver Mine has a good chance.\u00a0\u00a0 Possible.<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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How ’bout someone who defeated Kirby’s Best Yet recently?\u00a0 Euroalien’s Kafziel Tete(GB)<\/STRONG> (16\/1) <\/FONT>won the blanket finish\u00a0over Kirby’s Best Yet in last December’s At Night Cap(G2)<\/EM>.\u00a0\u00a0Big staying power in this 5yo son of Diesis, he’s hit the board in 2 of 4 12f+ stakes this season.\u00a0\u00a0 Lightly raced at only 18 starts, we’ll see Kafziel Tete up on the lead.\u00a0\u00a0 There’s not a ton\u00a0of speed in this race, but\u00a0Kafziel Tete will have to outbreak West Of The Red just to his inside.\u00a0 Solid horse, but\u00a0has a history of folding even when all alone on the lead.\u00a0\u00a0 Needs his lifetime best shortening up.\u00a0\u00a0 Interestingly, he was a foremr $50k claimer and hasn’t raced over 10f since winning a NW1x for euroalien last June.\u00a0\u00a0 Could the lesser distance be key to this guy?\u00a0\u00a0 One to watch.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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A entrant from Sunnybank Memorial’s trainer Lilbitfarm?\u00a0\u00a0 Yup,\u00a0Rich has one in here with West Of The Red<\/STRONG> (6\/1).\u00a0\u00a0 A good ol’ Lilbitfarm — they sure know how to build graded winners.\u00a0\u00a0 They got West Of The Red riding a 6-race win streak.\u00a0\u00a0 The 5yo Gone West son adores the mighty 10f and has been on a roll of late, gobbling up listed stakes.\u00a0\u00a0 I’m struck by how tough this old boy can tough out a speed duel too.\u00a0\u00a0 Don’t worry if his speed figures factor in here either — ‘Red threw a big 117 SP#<\/STRONG> three back.\u00a0 Mmmhmm.\u00a0\u00a0 The “now” horse.\u00a0\u00a0 But can he finally bring home a big graded prize.\u00a0\u00a0 Class test, but ready for a good show.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Lenny empire for your trifecta?\u00a0\u00a0 You betcha, with Seeking An Empire<\/STRONG> (10\/1).\u00a0\u00a0 Ryan’s known for his powerhouse sophomores, but he can\u00a0pop up with a patiently guided older horse.\u00a0\u00a0 This 4yo colt by Empire Maker took his merry old time breaking his maiden for\u00a0Ryan last year.\u00a0\u00a0 The colt finally cooked over 11f turf and won some races here and there at listed level or less.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Seeking An Empire proved his staying power, but Ryan has shortened him up to 10f for the most part this season.\u00a0\u00a0 The colt keeps knocking on the door and lost a heartbreaking photo LTO.\u00a0\u00a0 A big 111 SP# <\/STRONG>prompted a try in this spot.\u00a0\u00a0 Can take the lead or sit behind the frontrunners close up.\u00a0\u00a0Fresh on 5 weeks.\u00a0 Possible spoiler on numbers, but is he ready skipping all the way up to a Grade 1?<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Did you want the Super empire instead?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 We got plenty of graded experience\u00a0in the Supers’ Roadhouse Blues <\/STRONG>(9\/1).\u00a0\u00a0 This veteran 5yo son of Java Gold has won over $800k.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 He’s nothing to sneeze at, having sandwiched\u00a0the New Oak(G3) <\/EM>prize in between\u00a0DelPenn-restricted company scores.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Quite a solid, professional horse.\u00a0\u00a0 Unfortunately, Roadhouse Blues has thrown two straight yicky races in top-tier Grade 1 company.\u00a0\u00a0 So, he gonna have turn it around while shortening up to 10f.\u00a0\u00a0 That won’t be a problem for the closer though.\u00a0\u00a0 The spot fits him.\u00a0\u00a0 He’s just got to\u00a0wake up hopefully.\u00a0\u00a0 We’ll see what happens.<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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The Longshots<\/STRONG><\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Some of these outsiders are pretty good……..<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Newscoobi’s Hard Miss<\/STRONG> (10\/1) is not exactly a longshot, but he is making his 37th trip to the post.\u00a0\u00a0 Ya never know though, the 6yo son of Miswaki might finally have a huge day.\u00a0\u00a0 He got close in January,\u00a0rallying for the show spot in the Marcos Footwear(G3)<\/EM>.\u00a0The old boy rode reams of confidence afterwards, pocketing a 10.5f stakes race with a big 109 SP#<\/STRONG> a month later.\u00a0\u00a0 Solid\u00a0100+ speed figures look good onm paper.\u00a0\u00a0 But he faltered in his last start and I think this might be a bit reaching.\u00a0\u00a0 Still, a factor for minor money.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Golden Calf<\/STRONG> (12\/1) from boeufcake stable has paid back the $50k shake for his trainer many times.\u00a0\u00a0 The Holy Bull 6yo horse loves the extra ground in classic routes and has just been solid since the claim with 4 victories from 7 starts.\u00a0 He even picked up 5th-place cheques on Sand Castle day as well as in a subsequent Grade 3.\u00a0\u00a0 Interesting,.\u00a0\u00a0 He’s an old-timer at 38 starts, but you gotta love his careful upswing in speed figures.\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0Possible for minor money, but, gosh, he’d have to run herculean to beat the faves in this field.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Minor dough at best.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Lostorf’s Craft Stripe(ENG)<\/STRONG>\u00a0(15\/1) is a dark horse.\u00a0\u00a0 He’s won two in a row after working through his ALW conditions mostly over a flat mile.\u00a0\u00a0 The 4yo son of Starcraft beat up on a short field over 10f\u00a0LTO.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It was just his 14th career start.\u00a0\u00a0 I agree that you have to try the grades some time or another and this colt certainly apprecaited the extra distance of late.\u00a0\u00a0 I would like to see the downtown closer try to duplicate that win though in another listed stakes.\u00a0\u00a0 It was 106 SP# which is good, but he’ll need 110+ to hit the board in this\u00a0Grade 1?\u00a0\u00a0 Is he ready?\u00a0\u00a0 I’d say doubtful, but nice horse with a bright future.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Bestobene’s closer\u00a0Benjamin Bouncer<\/STRONG> (23\/1) shortens up after hitting the board in several marathon listed stakes.\u00a0\u00a0 The 4yo son of Vindication has a nice victory over 11f recently, but this is a real tough assignment.\u00a0 Outsider but hopefully can vie for some minor money.<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Quietman49’s King Of Times(IRE) <\/STRONG>(18\/1) should cruise near the frontrunners.\u00a0\u00a0 The King of Kings 4yo hasn’t won much, but did throw a couple big 109 SP# recently in ALW company.\u00a0 Sleeper who we don’t\u00a0kknow much about other than he’s gonna face top tier competition for the first time Saturday.\u00a0\u00a0 Can go either way.\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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The 7yo Run Wahbit Run<\/STRONG> (16\/1) from stormbound stable steps in here after having won a 10f listed stakes LTO.\u00a0\u00a0 Good time for the old boy closer.\u00a0 He was a decent runner in his younger days.\u00a0 \u00a0Certainly fresh, but this is quite a leap.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Toss up a prayer and see which way the wind blows.\u00a0\u00a0 His form might garner some minor money.<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Nice 108 SP#<\/STRONG> ALW score LTO for kyclocker’s Jedi Ransom(ENG)<\/STRONG> (25\/1).\u00a0\u00a0 The lightly raced 4yo Red Ransom colt bloomed with the layoff and the extra distance.\u00a0\u00a0He’s probably the best longshot of this group, with some back class earlier in his sophomore season.\u00a0\u00a0 Not much\u00a0to go on though in this toss up for all the marbles.\u00a0\u00a0 I’d prefer a listed stakes win to see if his last race was or wasn’t a fluke.\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Finally, we have a 3yo colt taking on his elders\u00a0in Flag The Band<\/STRONG> (50\/1) from slewtpie stable.\u00a0 This is a mis-entry.\u00a0\u00a0 The Dixieland Band runner is running 90 SP#s, while these older horses are\u00a0all running 105 and more.\u00a0\u00a0He’s a very nice youngster, why rush him versus older horses while there are rich prizes to be won versus his own age group?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Snowchief’s Picks:<\/U><\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Rapid Grey could throw a clinker after the layoff, but I wouldn’t count on it.\u00a0\u00a0 Kirby’s Best Yet is red-hot and should get the lead at some point late.\u00a0\u00a0 Forambo Wildcat, Seeking An Empire, Shriver Mine, West\u00a0Of The Red\u00a0are all excellent longshots.\u00a0\u00a0 Jedi Ransom could be very tasty too.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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I’m gonna go with the best horse in the race though\u00a0— mighty Apollo a.k.a. Rapid Grey in a\u00a0late rally.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Win:\u00a0\u00a0 Rapid Grey<\/FONT><\/DIV>
Place:\u00a0 Forambo Wildcat or Seeking An Empire<\/FONT><\/DIV>
Show:\u00a0\u00a0Kirby’s Best Yet<\/FONT><\/DIV>
Longshot:\u00a0\u00a0 Jedi Ransom<\/FONT><\/DIV>
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Good luck everyone!\u00a0\u00a0 And have a great Spring Festival Forty Shades of Green!!!!<\/FONT>\u00a0<\/DIV><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thorough field squares off against the superstar duo in Keg Of Guinness <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":396,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5955","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-previews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5955","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/396"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5955"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5955\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5955"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/btb.ehorseracing.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}