6B the university daily kansan
wednesday, april 28, 2004
sports
Trainer looking for magic at Derby
The Associated Press
NORTH EAST, Md. — Par from Churchill Downs, racing's "Mad Genius" has been working in his laboratory, hoping to concoct a winning formula for the Kentucky Derby.
After 17 years of tinkering, toying and toiling, trainer Michael Dickinson has his first Derby starter in Tapit, a snowy gray colt with a good chance to win if he improves off his recent victory in the Wood Memorial.
But unlike any other trainer with a horse in Saturday's Derby
— unlike any trainer anywhere, for that matter — Dickinson has tossed tradition aside in his relentless pursuit of perfection.
Most horses train at the racetrack. Not Dickinson's. Leaving nothing to chance, the 54-year-old Englishman spent eight years building Tapeta Farm, a 200-acre horse heaven at the north end of Chesapeake Bay.
Opened in 1998, the farm has three turf tracks, a cushiony allweather dirt track, a barn with skylights, 40 super-sized stalls and wooded horse trails.
An equine paradise? You decide. His horses drink only well water, and are given a pint of Guinness and three eggs daily, along with the rest of their feed. All because Dickinson wants to train as he pleases.
"I suppose I'm trying to demonstrate that there is another way," said Dickinson, a top steeplechase rider and trainer in England before turning to thoroughbreds in the 1980s.
“Obviously, I'm controversial," he said. "Woody Stephens was one of the sport's greatest trainers, and he was never a fan of training on a farm, but there has never been a farm like Tapeta."
Or a trainer like Dickinson, a self-described eccentric and "control freak," said Joan Wakefield, his girlfriend and assistant trainer
"He's never satisfied; he's always looking to do things better."
David Fiske, racing manager for Winchell Thoroughbreds, which owns Tapit, said Dickinson was neither mad nor genius — yet: "He's a perfectionist and frets over lots of things. He tinkers, and tends to do things a bit differently than a lot of people in this country."
Tapit worked out last week during a "media day" at the farm, running five furlongs on an uphill grass track. Dickinson rode beside him in a car on a dirt road, timing the work while Wakefield drove along a road at about 30 miles per hour.
That Dickinson has finally made it to his first Derby -- trainer and horse were scheduled to arrive today in Louisville -- is a testament to his patience.
Dickinson was a celebrity in England, winning more than 350 races in 11 years as a rider, then taking three steeplechase training
titles in four years and being voted into the Hall of Fame. His horses won a world record 12 races in one day and he saddled the first five finishers in the 1983 Cheltenham Gold Cup. British jump racing's version of the Kentucky Derby.
But he yearned to train on the flat track. As a young steeplechase rider, he worked summers for legendary trainer Vincent O'Brien, who created the Ballydoyle training center in Ireland.
"If I'd seen the Great Wall of China, the Niagara Falls and the Pyramids all in the same day, it couldn't have had more of an effect," Dickinson said. "I'm just copying what a little Irishman did 40 years ago."
Even though he was still on top of the popular British jumping scene, Dickinson set out on a new career in 1986. He took a job with thoroughbred owner Robert Sangster, but was fired within six months after winning just four races with a stable of 40 horses.
Group buys Olympic insurance
The Associated Press
LONDON - Guarding against terrorism and natural disasters in Athens, the International Olympic Committee took the unprecedented step of buying insurance in case the Olympics are called off.
The IOC's $170 million policy guarantees that the organization and affiliated national committees and sports federates have enough money to continue operations. The policy would not compensate individual victims.
The policy also doesn't cover corporate sponsors and television networks, which have billions of dollars riding on the Athens Games.
IOC president Jacques Rogge said yesterday insurance was "standard prudent judgment" and reflects no lack of confidence in the Aug. 13-29 games, which have been troubled by construction delays and security worries.
The Athens Olympics, the first
Summer Games since the Sept. 11 terror attacks, will be the most heavily guarded in history. The security budget is nearing $1 billion — more than three times the amount spent on protecting the 2000 Sydney Games.
2006 The IOC is paying about $6.8 million for the policy, and the syndicate is led by New York-based insurance giant American International Group Inc., according to two Olympic sources who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Carrion said the IOC negotiated the bulk of the coverage before the March 11 bombings in Madrid, Spain, that killed 191 people.
Rogge said the IOC also will negotiate individual cancellation policies for future Olympics, including the 2006 Winter Games in Turin, Italy. 2008 Summer Games in Beijing and 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
The Athens policy protects the bulk of the 28 international sports federations on the Olympic program and the 202 national
Olympic committees represented at the games. Many of those organizations rely heavily on games-related revenue.
Rogge said the IOC needs just more than $200 million to keep running in the event of cancellation, and it has about $160 million in financial reserves.
"We will certainly have the required amount after the successful completion of the Athens Games," Carrion said.
Rogge said the IOC began exploring insurance coverage in 2001, but the industry was reluctant to offer terrorism coverage after the Sept. 11 attacks. The IOC had no coverage for the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City.
Carrion said the IOC also considered taking out a credit line to absorb the bulk of the risk, or a combined insurancecredit arrangement for Athens and Beijing. The executive board decided in February to go with the standard contingency insurance.
FOOTBALL
Snubbed quarterback will sign with Chiefs
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Former Tennessee quarterback Casey Clausen has agreed to a free-agent deal with the Kansas City Chiefs and will compete for a backup spot.
Clausen, who ended his career second to Peyton Manning in most statistical categories at Tennessee, was not among the 17 quarterbacks drafted over the weekend.
21 rookie-free agents to attend St. Louis camp
ST. LOUIS — Former Southwest Missouri State defensive back Kailan Williams is among 21 rookie-free agents to agree to terms with the St. Louis Rams, the team announced yesterday
Those players—and the seven drafted by the Rams last weekend—are to attend the team's rookie minicamp Friday through Sunday at the Rams' practice site in Earth City, a St. Louis suburb.
The Associated Press
Excitement. Adventure. Surprise. Thrills. This ain't your parents travel agency. It's yours.
$556
San Jose...$556
London...$569
Amsterdam...$663
Sydney...$1207
Air hostel & transfers
7 night accomm.
LONDON
One stop. No hassles
$782 LIMA, Peru
One stop No hassle
We've got everything you need for your job too.
7 night accomm.
From:
Fair Isle road trip from Kansas City
and prices are per person. Subject
to change and availablty within 48
hours. Fees apply. Fees are valid for students.
Fees are valid for students.
Kansas Memorial Union
We've got everything you need for your next trip.
www.statravel.com
(785) 864.1271
1301 Jayhawk Blvd. Room 475
STUDENT TRAVEL & BEYOND
1420 CRESCENT ROAD
843-3826
1420 CRESCENT RD
843-3826
WEEKLY SPECIALS AT
3801 W.6th 830-8500
www.stonecreekmenu.com
WEDNESDAY
MONDAY
9 inch
Specialty Pizzas
$7.00
Kids under 10 eat free. Limit 2 kids with One Adult Entree
FRIDAY
House Infused
Martinis $5.00
WE BURN THROUGH OUR CASH FOR YOU SELL YOUR BOOKS BACK FOR CASH
SUNDAY
THURSDAY
$1.00 Bud Light draws
$4.95 Bistro Burger
$2.00 Margaritas
$4.95 Quesadillas
1/2 Price Pasta Entrees for KU Students with Student ID
ZLB Plasma Services
Donors Needed! Earn $20 Today!
ZLB Plasma Services
816 West 24th Street, Lawrence, KS 66046
785-749-5750 • www.zlb.com
Donate your blood plasma. Help burn, trauma and shock victims, surgery patients & more.
785-749-3750 www.www2.fees and fees time may vary. New donors only.
this Summer
Earn $5000-$8000
Fry-Wagner Moving and Storage
offers excellent wages, potential overtime, and long-term job security for college students looking for summer employment Call Rocio ext. 321
1. 800.394.0049 or 913.905.1035
to reserve your spot on the summer crew!
FRYE & WAGNER
MOVING & STORAGE
Fry-Wagner is proud to be an Equal-Employment Opportunity Employer
BRITCHES CLOTHING
Top Sale
843 MASSACHUSETTS ST. DOWNTOWN LAWRENCE
Now what?
Still time for graduation regalia, customized announcements (48-hour turnaround) and party items. Stop in to register for $200 grad party
sponsored by Pepsi
Jayhawk
Bookstore
your source all things graduation - at the top of the hill
Sta in • 1480 Crescent Ltd. • 843.3896
or go online www.jayhawkbookstore.com
X