One dream of mine and something I always thought would be an interesting venture is to own a racehorse. From a small circuit horse to a Kentucky Derby thoroughbred, the excitement of watching your horse race (not to mention, having a little wager on him) would be a great experience. Of course, this would be a challenging and expensive dream to obtain due to many factors. For one thing, my knowledge on horse racing doesn’t extend further than walking up to the window and placing an exacta or trifecta, and even that went up in flames on Saturday with my 4,6,8 horses. Financially, horse racing is very expensive to enter, but after I read an article by Darren Rovell last week on the prices of the competing Kentucky Derby horses  I noticed that some horses sold for reasonable prices. I know the purchase of a horse is only the beginning, and the annual up keep and training is where the money is at, but hey it’s fun to dream. Three horses closed as clear-cut favorites heading into the Kentucky Derby:

-          Bodemeister – 4/1

-          Union Rags – 5/1

-          Gemologist – 8/1

According to the Rovell’s article the last known sale price for these horses were also the most expensive of the 12 known in the field:

-          Bodemeister – $260,000

-          Gemologist – $310,000

-          Union Rags –  $390,000

These horses did not dominate the race as some of the pundits proclaimed. Bodemeister did set the pace for most of the race, but long shot I’ll Have Another won the Derby at 15-1. I’ll Have Another was purchased for $35,000 and was by far the best bargain in the race. So even though this blog will not help your handicapping for the next race, it leaves a small window of hope open that at least buying a horse is attainable, winning the Kentucky Derby is another story. Below is the list of the  finishing order with the price that horse was purchased for.

Finish Order (Last Known Sale Price)

1. I’ll Have Another ($35,000)
2. Bodemeister ($260,000)
3. Dullahan ($250,000)
4. Went the Day Well
5. Creative Cause ($135,000)
6. Liaison
7. Union Rags ($390,000)
8. Rousing Sermon
9. Hansen
10. Daddy Nose Best ($35,000)
11. Optimizer
12. Alpha
13. El Padrino ($210,000)
14. Done Talking
15. Sabercat ($120,000)
16. Gemologist ($310,000)
17. Trinniberg ($21,000)
18. Prospective ($250,000)
19. Take Charge Indy
20. Daddy Long Legs ($100,000)

For more information on owning a racehorse check out

Related articles

• VIDEO: Bodemeister Bested By I’ll Have Another In 138th Kentucky Derby (kansascity.sbnation.com)