The Sweetest Chant Stakes - *Two* Dead-Heats

It is fairly uncommon to see a tie in a horse race.

Known as "dead-heats", ties simply doesn't happen all that often. Think about it for a minute. Imagine eight horses running in a one-mile race. What are the odds that, after running a mile, two of the horses are going to hit the finish line at the exact same instant?

Yet, despite the incomprehensibility of a dead-heat in a horse race, they happen more often than you would think. I have witnessed many dead-heats since I began following horse racing, some more dramatic than others. Obviously, when two horses dead-heat for the win it is most exciting. I remember watching a dead-heat for the win in a race at Lone Star Park many months ago. I can't remember the details, but if memory serves me, I believe it was in May and on a day with several stakes races carded. Perhaps a filly named Mother Ruth won a race that day, but I don't remember for sure.

Getting back to the purpose of this post, it so happens that I saw something even more unusual than a dead-heat occur during the running of a horse race the other day. It was more unfathomable than just about anything one can imagine. It was so unusual I couldn't believe my eyes.

In the Sweetest Chant Stakes on January 22nd, there were two dead-heats.

Two dead-heats.

Two.

Yes.

Two.

There are not enough superlatives to describe an event like this ---- unbelievable, incomprehensible, implausible, inconcievable ---- the list goes on and on.

The race was one-mile in distance. Kathmanblue, the heavy favorite, finished first by slightly more than a length. Excited finished second, 10 3/4 lengths clear of Nina Fever and Holidaysatthefarm ---- who finished in a dead-heat for third. A length behind them was Bellaridge, who finished a half-length clear of War Prospector and Michelle's Trip ---- who finished in a dead-heat for sixth. Tiger Girl finished eighth and last.

A one-mile race, with eight runners. Four horses were involved in two-dead heats. I don't know when the last time this happened was, but you can bet that it is extremely rare.

Have you ever seen anything like it?

-Keelerman