Rachel Alexandra is all (racing) heart. In her final two workout before the Oaks, she wowed morning clockers (looking at their watches in disbelief) with her last two training sessions before the Oaks on April 16 and 27. In her gallop the morning before the race, her exercise rider struggled to keep her from breaking into a full-speed run and had to wrestle with her to finally bring her to a stop.
"I am a little concerned she's gone too fast in her works," said Wiggins. "But Calvin keeps reassuring me that she's doing it real easy."
On May 1, 2009, a 1-5 favorite, Rachel Alexandra won the (Gr 1) $500,000, 1-1/8 mile Kentucky Oaks at Churchill Downs, in Louisville, Kentucky. On a windy, humid, overcast afternoon, in front of a crowd of 104,867, the fourth-largest in Oaks history, she ran away from the field at the stretch with Borel riding motionless, and won by a whopping 20-1/4 lengths breaking the stakes record for winning margin. Her finishing time was 1:48.87 over a fast track, just missing the stakes record by 0.23 second set by Bird Town in 2003, and earning her a Beyer Speed figure of 108.
Video BEFORE the race
Video The Kentucky Oaks 2009
Video AFTER the race - 1
Video AFTER the race - 2
Video Demolishing the Field
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