Azeri's Go for Wand

At 11AM on August 1, 2004, I met Azeri for the first time in her stall at D. Wayne Lukas' barn in Saratoga. The hottest, most evilly humid day in American history, it seemed—but the Queen was placid, calm and perfectly poised. After a ritual of peppermints (hers); joyous tears (mine) and red-lipstick-kisses (ours), she bounced out onto the track to win the Go for Wand. I was certain that my good luck kiss on her star, in concert with my hysterical screaming and clutching of the finish line pole, had helped launch her over that finish line first. Ah, but no: Azeri, the Queen of Thoroughbred racing, would have won the Go for Wand with or without my loving lunacy. The best of the best, she danced into the winner's circle again, greeted by 50,000 wild-eyed fans who gave her a standing ovation in gratitude for her Saratoga win. Marion Altieri