Twitter Judging, Not Just for Horse Racing

There was some griping yesterday about judging. Ya, there was some race at Santa Anita - which I don't watch - and my twitter exploded, but there was something else on twitter, too.

Oh that Ice Dance.

The two best ice dancing teams - honestly I only know this because of twitter.... honest - are the American's and the Canadian's. It's a pretty big rivalry. The short program was contested and the American's received some high marks, with the Canadian's in second. When the judges scores came up, it appeared that the Canadian's lost their marks for this scoring gap to the American's on something called the "Finn-Step Sequence". A few of the judges said the American's kicked some maple syrup eating Canuck ass in the Finn Step, and that's that.

Since I don't know a Finn step from a Danish Danish, that's fine with me. Good on ya, Americanos.

But, interestingly enough, after the Canadian's went, and before the American's did, the dude who invented the Finn Step sequence in the 1994 Olympics, tweeted this:

Thanks @Virtue_Moir for a beautiful #finnstep @ #Sochi2014 #sotshi . Let's see what the rest will do.
— Petri Kokko (@coccco) February 16, 2014

After the American's finished their "Finn Step", he tweeted this:

Hope @Virtue_Moir wins. Americans timing off in the #finnstep and restrained even otherwise.
— Petri Kokko (@coccco) February 16, 2014

When Thomas Edison says you, Sally, makes a better copy of his lightbulb than Jim, usually Jim gets kicked to the curb.

The main difference between Santa Anita judges-griping and the Ice Dance is that people aren't losing their paycheck betting two people dancing on blades, with make up. Well, some people are, because betting the Olympics is available, but you know what I mean.

I don't get too jazzed for Derby prep season until the Fountain of Youth, usually, but today's Southwest Stakes at Oaklawn is interesting to me, mainly because of the presence of Strong Mandate. This guy is a nice looking specimen and seems to have some real raciness and will. Doug has a preview. 

The Boots' comments about how he wants the rule changed so he can nudge, kick, whatever horses with his boots, has been making the rounds. I am still flummoxed as to how this interview even hits the mainstream. Would you not cut the interview? Where is the common sense? If there is a God in heaven, please send us a commissioner. This sport is frigged up.

Enjoy your day everyone!