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Inside
Bay Area (California)
By
Dennis Miller, STAFF WRITER
July
8, 2006 Saturday
Cloned
mule draws media like flies
PLEASANTON
-- Cameras and reporters from every major television station in the Bay
Area visited the winner's circle Friday afternoon at the Alameda County
Fair.
Three
major newspapers also had photographers on hand, creating a logjam
around
the finish line never seen before for the horse races.
Why
was everyone here? Was there a Triple Crown winner being
paraded
around the track? How about a celebrity on hand to present an award?
Not
even close. What brought everyone out was a cloned mule -- Idaho Gem --
running in the fourth race of a 10-race card.
"I
think half the Bay Area (media) is here," said Jeanne Wasserman, the
director
of operations for racing. "In all my years here, this is the most media
I have ever seen at the track. We've tried all sorts of things to get
people
out, but all it took was one cloned mule to create all this excitement."
For
the record, Idaho Gem ran fourth in the race won by Out Of My
League,
but the real story is the world's first cloned equine horse was even
taking
part in the race. His brother, Idaho Star, also a clone, ran on
thefirst
day
and finished out of the money as well.
Ruby
Thomas, the trainer of Idaho Gem, has been a media magnet
since
the mule made its first start June 3 in Winnemucca, Nev. And she's
still
shaking her head about it all.
"I
don't think you ever get used to it," Thomas said. "Sometimes I
wonder
what (the media) is all doing here."
So
intense is the media attention, Thomas' 7-year-old grandson Jayme was
holding
court with one television station right after the race. "He loves it,"
said Thomas of her grandson. For his part, Jayme seems to have a pretty
good idea of what's going on.
"This
is fun," said Jayme. "It's not a regular mule, it's a cloned mule.
There's
a difference with it and the rest of the mules. But he's fast and he
gets
a lot of attention."
The
race Friday was set up to be a battle between Bar JF Hot Ticket, an
undefeated
mule, and Idaho Gem, who had two wins in three starts. But post
position
killed any chances either had. Bar JF Hot Ticket had the outside post
and
went even further outside when the gate opened, rallying some, but only
getting back to second. Idaho Gem drew the No.3 post, much to the ire
of
Thomas.
"The
inside of the track is dead," Thomas said. "We didn't expect much of
anything
from there."
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Featured
News
California
Exposition
and State Fair Announces New Appointment
to Board of Directors
SACRAMENTO,
CA (February 14, 2007) - The California Exposition and State Fair today
announced the appointment of Bert Johnson, M.D., as the newest Director
on the Cal Expo Board of Directors.
Dr. Johnson, of Los Gatos, currently serves as a clinical
professor of Obstretrics-Gynecology at the Stanford Medical Center in
Stanford, California. As a rancher, he is also a member of
several organizations including the California Cattleman’s Association,
National Cattleman’s Association, California Beef Council, and the
Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association.
Dr. Johnson graduated from Stanford University with a
Doctorate in Medicine in 1952. Among his many accomplishments, he
is also the founder, and past resident, of the Los Olivos Women’s
Clinic in Los Gatos, California.
Dr. Johnson was appointed to the Cal Expo Board of Directors
by the Senate Rules Committee. His term ends December 31, 2010.
The Board of Directors serves as the policymaking body for
the California Exposition and State Fair and has full responsibility
for the year-round management and operation of all facilities of the
California Exposition and State Fair.
The 2007 California State Fair will be held from August 17
to September 3, 2007.
Press
Releases 2003
Press
Releases 2001
Press
Release Archive 2000
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News
Clips/Articles
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Stem
cell research
may lead to race horse cloning
Katharine
Lackey,Collegian,
Penn State University, Nov 8, 2007
Current Penn State
research could immortalize future racehorses and could have produced
offspring from horse racing greats, such as the late 2006 Kentucky
Derby winner Barbaro. By allowing for continual sperm production from
the stem cells in gonads, a horse could continue to pass on its genes
after castration or even death, said Jon Oatley, assistant professor of
reproductive biology in the department of dairy and animal sciences...
Races feature more than horses - Celebrity mule returns to Stockton
< style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">By Roger
Phillips,Record Staff Writer, June 16, 2007 6:00 AM
< style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">STOCKTON - Ruby
Thomas will gladly tell you that those prone to attributing the trait
of stubbornness to mules simply haven't spent enough time getting to
know the unfairly maligned creatures. "I think that's just a saying,"
Thomas said on a steamy Friday afternoon, shortly after one of the
mules she trains, Navaho Lady, finished second to Jo De Nelson in the
350-yard second race on the second day of the San Joaquin Fair.
Cloning
still at the starting line
By Gary Mihoces, USA TODAY, June 5, 2007
For the 29th year in a row, Saturday's Belmont Stakes will not produce
a Triple Crown champion. So we know great Thoroughbreds can't be
ordered up. However, two years ago, the owners of Funny Cide were
approached by a California firm with an offer to clone their horse, to
make a DNA duplicate of the 2003 winner of the Kentucky Derby and
Preakness.
Ferndale
expects another big fair
Eureka
Reporter, Mike Morrow, Aug 6, 2006
...Horse
racing and mule racing continue to be a major attraction, Titus said,
and
this year’s event will be of particular interest because of the
presence
of Idaho Gem and Idaho Star, 3-year-old cloned mules. This year’s
cloned
mules will be a first and will be participating as part of the regular
racing program....
Cloned
mules are racing
The
Australian, Australia - Jun 4, 2006
...
Scientists at the University of Idaho cloned the mules with the help of
funding from the president of the American Mule Racing Association, Don
Jacklin...
Clones'
Debut Is a Test of Genetics, and Bettors' Wits
New
York Times, United States - Jun 3, 2006
...
Jacklin is the president of the American Mule Racing Association, and
he
said one of the reasons he took part in the cloning project was to drum
up publicity ...
Investor
sees mules as a boon to betting
Capital
Press (subscription), Oregon - Jun 2, 2006
Don
Jacklin loves mule racing so much he is the principal investor in the
half-million-dollar
project at the University of Idaho and Utah State University that
...
First-ever
mule clones ready to race
Logan
Herald Journal, UT - Jun 3, 2006
...
Don Jacklin, who heads the American Mule Racing Association and helped
finance the project, is racing Idaho Gem. Idaho Star is sponsored
...
Heady
stuff riding on cloned mules
Seattle
Post Intelligencer - Jun 1, 2006
...
If you're actually wagering on mule racing, I would guess that someone
at some point has called you a loser. I've bet on thoroughbreds
...
Murphy:
For equine entertainment, Mr. Ed has nothing on cloned ...
IdahoStatesman.com,
ID - Jun 2, 2006
...
going to be a huge turnout to see how they compete," said Don Jacklin,
an innovator in the cloning project and president of the American Mule
Racing Association ...
Feature
bill: 'Clone Wars'
San
Francisco Chronicle, USA - Jun 14, 2006
...
Now three years old, Idaho Gem and Idaho Star began their racing
careers
at Nevada's annual Humboldt County Fair mule festival in Winnemucca on
June 3-4. The ...
Clones
to square off at racetrack
Capital
Press (subscription), Oregon - Jun 2, 2006
...
The first California mule races will be held in Stockton during the San
Joaquin County Fair. Playing the part of mule racing’s PT Barnum is
Jacklin.
...
Nature
vs. Nurture: Cloned mule to race brethren
Globe
and Mail, Canada - May 20, 2006
...
Playing the part of mule racing's PT Barnum is Jacklin, a mild-mannered
Idaho resident and the president of the American Mule Racing
Association
and the ...
< style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Divide
and mule
By
Rachel Pagones, March
17, 2006, FT.com
(Financial Times)
Winnemucca,
Nevada, seems an unlikely spot to glimpse the future of anything. The
high
desert town, first settled by beaver trappers in the early 1800s, is
home
to such nostalgic events as Shooting The West XVIII photography
weekends
and something called Run-A-Mucca motorcycle rallies - action-packed
affairs,
but hardly paradigm-changing.
5/24/06
Cloned
mules to race in Nevada showdown (Sac Bee)
6/05
Mule
race soon to see double (Coeur d'Alene Press)
5/30/03
Still
a Crossbreed, but This Baby Mule Is a Full-Blooded Clone - The
creation
of Idaho Gem by scientists is a first for any member of the horse
family
(LA Times)
5/29/03
Idaho
Researchers Create Mule Clone (LA Times)
5/29/03
Black
Ruby Might Get a New Challenger (LA Times)
9/14/2002
Black
Ruby Does It Again (Bloodhorse)
In
the Mule Heavyweight Championship, Black Ruby again proved she's queen
of her breed. more...
9/8/2002
Del
Mar Catches Black Ruby Fever (Bloodhorse)
Black
Ruby, the all-time great racing mule, defeated rival Taz in a $10,000
match
race, "The Mule Duel," at Del Mar Sunday. more...
9/7/02
Horse
Racing Beat: Black Ruby, Taz will meet again in Del Mar match race
(Sac Bee)
9/6/2002
Black
Ruby, Taz Set for Two-Mule Del Mar Battle
Mule
racing moves to the big stage Sept. 8 when Del Mar hosts a match race
between
Black Ruby, a winner of 47 races, and Taz, who upset her last time out
at the California State Fair in Sacramento. TVG will cover the race
live.
more...
8/18/2002 Del
Mar Schedules Match Race For Mules Black Ruby, Taz
Black
Ruby, muledom's star of stars, will make her first appearance ever at
Del
Mar for a match race Sunday, Sept. 8, with arch-rival Taz for a purse
of
$10,000. more...
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