This column was first published in August 2009.
SHELBYVILLE. Ky. - Buddy Ryan's whistle pierced the Kentucky morning.
"Yo," Ryan called across the back pasture, larger than a football field. "Come on. Come on."
Six horses looked across at the 75-year-old man standing at the fence, wearing a windbreaker and a New York Jets hat. Another whistle - this one loud enough to stop a train - got the thoroughbreds wandering over.
"They think they're going to get fed," Ryan said.
Of an 18-year-old brown mare walking his way, he said, "That's FiredForWinning right there.