Papa Clem Fourth in Derby

Papa Clem, a three-year-old bay colt owned and bred by longtime Pacific Palisades resident Bo Hirsch, finished fourth at the Kentucky Derby on Saturday and Hirsch called it “the experience of a lifetime.” “I was in awe just driving up to the grounds at Churchill Downs–like a kid seeing Disneyland for the first time,” the 60-year-old Hirsch said. “At post time there were lines of people on both sides of the track. The noise was almost deafening.” Named after Bo’s late father Clement, who devoted his adult life to the sport, Papa Clem battled Pioneer of the Nile and Musket Man to the wire but was edged by a head. The threesome was six and a half lengths behind 50-1 longshot winner Mine That Bird. “It was very exciting,” Hirsch said. “Coming down the stretch I thought: ‘Oh my God, we have a shot.’ He got bumped a little in the stretch, otherwise he might have been second.” Hirsch soaked the atmosphere in, from the time he arrived in Louisville last Tuesday until he flew home on Sunday. “What made it so extra special is that Saturday was my 22nd wedding anniversary,” he said. “I told my wife Candy that her gift was coming in the 11th race.” Candy joined her husband in walking their horse on a rain soaked, muddy track from the barn to the saddling paddock. “It was a such fantastic experience being a part of all of the Derby festivities in Louisville,” she said. “The city even designates the Friday before Derby a holiday. It’s amazing.” Hirsch said he plans to run Papa Clem again in the Preakness Stakes–the second leg of the Triple Crown–on May 16 at Pimlico Racetrack in Maryland. “I’m hoping for a faster track but based on this performance our horse should have shorter odds and the field will be smaller,” he said. Although his entry came up just short this year, Hirsch has a yearling he hopes will be make the 2011 Derby. “Next year will be pretty quiet but the year after that I’m very optimistic.”