Someone once said to me that thoroughbreds are born with a death wish and we spend our whole life merely trying to steer them away from it.

Greg Irvine reports in the Virtual FormGuide that Australia's champion filly Alinghi (currently in the US pursuing a Northern Hemisphere campaign) thought she would also test the limits of this theory by dumping her rider, escaping Belmont Racecourse and bolting across a busy four lane highway this week. She no doubt surprised a few early morning visitors at a Wendy's fast food outlet where she was finally caught.

Some additional grey hairs for connections I suspect.

Fortunately (miraculously?) Alinghi was uninjured in the incident.

The filly will debut in a US$65,000 race at Saratoga on Wednesday.