Head to Head

Interesting piece of news will occurred next week, as two cloned mules will race against their natural counterparts.
It's not exactly the Kentucky Derby, but two cloned mules named Idaho Star and Idaho Gem will compete in a professional mule race in Winnemucca, Nev., when the professional mule racing season begins on June 2nd.

Idaho Gem and Idaho Star were both born three years ago. They carry identical DNA taken from a fetus produced by the same parents that sired a champion mule racer named Taz.

Because Gem and Star have been separated for over two years and trained separately, watching how they perform against each other will offer insight into the role played by environmental variables, such diet and training regimens, in developing racing mules.

By the way, just because they carry the DNA of a past champion that does not guarantee that the clones will be successful and win the race.