Summer/Fall Racing: LIVE Racing! FINALLY :)

November 21

A Day At The Downs

In early October I was scrolling through my Twitter feed and saw an announcement that Churchill Downs was going to allow limited fans on track for their Fall November meet. I immediately reached out to my buddy Keith (who loves Louisville and Churchill Downs) and confirmed he'd be up for a day at the races. I'd read you had to pre-purchase your tickets so I got us tickets in a reserved box at the 16th pole. Next I researched hotels - I specifically wanted something like a Residence Inn which had a separate living area and bedroom. It was difficult to find what I was looking for because I wanted something within about 20 minutes of Churchill Downs, but I preferred for both Keith and I to have our own bedrooms. He likes to sleep with the TV on and he often snores. At this point in my life, I'm not interested in having my sleep interrupted. I found several spots which had a living area - where you can sit in a living room setting - but they all had just a single bedroom with a sleeper sofa. But I finally found a Homewood Suites by Hilton that was pretty close (about 20 min) and it had not one but two bedrooms.

Booked the flights and looked forward to the trip for about a month. The week of my flight there was a lot of talk about new precautions for the virus and Keith and I were both concerned about the possibility of the day at the track being shut down to fans. But, all seemed well on the day before I left. I called the hotel to confirm our reservation and when I got off the phone I'd missed a call and the caller had left a message. It was from Twin Spires telling me I had a $240 wagering credit and they wanted to "help me" cash that in. I called the guy, Steve, right back and told him how ironic it was that I had been on the phone with a hotel in Louisville because I was actually GOING to Churchill Downs on Saturday and could use the credits. Used to be I had a very active Twin Spires account because Calder Race Course was owned by Churchill Downs and about nine months of the year that's where I did my racing. But when they closed down the racing part of the operation I switched to Xpressbet (which is now 1stBet) which works through Gulfstream Park, which is open year-round. But Jeff has been using my Twin Spires account and that's where the wagering credits built up. Since Jeff no longer plays the races I asked about how to get the credits. And as it turned out the easiest way was to simply convert the credits into dollars into my Twin Spires account. And as I explained to Steve, that would work for me as I'd use "their money" to play other tracks, and use my own cash to bet Churchill Downs because since it had been so long since I'd actually been to the races I wanted the full experience, including walking up to the window and wagering with real money.

I left Friday morning from my Mom's at a little before 9 am and set the GPS for Hebron, Kentucky which is just across the Ohio River on the Kentucky side of Cincinnati. A year ago to this day Kim and I were in Portugal where we were sailing the Douro River with our good friends Dennis & Mary Smith. And while on board we became best of friends with two other couples - Pam & Bob from the St. Louis area and Mary Pat & Tom from the Cincinnati area. The eight of us planned to get together this past August in Gatlinburg, but Dennis & Mary had a wedding conflict and at the last minute Pam & Bob had to cancel out. So it was MP & Tom, with Kim and I and Keith tagged along. When Kim and I originally were going to the Breeders' Cup in November which was set for Lexington we had coordinated to visit MP & Tom. But then Keeneland went fan-less. So when I booked this trip I re-scheduled our visit and so I headed to their place as about a half-way stop. They had all their Christmas decorations up and I spent about four hours with them, including a lovely lunch of pasta and shrimp. Was good to see them, and I got back in the car about 3 to meet up with Keith in Louisville.

Keith texted me that he had arrived about fifteen minutes prior to my arrival and I soon joined him in our spacious room. Kentucky, just this day, had closed down indoor dining so we ordered a pizza and went and picked it up. Watched television for a few hours and headed to bed in anticipation of a full day of racing the next day.

I slept like a log and actually Keith woke me up at 7:40 am when his key didn't work to get back in after heading out to get bagels for us. We left the room about 10:40 for Churchill Downs and arrived there right around 11 am. For me - and let's be clear here......it's my adventure, it's my blog, and so I get to make the rules - I looked at the few bets I was making out of town as strictly "fun bets" and I was using the Twin Spires money, so they would not count as part of my handicapping records (of course unless I had a huge winning day out of town!). So when we arrived it was about 20 minutes before my first play in New York. I'd been in my Twin Spires account both on my phone and computer at the hotel, and so when I opened it in my car once I'd parked to make the bet I was amazed that I got "that's an incorrect password" message and subsequently was locked out of my app. How would I play the off track races and use "their money?"

So, once inside the Downs I found "Guest Services" and asked about getting help. They sent us upstairs to the Twin Spires desk, but when we got there they said they weren't open yet. I said I just needed help with my password and they directed me around the corner to the "Gold Room" where I was told I could get help. This was interesting because Steve (remember from Twin Spires) had told me when the new protocols went out that the Gold Room was going to be closed and the gal he'd set me up with to get a new VIP Twin Spires card and a voucher wouldn't be available. Now I'm being told I COULD go to the Gold Room. Went in and there was a cute Kentucky gal and I asked if she could help me with my password, and she said sure. As she turned to her laptop I said, "Would you happen to be Becky?" She smiled and said, "I am indeed," and I said, "I'm Mark Love and Steve said....." she smiled and reached down and gave me my new Twin Spires Club card. I told her to never mind about the voucher because I'd moved the money into my account (to bet the off track races). She got on her computer and said, "I've re-set the password, you're good to go!"

So I logged on - got the same "Incorrect Password" message. What the? She frowned, typed a few things and said, "Try again." Same thing...... "Really?" she said sweetly. So she reached over, got a post-it, and said, "Write down a new password, just as you want it to be and we'll restart again." I did and got the same message. Now you could tell Becky was perplexed. I handed my phone to her and she kept trying over and over. After about the fifth time, I said, "That's ok" and she looked at me with eyes full of determination and said, "No, I WILL figure this out for you." Finally a big smile broke out on her pretty face and she said, "There you go!" I asked her what she did different and she had dropped the last character off the new password and it worked. Horray, thanks Becky! So Keith and made our bet on the live opener and headed out to the rail. The opener in Louisville looked to be all, and I mean ALL about the rail filly Misty Blue. The filly was clearly the speed of the race and if she ran back to her 84 Beyer two back in allowance company she would be L-O-N-G gone. Today was also her first start for a tag, and I viewed the $50K tag as a reasonable move, not a "fire sale" kind of thing. This six furlong distance is clearly her best (3-for-7 while 0-for-6 at all other trips). And she had quick recent works. She broke a step slowly, but by the time they had clicked off the opening quarter she was clear on the lead. Midway on the turn the stalkers were asked for run, but Misty Blue let it out a notch and she was long-LONG gone. First live bet in a LONG time and it's a winning one! Whoooo hoooo. As soon as the race was official I had a thought.....I knew I'd be chronicling the day's events and that I'd have to tell the story about the card and password. So I returned to the Gold Room and proposed to Becky the idea that we take a photo together to "commemorate" the exchange and she was all for it. When I turned the camera on with the ticket in my hand, I asked if she minded if I took my mask off, she said of course not and took hers off then suggested she hold the winning ticket. And so here's the result....

A great start. We made our bets for the second race and went back outside, but this time to our box seats. No one seemed to be paying attention to "assigned" seats so we took up a spot on the finish line. The second was a maiden event and I said in my analysis that under normal circumstances this was a clear PASS race, but since we are here watching live racing, why not play? So I took the 7/2 third choice. Left the gate at 5/1 and broke last and trailed the field all the way around the track. Should have watched. The third was a third level allowance event and the class of Chocolate Kisses just leapt off the the past performance page. If you only considered her two-turn events - and this was a mile and a sixteenth event - she showed a win last spring in the Grade 3 Honeybee at this trip. She'd run in five other stakes since, including four graded events. She'd come off a layoff to run in a one-turn mile and missed by just 3/4 of a length. The second off the shelf conditioning and the added distance all made her more enticing. As they turned for home she was on the move but as I stood at the rail I could tell it would be close. Jockey Tyler Gaffalione timed it perfectly and just as she passed me she got her head in front to score with my triple investment on board!

Next up was a 2yo claiming event and it was a complete toss-up. Couldn't find anyone who was worthy of even a "fun bet." The 5/2 third choice walked with it. In the fifth was another maiden event for juveniles. Cane Creek Road had debuted in a rich $150K event at Keeneland. So the "drop" today to $40K seemed reasonable for the Brad Cox trainee. Stalked the pace as the 6/5 choice into the turn then had no late punch....fourth. I was surprised at the number of people both inside and outside. But the facility is so big that it seemed like there were fewer than there were. Still, good to see real people at the track watching the races (live or simulcast) and making bets.

The sixth was another maiden sprint and I liked three potential win candidates. Went with what ended up being the mild 9/5 chalk and he pressed the issue into the turn before fading to sixth. The seventh was a starter optional claiming sprint and Kiffle looked to be loose and long gone as the favorite IF she could clear early. Walked out to the paddock, walking ring before the race to see them circling around, always a cool part of the racing day. She was sent off as the 9/5 favorite she broke quickly but was outsprinted to the lead by a 9/1 longshot. Approaching the turn she glided to the front and extended the lead to over two lengths heading into the lane. For about 100 yards I thought we were home free. But with a furlong to go I could tell the rider was begging her to finish but two stalkers were making up ground. We got inside the 16th pole and it was a "WHERE'S THE WIRE!" kind of finish.....

So close, but in the end third. The eighth was a difficult 2yo sprint for maidens going 6 1/2 furlongs. I went with two-time beaten favorite Wild Combo. She was a fair 7/2 price today but was four wide while contesting the lead into the far turn. Faded to a non-threatening seventh. And that brought us to the featured Grade 3 Chulukki Stakes. The 2nd and 3rd finishers from Keeneland's Grade 2 Raven Run were back to renew their rivalry and Finite had finished just half a length in front of the lightly raced Grade Cru Classe. But to me, it was all about Finite. She'd won four straight last winter heading into the Grade 2 Fair Grounds Oaks. She was 1/5 at post time and seemed on her way to the Kentucky Oaks as one of the likely favorites. Flat as a pancake she ran fourth and that was the end of her spring. Came off a break and tried turf - hated it. Then last time out she ran in that graded sprint off a layoff. Narrowly beaten she missed by a neck to a talented So Cal filly. Second off the break today and stretching out to a mile I thought she was tons the best IF she could return to her winter form. Finite broke sharply but settled seventh of eight behind a wicked pace. She moved four wide on the turn and began picking off fillies one by one. At the top of the stretch she collared the survivor of the pace duel and began to edge clear as she ran by me standing along the rail.